Thursday 26 January 2017

Registry of Deeds Index Project: first updates and site developments of 2017 pave way for growth

The Registry of Deeds Index Project has had its first update for 2017 and the main database now holds 224,009 index entries extracted from 25,435 memorials of deeds.

Other developments have followed the upload by FamilySearch late last month of a number of image files (from microfilm) of Registry of Deeds Grantors and Townland Indexes (only one Memorial transcription book (13) was included in this upload).

These Indexes were previously accessible either on microfilm via LDS Family History Centers or to personal visitors to the Registry of Deeds in Dublin. It's hoped that the free online access now available via FamilySearch will make it more practical for the volunteer team to grow, and enable the Index Project to make faster headway.

In response to the FamilySearch upload, which is expected to be the first of several instalments, project manager Nick Reddan FIGRS has created a new 'Grantors' pledge' page for volunteers to commit to transcribing a tranche of images of the Grantors Index. Already, some 12,300 entries have been transcribed. They can be searched on the Index of Grantors' Index transcriptions page

A 'Townlands' Index' has also been created and has already totted up 14,200 entries. To help contributors get started with making entries to this index, Nick has added a sample of his transcription of the first page of the Antrim townland index.