September already. I can hardly believe it. The only positive thing about the imminent arrival of Autumn is that most family, local and general history socities re-convene after their Summer breaks and launch their lecture programmes for the next nine months. Unfortunately, most of the lecture programmes don't start until later in the month.
With Heritage Week having only just concluded as well, the week ahead is just about the quietest of the year. It picks up again next Monday, so here's a fortnight of events for the price of one week.
Monday 1 September to 13 September: Kerry County Infirmary 1814–2014, a free public exhibition. Tralee Library, Moyderwell, Tralee, Co Kerry.
Monday 1 September: Texting terrors: The Ulster Covenant 1912 and the Irish Proclamation 1916, with Professor Liam Kennedy. Host: Craighavon Museum Services. Venue: Civic Centre, Lakeview Road, Craighavon, Co Armagh BT64 1AL. 7:30-9pm. Free. Details: 028 3832 2205.
Friday 5 September: Researching the First World War (Conference). Official launch of PRONI’s First World War Source Guide, and talks by practitioners. 10:30 to 4:30pm. Venue: PRONI, Titanic Boulevard, Belfast. All welcome. Free, but booking required. Email proni@dcalni.gov.uk or telephone 028 90 534800 to reserve your place.
Saturday 6 September: The Big House in Tipperary, with Dr Rachel Finnegan. First of eleven in the Tipperary County Museum lecture series. Venue: Tipperary County Museum, Mick Delahunty Square, Clonmel, Co Tipperary. 10am to Noon, with refreshments provided. €50 for the full series or €5 per session. Bookings: julia.walsh@tipperarycoco.ie or 076 106 5564.
Monday 8 September: By Land, Sea and Air (Conference). A special full-day public workshop relating to the fascinating world of business archives. Venue: PRONI, Titanic Boulevard, Belfast. All welcome. 9:30am to 4:30pm. Free, but booking required. Email proni@dcalni.gov.uk or telephone 028 90 534800 to reserve your place.
Tuesday 9 September: Praying in 11th-century Dublin, with Howard Clarke. Part of the Living and Dying in a medieval city – Dublin in the Age of Clontarf lunchtime lecture series. Host: Friends of Medieval Dublin. Venue: Wood Quay Venue, Civic Offices, Wood Quay, Dublin 8. Time: 1:05pm to 1:45pm. Free.
Tuesday 9 September: The 1641 Depositions, Seminar and launch. Host: PRONI and the Irish Manuscripts Commission. Venue: PRONI, Titanic Boulevard, Belfast. All welcome. 1pm to 2pm. Free, but booking required: proni@dcalni.gov.uk or tel 028 90 534800. Details.
Tuesday 9 September: Irish Genealogy Online - the Digital Revolution, with Brian Donovan. Host: Genealogical Society of Ireland. Venue: DFEi, Cumberland St, Dún Laoghaire. €3. 8pm.
Wednesday 10 September:Women in the Military Service (1916-1923) Pensions Collection - New Identities. A public lecture with Cécile Gordon, Archivist from the Military Archives exploring the role of women from the formation of Cumann na mBan in April 1914 to the end of the Civil War. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin. 6.30pm. Free.
Wednesday 10 September: Ulster and the Great War, with Dr Jonathan Bardon. A free lecture to discuss Ulster’s role in the Great War in which 210,000 Irishmen served in the British forces. Venue: Performance Area, Linen Hall Library, 17 Donegall Square North, Belfast BT1 5GB. 1pm. Free. All welcome.
Wednesday 10 September: Hands of History – one Donegal: many pasts, one future. Monreach Heritage Centre's project focuses on the involvement of people from Donegal in WW1. Venue: Milford and District Resource Centre. 7:30pm–9:30pm. Free admission. Light refreshments provided free. For further details, tel (0)74 914 0708.
From 11 September: Across the Hawthorn Hedge, The Noise of Bugles, an exhibition exploring the impact of the outbreak of the First World War on communities in Mid and East Antrim and the Causeway. Venue: The Braid, Church Street, Ballymena. Free admission. Details.
Thursday 11 September: Researching The Kerry Girls: Emigration and the Earl Grey Scheme, with Kay Caball. Hosts: Eneclann and Ancestor Network. Venue: Davis Theatre, Arts Block, Trinity College, Dublin. 3pm. Free but booking essential.
Friday 12 to Saturday 13 September: Making Connections - Oral History and Community. A conference hosted by Oral History Network of Ireland. Venue: Butler House, Kilkenny City. Rates from €35. Details and booking.
Friday 12 to Sunday 14 September: Even the olives were bleeding, a cultural festival to celebrate the Limerick Men who fought in the Spanish Civil War. Includes day seminar, walking tours, book launch and more. Venue: various in Limerick. Details.
Friday 12 to Sunday 14 September: Pittsburg Irish Festival. Venue: Riverplex at Sandcastle, 1000 Sandcastle Drive, West Homestead (Pittsburgh), PA 15120, USA. Music, whiskey tastings, storytelling, craft demonstrations and a genealogy pavilion. Download brochure for full schedule.
Saturday 13 September: History in Modern Ireland, seminar. Hosts: Meath Archaeological & Historical Society and Meath Peace Group. Venue: St Columban's College, Dalgan Park, Navan. Early booking advised. Admission €5 (includes light lunch). Enquiries.
Saturday 13 September: The Cluster Search and Your Irish Ancestors, with Mary Wickersham. Host: IGSI. Venue: Minnesota Genealogical Society Library, 1185 Concord St N, S St Paul, MN. 10:30am to 12noon. $10 for IGSI members and $15 for non-members.
Saturday 13 September: Birth, marriage and death records – 150 years of civil registration in Ireland, with Gráinne Melia. Host: Galway Family History Society. Venue: Galway City Museum, near the Spanish Arch. 2pm–3:30pm. Free, but booking required: (091) 532 460.
Saturday 13 September: The folklore of County Kildare - seminar. Host: Co. Kildare Federation of Local History Groups. Venue: Kilcullen Heritage Centre, Main Street, Kilcullen. Book launch: Kildare Folk Tales, by Steve Lally. Storytelling, music and recitations. 9:30 to 2pm. €15 (including lunch in Fallons)
Saturday 13 September: Emigration From the Workhouses and Family History, with Dr Gerard Moran. Hosts: Eneclann and Ancestor Network. Venue: Trustee's Room, National Library of Ireland, Kildare St, Dublin 2. 2pm. Free but booking essential.
Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 September: European Heritage Open Weekend at PRONI. Talks and tours on both days, plus a full PRONI document service on Saturday (only). Venue: PRONI, Titanic Boulevard, Belfast. 9am to 4:45pm both days. All welcome. Free.
Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 September: WW1 Experience - up close and personal. The Irish Military War Museum, Starinagh, Collon, Co. Meath. 10am to 5pm. Details.
See European Heritage Open Days in Northern Ireland for a good number of additional genealogy events from Thursday 11 September.
