Irish Genealogy News - Pages

Tuesday, 30 April 2019

Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives: April updates

The following files have been added to Ireland Genealogy Projects - Archives during April. All were donated and uploaded by volunteers and are presented on the database as a free resource for Irish family historians.

Neale Church ruins and graveyard, Cong,
County Mayo. Photo courtesy of Cheryl Dieter
and IGP Archives.
IRELAND Genealogy Archives: Miscellaneous
Owners of Cars and Cycles -1914

DONEGAL Genealogy Archives - Headstones
St. Eunan's Cathedral (CoI), Letterkenny

DUBLIN Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Mt Jerome Cemetey - Part 217-219

MAYO Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Claremorris, Tulrahan Cemetery
Cong (CoI) Graveyard
Neale Cemetery, Cong
Carracaslte, St James RC Graveyard (Additional)

ROSCOMMON Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Lisacul Cemetery

Monday, 29 April 2019

50th historical Northern Ireland newspaper joins BNA

The Protestant Watchman and Lurgan Gazette has joined the online British Newspaper Archive (BNA) and its sister database, FindMyPast.

It becomes the 50th title from Northern Ireland to join the Irish collection.

This weekly paper, published on a Saturday, brought news and historical notes of a conservative persuasion to Lurgan and the neighbouring district

The initial upload sees editions dating from May 1861 to December 1867 available to search and view.



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Irish genealogy and history events, 29 April to 12 May

Monday 29 April:: NLI Reading Room and Manuscript Room closed all day to facilitate the Library's continuing redevelopment of the premises. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2. All other services/exhibitons/cafe, including Genealogy Advisory Service, operate as normal.

Monday 29 April: Huguenots in Beara, with Penny Durell. Host: Beara Historical Society. Venue: Twomey’s Lounge, Bank Place, Castletownbere, Co Cork. 8:30pm.

Tuesday 30 April Henry Joy and Mary Ann McCracken – A Belfast tragedy, with Dr David Hume. Host: NIFHS, Belfast Branch. Venue: C S Lewis Room, Holywood Arches Library, 4-12 Holywood Road, Belfast, BT4 1NT. 7:30pm. Free. All welcome.

Tuesday 30 April: The Caldwell Family of Harmony Hill, with Keith Beattie. Host: NIFHS, Causeway Branch. Venue: The Sandel Centre, Knocklynn Road, Coleraine, BT52 1WT. Follows AGM. 7pm. All welcome. Note changed time and venue!

Tuesday 30 April Saying ‘No’ to Irish Nationalism - Reflections of a Revisionist, with Eoghan Harris. Host: Waterford Treasures. Venue: Garden Room, Medieval Museum, Waterford City. 7:30pm. Tickets €5. Booking is highly recommended. Details.

Wednesday 1 May: Revolution within the Revolution? 1919 and the generation of 1916, with Professor Roy Foster. Host: The Decade of Centenaries: Ireland in 1919 - Spring lecture series. Venue: Irish Cultural Centre, 5 Black's Road, Hammersmith, London W6 9DT. 7–9pm. All welcome. Tickets £5.92, via Eventbrite.

Wednesday 1 May: AGM, Tyrone Branch of the North of Ireland Family History Society. Venue: Local History Section, Omagh Library, 1 Spillars Place, Omagh, BT78 1HL. Free. 7:30pm. Details. POSTPONED.

Thursday 2 May to Saturday 4 May: Invasion 1169, a national conference marking the 850th anniversary of the Anglo-Norman Invasion of Ireland. Featuring an international panel of experts discussing recent research on the impact and significance of this event in late C12th-Ireland. Host: TCD. Venue: Edmund Burke Theatre (Arts Building), Trinity College Dublin. Admission free. All welcome. Registration and details.

Thursday 2 May to Sunday 5 May: Cloughjordan Honours Thomas McDonagh, a weekend of lectures, screenings, dance and music, guided walks, language sessions. Host and venue: Thomas McDonagh Museum, Lower Main Street, Cloughjordan, Co. Tipperary. Details and programme.

Friday 3 May: 850 Years of Oppression? a History Ireland Hedge School. Part of the Invasion 1169 conference (see above for details and booking). Venue: TCD, Dublin 2. Attendance is free but booking is recommended.

Saturday 4 May: Making the Most of Your Autosomal DNA Results, with Anne Johnston. First of two 2-hour Saturday classes (second one on 11 May). Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. Venue: Honneyman Room, NIFHS Research Centre, Unit C4, Valley Business Centre, 67 Church Road, Newtownabbey, BT36 7LS. 2-4pm, on both dates. Cost: £14 for the 2 sessions, payable at the first class. These courses are open to members and non-members. Further details.

Sunday 5 May: In Pursuit of the Heiress, a day programme of lectures at Dromana House and Gardens. Julian Walton: “The drawbacks and dangers of heiress hunting, with Julian Walton; The decorative life of Marie Antoinette – the glittering road to the guillotine, with Judy Brittain; The Abduction of Mary Pike and that fateful night in Vernon Mount, Cork, with Dr Kieran Groeger; and The Irish ‘Wild Geese: In search of fortune in the Habsburg Empire, with Dr Dagmar O'Riain-Raedel. Host: Dromana House, Lismore, Co Waterford. 10:30am to 4pm. Refreshments, lunch and afternoon tea included. Tickets €70pp or €125 for 2 persons. Enquiries and booking email: info@dromanahouse.com or tel (086)8186305.

Monday 6 May: May Day bank holiday, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland. All repositories closed, except for most exhibitions at National Library of Ireland in Dublin, which are open 12 noon to 5pm. The exception is the Seamus Heaney: Listen Now Again exhibition, which is closed.

Tuesday 7 May Irish Seminar, with John Grenham, David E Rencher and Beth Stahr. An all-day pre-conference starting at 8:15am, with five lectures and lunch. Host: National Geneological Society 2019 Family History Conference. Venue: St. Charles Convention Center, One Conference Plaza Center, 63303 St Charles, Missouri, USA. Details and brochure.

Wednesday 8 May: Irish and Peterloo, with Martin Gittins and Michala Hulme. Host & venue: Irish World Heritage Centre, Irish Town Way, Manchester M8, UK. 7–9pm. Free, but need to register.

Wednesday 8 May to Saturday 11 May: Journey of discovery – National Geneological Society 2019 Family History Conference, includes several Irish lectures. Host: NGS and St Louis Genealogical Society. Venue: St. Charles Convention Center, One Conference Plaza Center, 63303 St Charles, Missouri, USA. Programme.

Thursday 9 May: Consequences of War, an afternoon conference with the Western Front Association, Antrim and Down Branch. Venue: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, 2 Titanic Boulevard, Belfast, BT3 9HQ. 2pm to 5pm. All welcome. Details.

Saturday 11 May: The National Library's History & Heritage, a guided tour exploring the National Library's rich architectural history and heritage on this free tour which includes a visit to its Victorian reading room. Host and venue: National Library of Ireland, 7-8 Kildare Street, Dublin 2. Free. 1pm. All welcome. Booking not required.

Saturday 11 May: Irish Genealogical Research Society's Library closed at the Society of Genealogists, London, to facilitate volunteers' and members' attendance at the Open Day.

Saturday 11 May: IGRS Open Day and AGM. Host: Irish Genealogical Research Society. Venue: The Abbey Centre, 34 Great Smith Street, London, SW1P 3BU, UK. 10:15am - 3:30pm. After registration and refreshments, two lectures: Mining for Treasure in the IGRS Collections, with Jill Williams FIGRS, and Freed Felons, Land Hungry Migrants and Imperial Infantry: The Biographical Database of Australia as a Source for Genealogists, with Michael Flynn. Finger buffet lunch included. Cost: £25 members/£30 non-members. All welcome. The AGM (free) follows lunch; all welcome, but only members may vote. Details.



Friday, 26 April 2019

Ulster Examiner joins online British Newspaper Archive

The Ulster Examiner and Northern Star has joined the online British Newspaper Archive (BNA) and its sister database, FindMyPast.

So far, editions available to search and view are those published from 1868, when the title launched as The Ulster Examiner, to 1874, by which time it was known as the Ulster Examiner and Northern Star. The holding will eventually span to 1882, when the paper ceased publication.

This new arrival brings the total number of Irish newspapers in the BNA collection to 174. Of these, just under 50 were published in what is now Northern Ireland.


The content above contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you buy via these links. This does not affect the price you pay as a consumer, but it does contribute to keeping IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

(Irish) Registry of Deeds Index Project: Latest update

The latest update to the Registry of Deeds Index Project sees the number of indexed entries rise to 310,805. They have been extracted from 33,891 memorials of deeds.

https://irishdeedsindex.net/index.phpIn addition the Townland Index has grown to 65,666 entries and the Grantor Index to 28,022.

The site is run entirely by volunteers, with contributors mostly accessing the free online virtual microfilms of the memorial volumes via the free FamilySearch website or transcribing from the actual volumes at the Registry of Deeds in Dublin.

The more volunteer contributions, the greater the coverage in the Index, which is free for researchers to access. Can you help grow the Index? If so, please find out more about the Project here.

Family Tree Live opens at Alexandra Palace, London

The doors have opened at the first ever Family Tree Live genealogy extravaganza, which is being held in North London's Alexandra Palace, an amazing building in a beautiful spot surrounded by parkland and fresh air with a terrific view over London. The event has been organised by the publishers of the UK-based Family Tree magazine.

The Irish Genealogical Research Society at Family Tree Live
Family Tree Live offers a lively exhibition area filled with online and offline data providers; genealogy and history publishers; genealogy software, chart and stationery suppliers; heraldry experts; education/course providers; professional genealogist associations; genetic genealogists and dna test suppliers; libraries and museums; and a huge number of themed and local family history societies from across England, Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands, and even China and India!

Researchers with Irish connections should make sure to pop along to the Irish Genealogical Research Society's stand number 158 and/or the North of Ireland Family History Society on stand number F88. You'll receive a friendly welcome and top-notch advice from both.

In addition to the more than 120 exhibitors, Family Tree Live presents a busy programme of lectures and workshop on traditional genealogy and genetic genealogy, and a series of (bookable) one-to-one consultations with experts.

The event continues today until 6pm and will be on again tomorrow from 9:30am to 5pm. There's free parking, not all of it terribly close to the doors, and a free shuttle bus running between Alexandra Palace Station, Wood Green underground station and the venue.

You'll find more visitor information here.

#FamilyTreeLive

Thursday, 25 April 2019

DNA Day: Genetic Genealogy Ireland conference videos

As it's DNA Day*, I think it's appropriate to remind you that Genetic Genealogy Ireland, the annual/bi-annual DNA conference held in Dublin and Belfast, has a huge library of free videos of lectures presented over the last several years.

View the full library of lecture videos
View the library of lecture videos
While some of the presentations relate specificially to Irish DNA themes, most are aimed at a much wider audience, and at all levels of experience and understanding.

Whether you're just starting out on your DNA journey, need help making sense of your ever growing lists of DNA matches, or want to follow the very latest scientific, technical or ethical thinking on the topic, you're sure to find a good number of lectures of interest.

*DNA Day marks commemorates the day (25 April) in 1953 when James Watson, Francis Crick, Maurice Wilkins, Rosalind Franklin and colleagues published papers in the journal Nature on the structure of DNA.


Limerick Union Board of Guardians files now online

Limerick Archives has uploaded freshly digitised material from its Limerick Union Board of Guardians Minute Books collection to its online archive at LimerickArchive.ie.

Click image for enlarged view of page
The content is free to access via a series of downloadable pdfs from the detailed description page. Some of the files are quite large (the Death Register, for example, is only a smidgen under 70Mb), so those of us laggards on rural broadband speeds need to exercise some patience.

The collection is split into the following distinct parts:

Board of Guardians Minute Books, 1842-1922. Meetings were held weekly and the Minute Books hold reports of the Master and Other Officers, orders of and letters from the poor law commissioners, proposals and resolutions passed, payments made and a summary of the population in the workhouse with details on the number of admissions, deaths and discharges, the number of children, the number aged and infirm, and the number of lunatics. (120+ pdf files)

Board of Guardian Rough Minute Books, 1842-1883 (5 pdfs)

Rural Sanitary Board Minute Book, 1885-1890 (1 pdf)

Contagious Diseases (Animal) Committee Minute Book, 1878-1893 (1pdf)

Wages' Book, 1916-1919 (1 pdf)

Letters from Local Government Board, 1887-1895 (5 pdfs)

General Ledgers, 1842-1875 (1 pdf)

Register of Deaths, 1907-1915 (1 pdf) To see a sample page, click image above.

The team at Limerick Archives advises that Board of Guardians' material for the Unions of Croom, Glin, Rathkeale, Newcastle West and Kilmallock will be joining the online archive soon.

You can view the full digital archive, presented by theme/category here.

DNA Day: Ancestry discounts test kit for Ireland and UK

And better late than never, AncestryDNA announces its DNA Day promotions for family historians residents in the UK and Ireland.

Both offer a saving of 25% on the basic price of the autosomal test kit. Shipping costs are, as usual, additional.

Here's how the discounts line-up:

https://prf.hn/click/camref:1100l4pTC/destination:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ancestry.co.uk%2Fcs%2Fireland-dnaIrish researchers:
Discount reduces price of kit from €95 to €71.
 UK researchers:
Discount reduces price of test kit from £79 to £59.


The promotions will expire at 23:59pm on Sunday 28 April.

Please note: If you are signed in to Ancestry when you click the links above, the discount may not be offered to you. Log-out and try again. Bingo! You can then sign in again.


The content above contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you buy via these links. This does not affect the price you pay as a consumer, but it does contribute to keeping IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Wednesday, 24 April 2019

Ancestry DNA: $50 CAD saving for Canadian researchers

https://prf.hn/click/camref:1101l4phT/creativeref:1100l27973
AncestryDNA is running a DNA Day promotion for family historians in Canada. It offers a saving of $50 CAD on the basic price of AncestryDNA's autosomal test kit.

The offer reduces the cost of the kit to $79 CAD, plus shipping.

To take advantage of the discount, order your kit before 11:59pm EST on Tuesday 30 April. Just click the Order Now button.



The content above contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you buy via these links. This does not affect the price you pay as a consumer, but it does contribute to keeping IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.




Monday, 22 April 2019

Irish genealogy and history events, 22 April to 5 May

Monday 22 April: Easter Monday. All National Library of Ireland exhibitions in Dublin, except Seamus Heaney: Listen Now Again, will be open Noon to 5pm. All other areas of the Library closed, as are all repositories and archives in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Tuesday 23 April: Bank Holiday in Northern Ireland only. PRONI, the NIFHS Research Centre, and all repositories and local libraries closed.

Tuesday 23 April: Disappearing Workplaces, with Mary Muldowney. Key C19th industries in Dublin and what happened to them in the C20th. Host and venue: Central Library, Henry St, North City, Dublin 1. 1pm. Admission free. Booking required: centrallibrary@dublincity.ie or 01 873 4333.

Thursday 25 April: Members Interests Night. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Ballymena branch. Venue: Michelin Arts Workshop, Braid Arts Centre, 1-29 Bridge Street, Ballymena, BT43 5EJ. 7:15pm. All welcome.

Friday 26 April: Getting Started workshop. Host & venue: PRONI, Titanic Blvd, Belfast. Advice on searching for records, practical demonstration on using the Public Search Room, handle original documents in the Reading Room. 11am to 1pm. Free, but need to book. Details and booking.

Friday 26 April: Waterford Crystal – The creation of a global brand, with Johnn M Hearne. Host: Waterford Archaeological and Historical Society. Venue: St Patrick's Gateway Centre, Patrick Street, Waterford City. 8pm. Free for members. Non-members €5. Tea and coffee served after lecture.

Friday 26 and Saturday 27 April: Family Tree Live, exhibitors, lectures, workshops, DNA, one-to-one consultations. Researchers with Irish connections should be sure to visit the stands of the Irish Genealogical Research Society (IGRS) and North of Ireland Family History Society (NIFHS). Online booking for lectures ends 22 April. See FamilyTreeLive for details. Venue: Alexandra Palace, Muswell Hill, London, UK.

Sunday 28 April: The Fitzmaurices – the Lords of Kerry and Lixnaw, with speakers including Rosemary Raughter, Kay Caball and Dr John Knightly. Host: Lixnaw Heritage & Historical Group. Venue: The Ceolann, Lixnaw, north Co Kerry. 10:30am to 3pm. Refreshments will be served. Free. All welcome. More information: 087 1335243.

Monday 29 April:: NLI Reading Room and Manuscript Room closed all day to facilitate the Library's continuing redevelopment of the premises. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2. All other services/exhibitons/cafe, including Genealogy Advisory Service, operate as normal.

Monday 29 April: Huguenots in Beara, with Penny Durell. Host: Beara Historical Society. Venue: Twomey’s Lounge, Bank Place, Castletownbere, Co Cork. 8:30pm.

Tuesday 30 April Henry Joy and Mary Ann McCracken – A Belfast tragedy, with Dr David Hume. Host: NIFHS, Belfast Branch. Venue: C S Lewis Room, Holywood Arches Library, 4-12 Holywood Road, Belfast, BT4 1NT. 7:30pm. Free. All welcome.

Tuesday 30 April Saying ‘No’ to Irish Nationalism - Reflections of a Revisionist, with Eoghan Harris. Host: Waterford Treasures. Venue: Garden Room, Medieval Museum, Waterford City. 7:30pm. Tickets €5. Booking is highly recommended. Details.

Wednesday 1 May: Revolution within the Revolution? 1919 and the generation of 1916, with Professor Roy Foster. Host: The Decade of Centenaries: Ireland in 1919 - Spring lecture series. Venue: Irish Cultural Centre, 5 Black's Road, Hammersmith, London W6 9DT. 7–9pm. All welcome. Tickets £5.92, via Eventbrite.

Wednesday 1 May: AGM, Tyrone Branch of the North of Ireland Family History Society. Venue: Local History Section, Omagh Library, 1 Spillars Place, Omagh, BT78 1HL. Free. 7:30pm. Details.

Thursday 2 May to Saturday 4 May: Invasion 1169, a national conference marking the 850th anniversary of the Anglo-Norman Invasion of Ireland. Featuring an international panel of experts discussing recent research on the impact and significance of this event in late C12th-Ireland. Host: TCD. Venue: Edmund Burke Theatre (Arts Building), Trinity College Dublin. Admission free. All welcome. Registration and details.

Thursday 2 May to Sunday 5 May: Cloughjordan Honours Thomas McDonagh, a weekend of lectures, screenings, dance and music, guided walks, language sessions. Host and venue: Thomas McDonagh Museum, Lower Main Street, Cloughjordan, Co. Tipperary. Details and programme.

Friday 3 May: 850 Years of Oppression? a History Ireland Hedge School. Part of the Invasion 1169 conference (see above for details and booking). Venue: TCD, Dublin 2. Attendance is free but booking is recommended.

Saturday 4 May: Making the Most of Your Autosomal DNA Results, with Anne Johnston. First of two 2-hour Saturday classes (second one on 11 May). Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. Venue: Honneyman Room, NIFHS Research Centre, Unit C4, Valley Business Centre, 67 Church Road, Newtownabbey, BT36 7LS. 2-4pm, on both dates. Cost: £14 for the 2 sessions, payable at the first class. These courses are open to members and non-members. Further details.

Sunday 5 May: In Pursuit of the Heiress, a day programme of lectures at Dromana House and Gardens. Julian Walton: “The drawbacks and dangers of heiress hunting, with Julian Walton; The decorative life of Marie Antoinette – the glittering road to the guillotine, with Judy Brittain; The Abduction of Mary Pike and that fateful night in Vernon Mount, Cork, with Dr Kieran Groeger; and The Irish ‘Wild Geese: In search of fortune in the Habsburg Empire, with Dr Dagmar O'Riain-Raedel. Host: Dromana House, Lismore, Co Waterford. 10:30am to 4pm. Refreshments, lunch and afternoon tea included. Tickets €70pp or €125 for 2 persons. Enquiries and booking email: info@dromanahouse.com or tel (086)8186305.

Sunday, 21 April 2019

DNA Day: Up to 40% off Living DNA test kits

Living DNA is offering a discount of between 30% and 40%, and in the process presenting its lowest ever prices. The saving you get depends on where you live.

  • Europe :  35% saving – reduced to €69, its lowest ever price
  • UK :   £40 off – kit reduced to £59, its lowest ever price
  • USA :  Save US$40. Kit reduced to $59.
  • Australia, New Zealand:  30% off – kit reduced from $169 to $119
  • Canada : Save CAN$50 - kit reduced from $149 to $99
To take advantage of the offer, which coincides with DNA Day (25 April), place your order by following the appropriate link above (or click the image to visit your local geographical territory). The discount will expire on Saturday 27 April.
The content above contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you buy via these links. This does not affect the price you pay as a consumer, but it does contribute to keeping IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Saturday, 20 April 2019

DNA Day: Ancestry DNA offer for US researchers

https://prf.hn/click/camref:1011l4pku/destination:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ancestry.com%2Fdna%2F
Ancestry DNA is offering USA-based researchers a discount on its testing kit. The offer reduces the test price from $99 to $69, plus tax and shipping.

The special offer will run until 11:59pm EST on Thursday 25 April – DNA Day.

As far as I can see, this offer is available only in the US, but it might be worth checking your local Ancestry territory to be sure you don't miss an offer. Click the 'Order Now' button, right. The site's geo-locator will take you to your local site.

UPDATE: I believe there will be DNA Day discounts for some other countries later this week. Check in here on Irish Genealogy News, or on the Special Offers page of my Irish Genealogy Toolkit for details on Wednesday/Thursday.



The content above contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you buy via these links. This does not affect the price you pay as a consumer, but it does contribute to keeping IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Friday, 19 April 2019

This Easter sees biggest ever free access to Ancestry

This Easter, Ancestry is opening up a huge collection of Irish, British and Commonwealth records to free access. The company says this collection of more than one billion records is its biggest ever free access offer.

https://prf.hn/click/camref:1100l4pTCWithin the collection are records from Ireland – civil bmd indexes, RC parish registers, land records, Ancestry's huge library of city and regional trade directories spanning 1848 to 1946, passenger lists, Poor Law Removals from England, military and policemen records, and much more – as well as a huge mix of record sets from the UK, Channel Islands, Australia, Canada (English and French), New Zealand and West Indies.

See a full list of all the featured record sets here.

The period of free access runs until 23:59pm GMT, Monday 22 April.

To view these records you will need to register with Ancestry UK by providing your name and email address. Ancestry then issues a user name and password. It's a very straightforward and automated process. After the free access period ends, you will only be able to view the records in the featured collections using an Ancestry subscription.

DNA Day - Special offers from Family Tree DNA

To mark DNA Day (25 April), Family Tree DNA is offering up to 30% on its range of testing kits. Its most popular tests have savings as follows:

y-DNA for Paternal ancestry : discounts reduce the price of the Y-37 test from $169 to $129. (The savings on offer across the Y-DNA range are as big as $200!)

Family Finder for Family ancestry _ Save $30. Test kit reduced from $79 to $49.

mt-DNA for Maternal ancestry : The current offer reduces the mt Full Sequence test kit from $199 to %149.

Click the Shop Now button (right) to find out more. I don't know when the offers officially expire, but it's probably on or straight after DNA Day.

Thursday, 18 April 2019

IGRS adds 13,300 records to its Early Irish BMD Indexes

The Irish Genealogical Research Society (IGRS) has added a further tranche of records to its exclusive Early Irish Birth, Marriage & Death Indexes. These indexes refer to records gleaned from lessor known or underused sources, all of them pre-dating Ireland's civil registration system, and most parish registers.

This update adds a further 8,325 birth and 5,000 marriage records, bringing the total number of names in these indexes to 70,000 births and 213,000 marriages.

https://www.irishancestors.ie
Established in 1936
Included among the newly-added marriages are 1,000 events drawn from the Registry of Deeds, which brings the total number of marriages in the index drawn from there to 10,000.

While many of these are formal pre-marriage settlements for wealthy people, there are examples of others for quite ordinary folk, including one dowry amounting to as little as £30. This was for the union of Thomas Shee, a farmer, and his bride Ellis Lanigan, a farmer's daughter. Both bride and groom were from Co Kilkenny and they married in 1772.

Other additions to the marriages are 4,000 references drawn from the Killaloe Marriage Licence Index. The index, which covers licences issued during the years 1719-1845, is all that survives. Originally, it was the finding aid to the more detailed marriage licence bonds, but these were destroyed in the Public Record Office fire in 1922.

The diocese of Killaloe comprises approximately 85 Church of Ireland parishes from across the counties of Clare, Galway, Laois (Queens), Limerick, Offaly (Kings), and Tipperary. Given that the penal laws placed heavy strictures upon the Catholic population, it's worth remembering that a proportion of the marriages were actually those contracted between Catholics, but who were protecting their interests by being married according to the rites of the Church of Ireland, the established, Protestant state church at that time.

The 8,325 births newly-added to the database are all drawn from the Carrick-on-Suir Census of 1799. Carrick is a town and parish which straddles the boundary between counties Tipperary and Waterford. Although references to births are easy to extrapolate from the Carrick census, this is not the case for marriages because while addresses and ages are given clearly, family relationships are not spelled out. Given this, marriages have not been extracted.

However, they are indicated within the records. Take, for instance, the Crowley family living in River Lane West: John (aged 35), Margaret (aged 38) and their three children, Catherine, Jillen and Bridget. Living with them are a widow and a single woman, both described as relations: Jillen Driscoll (aged 62), and Catherine Driscoll (aged 40). It is reasonable to suppose, subject to verification, that Mrs Margaret Crowley, aged 38, was a daughter of Jillen Driscoll, and that Catherine Driscoll was her sister. Also, this would indicate that John Crowley married Miss Margaret Driscoll sometime before 1790, prior to the birth of their eldest child noted in the census, being Catherine, aged 9.

You can search the databases here:

Marriage Index – Free to IGRS members, and non-members

Birth Index - Free to IGRS members. Free Name search only for non-members

Death Index - Free to IGRS members. Free Name search only for non-members

Across the three databases, there are now 320,000 names.

Wednesday, 17 April 2019

Tipperary Studies uploads two more image collections

From the Fethard Collection
Tipperary Studies, the local studies department of Tipperary Libraries, has recently uploaded two more wonderful albums of historical photos to its free digital archive. Both will be of particular interest to researchers with connections to Fethard and its surrounding area.

The first is the Kenrick Collection of images, which is made up of nearly 800 glass photographic plates. The photos are of a high standard and were mostly taken at the end of the 19th century. The website provides an interesting introduction to the collection and its author, here.

The second album – The Fethard Collection – comprises more than 65 images taken from a photo album found in the attic of McCarthy’s Hotel on Main Street. Many of the photos were taken behind the hotel and around the town. If anyone can put names to the people in the pictures or confirm the locations where they were taken, the library team would like to hear from you.

Irish Genealogy Matters: latest issue published

http://www.rootsireland.ie/2019/04/new-irish-genealogy-matters-newsletter/The Irish Family History Foundation (IFHC) has published the latest edition of its newsletter, Irish Genealogy Matters.

Among the new records lined up to join the RootsIreland.ie database shortly are Roman Catholic register transcriptions from the parishes of Camolin and Adamstown in County Wexford.

The newsletter also brings news of recent research successes and upcoming conferences/tours and other events across the island involving the IFHC network of genealogy and heritage centres. There are also details of some new books that may be of interest to researchers.

You can download the newsletter pdf here.

Monday, 15 April 2019

Easter sale on My Heritage DNA testing kits

My Heritage is holding an Easter Sale on both sides of the Atlantic on its home testing autosomal DNA kit. The savings are not huge (around the 10% mark) but always worthwhile, and possibly the best we'll see until summer or Thanksgiving.

https://www.awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=16098&awinaffid=123532&clickref=&p=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.myheritage.com%2FdnaYou can also boost your savings by taking advantage of the free shipping offer, as below.

For UK and Ireland researchers, the sale reduces the price of the MyHeritage DNA kit from £75 to £69. If you choose to order two or more kits at the same time, you'll receive free shipping.

For USA researchers, the sale reduces the price of the MyHeritage DNA kit from $79 to $69. As in the UK offer, if you order two or more kits, you won't be charged for shipping.

Discounts will expire on Easter Monday, 22 April.

There may be similar discounts available in Canada, Australia/New Zealand and other territories. Unfortunately, I can't locate details. If you're not in Ireland, UK or USA, click the image above to reach your local MyHeritage territory to see if it is offering a sale.



The content above contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you buy via these links. This does not affect the price you pay as a consumer, but it does contribute to keeping IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

8-week Introduction to Genealogy course at NLI, Dublin

The well-known lecturer and genealogist Sean Murphy MA will once again be teaching this summer's Introduction to Genealogy course at the National Library of Ireland (NLI).

National Library of Ireland, Dublin 2
Held on Wednesday afternoons from 2pm to 4:30pm, the eight-week course will begin on 1 May. Classes will be held at the NLI in Kildare Street, Dublin 2.

Participants are expected to have experience of using computers, and it is strongly recommended that they bring a laptop, tablet or other Internet-connected device to classes. They will also need to hold an NLI Reader's Ticket.

A summary of the programme is below. You can download the full syllabus from the NLI site.

  • First Steps
  • Computers and the Internet
  • Place names, Forenames and Surnames
  • Census Records
  • Vital Records and Property Valuation Records
  • Church Records, Wills and Deeds
  • Memorial Inscriptions and Miscellaneous Sources
  • Conclusion and Recaptitulation

The course fee is €100 and class size will be limited to 30 students. For more information or to book a place on the course, contact Brid O'Sullivan by emailing: booking@nli.ie. Places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. (This course has been over-subscribed each time it has been offered, so if you're keen to be on the register, don't delay your booking.)

Irish genealogy, history & heritage events, 15-27 April

Monday 15 April: NLI closures: All services/exhibitons/cafe, including Genealogy Advisory Service, closed until 11am for staff meeting. Main Reading Room and Manuscript Room remain closed all day to facilitate Library's continuing redevelopment of the premises. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2.

Monday 15 April: Women of the Somme, with Carol Walker. Host: NIFHS, Larne branch. Venue: Larne Bowling & Tennis Club, 112-120 Glenarm Rd, Larne, BT40 1DZ. 7:30pm. Free. All welcome.

Monday 15 April: What's New in Irish family history, with Chris Paton. Host: Glasgow and West of Scotland Family History Society. Venue: Gilchrist Theatre, Kelvinside Academy, Kirklee Road entrance, Glasgow, Scotland G12 0SW. 7:30pm. Members free. Non-members £1 on the door.

Tuesday 16 April: The Boyne in Medieval Myth and Literature, with Dr Clodagh Downey. Host: Meath Archaeological and Historical Society. Venue: Navan Library, Railway St, Dillonsland, Navan, Co. Meath. All welcome. 7pm.

Tuesday 16 April: Are we there yet? Irish genealogy online, with John Grenham MAGI. Host and venue: National Archives of Ireland, Bishop St, Dublin 8. Free. 6pm. No booking. All welcome.

Tuesday 16 April: Commandant Joe Barrett (1888-1971), leader of the mid-Clare Brigade, and his newly discovered archive, with Dr Paul O'Brien. Host: Clare Libraries. Venue: DeValera Public Library, Harmony Row, Lifford, Ennis, co Clare. 6:30pm. Free. All welcome.

Tuesday 16 April: Workshop evening. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, South Tyrone branch. Venue: Killymaddy Centre, 190 Ballygawley Road, Dungannon BT70 1TF. 8pm. All welcome.

Wednesday 17 April: NAI Reading Room closed until Noon. National Archives of Ireland, Bishop Street, Dublin 8.

Wednesday 17 April: The Vikings in Ireland, with Dr John Sheehan. Host: Kilmurry Historical and Archaeological Association. Venue: Heritage Room, Independence Museum, Kilmurry, Co Cork. 8pm. All welcome. Members free. Non-members €5.

Wednesday 17 April: Widows and the 1641 Depositions, with Professor Jane Ohlmeyer. Host: Institute Association of Professional Historians. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2. 7pm. All welcome.

Wednesday 17 April: The Secret of Dublin Placenames, with Cathy Scuffil. Host and venue: Inchicore Library, 34 Emmet Rd, Inchicore, Kilmainham, Dublin 8. 6:30pm. Admission free. First come, first seated. T. 01 453 3793 or E. inchicorelibrary@dublincity.ie.

Friday 19 April: Cave Hill and the United Irishmen, with John Gray. Host and Venue: Clifton House, North Queen Street, Belfast, BT15 1ES. 1pm–2pm. Booking advisable, T:028 9099 7022. Fee: £6.50, cash only. All welcome.

Friday 19 April: Good Friday, a public holiday in all but name in the Republic of Ireland, where all librairies and archives will be closed until Easter Monday inclusive. In Northern Ireland, Good Friday is not an official holiday and most repositories will be open (they close instead on Easter Monday and Easter Tuesday).

Monday 22 April: Easter Monday. All National Library of Ireland exhibitions in Dublin, except Seamus Heaney: Listen Now Again, will be open Noon to 5pm. All other areas of the Library closed, as are all repositories and archives in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Tuesday 23 April: Bank Holiday in Northern Ireland only. PRONI, the NIFHS Research Centre, and all repositories and local libraries will be closed.

Thursday 25 April: Members Interests Night. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Ballymena branch. Venue: Michelin Arts Workshop, Braid Arts Centre, 1-29 Bridge Street, Ballymena, BT43 5EJ. 7:15pm. All welcome.

Friday 26 April: PRONI Workshop - Getting Started. Host & venue: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, Titanic Blvd, Belfast. Receive advice on searching for records, take part in a practical demonstration on using the Public Search Room, and handle original documents in the Reading Room. 11am to 1pm. Free, but need to book. All welcome. Details and booking.

Friday 26 and Saturday 27 April: Family Tree Live, exhibitors, lectures, workshops, DNA, one-to-one consultations. Researchers with Irish connections should be sure to visit the stands of the Irish Genealogical Research Society (IGRS) and North of Ireland Family History Society (NIFHS). Online booking for lectures ends 22 April. See FamilyTreeLive for details. Venue: Alexandra Palace, Muswell Hill, London, UK.

Thursday, 11 April 2019

Tracing Your Irish Ancestors, by John Grenham - 5th edition published

When a non-fiction book reaches its 5th edition, it's fair to assume the title has achieved a classic status among its intended audience. It's also reasonable to conclude that its presentation and format 'works', its content and author is trusted, and that its topic has undergone sufficient change and development since the last edition to warrant an update. So the publication last week of edition number five of John Grenham's Tracing Your Irish Ancestors – a title designated by many in the industry as the 'bible' of Irish genealogy – was, if anything, overdue.

Now available via the Book Depository
for €22.11/£21.60 with free postage worldwide.
While many new editions of standard reference books may see only minor changes, John's 5th edition is substantially updated. It has just under 20% more pages than the 4th edition published eight years ago, and is only 50 pages short of having twice the page count of the 2nd, publshed in 2000. This extra pagination is not due to John infilling with waffle (as if) nor with strategic use of white space in a new layout. No. The blueprint of the presentation is comfortably familiar and repeats the 15-chapter structure of the last edition, even if the content of a few of them has been 're-ordered'.

As John explains in his Introduction: 'The ease of access created by digitisation has changed the balance of priority between record sources, and this is reflected in this edition.'

The running text in which he introduces the history, value, limitations and accessibility of the various record types has been subtly updated and rarely significantly extended.

There are new sections of text about Genetic Genealogy, the online arrival of the National Library of Ireland's RC Registers, an overview of the major online sites, and tips and techniques to overcome the inconsistencies of some of the search engines. The bashful author even manages to slot in an important note about the National Archives of Ireland's census database being uniquely updated with thousands and thousands of user-submitted corrections without referencing himself as the person who carried out that vital, time-consuming and probably rather mind-numbing task.

Where most of the extra 110 pages have been used is to dramatically extend Chapter 8 - Emigration and the Irish Abroad, which now includes online sources for each of Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada and the UK, as well as an indepth bibliography for research in Africa, Australasia, India, Europe, North America and South America.

The other major winner of additional content and pagination is Chapter 13 - County Source Lists, which now reference online access to specific local records held in all the major commerical databases, county or town archives and other smaller websites.

Every Irish genealogists with any research under their belt probably already has an earlier edition of Tracing Your Irish Ancestors on their bookshelves (it'll be the well-thumbed one), and they'll be missing a trick if they don't update to the new edition with its gloriously long listings of sources. Those new to Irish family history will also make a wise investment in buying John's book, tried and trusted as it is delivering an understanding of how Irish records work and how and where to find them.

Tracing Your Irish Ancestors is published by Gill Books. It is now available in bookshops in Ireland and via Amazon UK and other online booksellers including Book Depository and Easons. It will be launched in North America in due course.
ISBN 10: 0717174654; ISBN-13: 978-0717174652. 688-pages. Paperback.

Monday, 8 April 2019

Three more historical North of Ireland papers join BNA

It's been a good few days for North of Ireland family history research with the County Down Spectator and Ulster Standard joining the Brtitish Newspaper Archive (BNA) at the end of last week (see blogpost) and now another three titles making their into the online holding over the weekend. They are:

North Down Herald and County Down Independent. Another weekly paper for county Down, and also published in Bangor, this title changed its name to The Northern Herald in 1926. The BNA's planned holding will span 1898 to 1939. So fair all editions to 1937 are available to search.

The Fermanagh Herald. This weekly paper launched in 1902 since when it is published by North West News Group in Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh. The intended holding of this paper spans 1903 to 1914. So far, more than 500 editions have been digitised and uploaded.

People's Advocate and Monaghan, Fermanagh, and Tyrone News. This Saturday paper, nationalist in tone, was published in Monaghan and circulated in three counties. The BNA's online holding spans February 1876 to mid-December 1905.

All the titles are now searchable on both BritishNewspaperArchive and FindMyPast databases.

Irish family history and heritage events, 8-21 April

Monday 8 April: NLI Reading Room and Manuscript Room closed all day to facilitate Library's redevelopment of the premises. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare St., Dublin 2. All other services/exhibitons/cafe, including Genealogy Advisory Service, operate as normal.

Monday 8 April: What the newspapers wrote about my family, with Michael Parkinson. Host: NIFHS, Newtownabbey branch. Venue: Drama Theatre, Glengormley High, 134 Ballyclare Rd, Newtownabbey. Free. 7pm. All welcome.

Monday 8 April: Online family and local history resources, a workshop. Host and venue: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI), Titanic Boulevard, Belfast. The 2-hour workshop includes an orientation tour of PRONI and introduction to online resources. 11am. Free. Need to book.

Tuesday 9 April: Using court, prison and coroners’ records, with Wesley Geddis. Host: NIFHS, Lisburn branch. Bridge Community Centre, 50 Railway Street, Lisburn, BT 28 1XP. Free. 7:30pm. All welcome.

Wednesday 10 April: Armagh County Museum – a resource for local studies, with Sean Bardon. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, North Armagh Branch. Venue: Bleary Community Centre, 1 Deans Road, Bleary, Craigavon, Co Armagh, BT66 7AS. Free. 7:30pm. All welcome.

Wednesday 10 April: The lives and correspondence of three C18th-sisters: Katherine Conolly, Jane Bonnell and Mary Jones, with Dr Gabrielle M Ashford. Host: Royal Irish Academy, 19 Dawson Street, Dublin 1. No booking required. All welcome. Free. 1pm–2pm.

Wednesday 10 April: The Augustinian Church, Dungarvan, a walk and talk with William Fraher. Host Waterford County Museum Walk & Talk at 3 series. Meet at Waterford County Museum, St Augustine Street, Dungarvan at 3pm. Free. All welcome.

Wednesday 10 April: A Cultural Revolution: the Last Years of Donnybrook Fair, 1855-1868, with Fergus A D'Arcy. Host and venue: Pembroke Library, Anglesea Rd, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4. 1pm. Booking essential T: +353 1 6689575 E: pembrokelibrary@dublincity.ie.

Thursday 11 April: First World War nurses: the Northern Ireland connection, with Margaret Graham. Host: Western Front Association, Antrim and Down Branch. Venue: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, 2 Titanic Blvd, Belfast, BT3 9HQ. 6:30pm to 8:45pm. All welcome.

Thursday 11 April: Mary Elmes, the Irish Schindler, with Mark Elmes. Host: Rosscarbery & District History Society. Venue: Celtic Ross Hotel, Rosscarbery, Co Cork. All welcome.

Thursday 11 April: Macardle Moore & Co Ltd. Host: Old Dundalk Society. Venue: Louth County Museum, 8 Jocelyn St, Townparks, Dundalk, Co. Louth, 8pm. All welcome.

Thursday 11 April: Using early maps to explore local history and heritage – a midlands perspective, with Dr Arnold Horner. Host: Offaly History. Venue: Offaly History Centre, Bury Quay, Tullamore (beside Tullamore DEW), Co Offaly. All welcome. €2 members/€5 non-members. Teas, coffees and cake after the meeting.

Friday 12 April: Titanic together, a tour of PRONI. Hosts: PRONI, Belfast Titanic Society, Belfast City Council, Titanic Foundation and Titanic Belfast. Venue: PRONI, Titanic Boulevard, Belfast. Visitors will see Harland & Wolff and other historic maritime related material in the Reading Room, see the Reprographics and Conservation areas and visit the stores. Free. Book here.

Saturday 13 April: The Irish Revolution – local or global? a History Ireland Hedge School with editor Tommy Graham, John Borgonovo, Fearghal McGarry, Darragh Ganno and Linda Connolly. Host: Cobh Readers' and Writers' Festival. Venue: Cobh Library, Arch Building, Casement Square, Cobh, Co Cork. 3:30pm. All welcome.

Saturday 13 April: Soldier marriages in garrison towns, with Dr Aoife Breathnach. Host: Irish Genealogical Research Society. Venue: Dublin City Library & Archive, 138-144 Pearse Street, Dublin 2. 2pm to 4:30pm. Lecture follows AGM. Non-members may attend AGM but only members can vote. The lecture is free and all are welcome to attend.

Saturday 13 April: Irish Saturday – free assistance from IGSI members. Host and venue: Library, Minnesota Genealogical Center,1385 Mendota Heights Rd., Mendota Heights, Minnesota, USA. 10am to 4pm.

Saturday 13 April: Using Google for Irish family history research, a workshop with Anne Johnston. Host: Venue: NIFHS Resource Centre, Valley Business Centre, 67 Church Road, Newtownabbey, BT36 7LS. 11am to 4pm (one-hour lunch break 1pm-2pm). Fee: £14. Details.

Saturday 13 April: Irish women of action, a panel discussion. Host: New York Irish History Roundtable. Venue: McCloskey meeting room, Parish house of the Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral, 263 Mulberry Street, Manhattan, New York, USA. 2 p.m. Reception to follow. Suggested donation: $5. Details.

Monday 15 April: NLI closures: All services/exhibitons/cafe, including Genealogy Advisory Service, closed until 11am for staff meeting. Main Reading Room and Manuscript Room remain closed all day to facilitate Library's continuing redevelopment of the premises. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2.

Monday 15 April: Women of the Somme, with Carol Walker. Host: NIFHS, Larne branch. Venue: Larne Bowling & Tennis Club, 112-120 Glenarm Rd, Larne, BT40 1DZ. 7:30pm. Free. All welcome.

Monday 15 April: What's New in Irish family history, with Chris Paton. Host: Glasgow and West of Scotland Family History Society. Venue: Gilchrist Theatre, Kelvinside Academy, Kirklee Road entrance, Glasgow, Scotland G12 0SW. 7:30pm. Members free. Non-members £1 on the door.

Tuesday 16 April: The Boyne in Medieval Myth and Literature, with Dr Clodagh Downey. Host: Meath Archaeological and Historical Society. Venue: Navan Library, Railway St, Dillonsland, Navan, Co. Meath. All welcome. 7pm.

Tuesday 16 April: Are we there yet? Irish genealogy online, with John Grenham MAGI. Host and venue: National Archives of Ireland, Bishop St, Dublin 8. Free. 6pm. No booking. All welcome.

Tuesday 16 April: Commandant Joe Barrett (1888-1971), leader of the mid-Clare Brigade, and his newly discovered archive, with Dr Paul O'Brien. Host: Clare Libraries. Venue: DeValera Public Library, Harmony Row, Lifford, Ennis, co Clare. 6:30pm. Free. All welcome.

Wednesday 17 April: The Vikings in Ireland, with Dr John Sheehan. Host: Kilmurry Historical and Archaeological Association. Venue: The Heritage Room, Independence Museum, Kilmurry, Co Cork. 8pm. All welcome. Members free. Non-members €5.

Wednesday 17 April: Widows and the 1641 Depositions, with Professor Jane Ohlmeyer. Host: Institute Association of Professional Historians. Venue: National Library of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin 2. 7pm. All welcome.

Friday 19 April: Cave Hill and the United Irishmen, with John Gray. Host and Venue: Clifton House, North Queen Street, Belfast, BT15 1ES. 1pm–2pm. Booking advisable, T:028 9099 7022. Fee: £6.50, cash only. All welcome.

Friday 19 April: Good Friday, a public holiday in all but name in the Republic of Ireland. All librairies and archives closed until Easter Monday inclusive. In Northern Ireland, Good Friday is not an official holiday and most repositories will be open (they close instead on Easter Monday and Easter Tuesday).

Friday, 5 April 2019

Irish GRO releases: latest update on next BMD upload

The state-managed civil records site holds civil indexes
and (some) images according to the 100-75-50 year rule
You know the civil birth, marriage and death records* we've been (not so patiently) waiting for from IrishGenealogy.ie...

No, they are not online yet, but there is some technical testing being carried out in preparation for an upload. This may mean some small batches of records that you wouldn't expect to be online yet may appear in search results.

I'm told the next release is not far off. If I were a betting girl (I'm not), I'd reckon we will have some new toys to play with over the Easter holiday, but I've no idea which toys. The last official notice from the managers of the site said the next update would be the more recent 'top-up' years, followed by the older records. I don't know if this is still the schedule.

* GRO register images of pre-1870 marriages and 1864-1878 deaths, plus the'top-ups': index and register images of births 1917 & 1918; marriages 1942 & 1943, and deaths 1967 & 1968.

FindMyPast adds 54,000 Irish newspaper transcripts

This week's new FindMyPast Friday upload doesn't include any records with an obvious Irish interest, although if you have Church of England ancestors from County Kent in England or connections (fairly recent, from what a quick look suggests) with Ontario in Canada, you may find today's additions worth checking out here.

However, a few weeks ago an Irish collection made its online debut and I somehow – I've no idea – forget to blog about it. On the day of its arrival I was putting the final touches to my New Irish Genealogy Resources 2019 ebooklet, and I certainly included it in the ebook, but as I've now discovered, I forgot to 'do the double' and include it in that day's Irish Genealogy News. So, with apologies for the delay, let me tell you about this new collection.

Irish Newspaper Transcript Archive, The Rosemary Ffolliott Collection 1756-1850

When not conducting client research, the highly regarded genealogist Rosemary Ffolliott FIGRS (1935-2009*) wrote, edited or contributed to genealogy books, journals and magazines, transcribed church records, and collected and organised newspaper extracts. FindMyPast's new collection comes from the latter work, and is a compilation of 54,000 biographical notices from Irish newspapers. Each record includes a transcript and original image.

The collection holds details of 2,186 births, 28,024 marriages, 11,966 deaths, and more than 12,000 'Other' notices, as published in 30 newspaper titles between 1756 to 1850. The Other catagory is made up of many abstracts from advertisements, lost and found notices or change of residence announcements that provide family details.

There are entries from all counties.

* Irish Times obituary.



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County Down Spectator joins online newspaper archives

Historical editions of the County Down Spectator have joined the online British Newspaper Archive (BNA).

This weekly paper, which is still published in Bangor, Co Down, was established in June 1904 and is now being managed by the 4th generation of the founder's family. It's full title is the County Down Spectator, and Ulster Standard, as you can see from its masthead below.

The initial upload makes 560 pages from 70 editions published in 1905 available to search via the BNA database, which is shared with FindMyPast's Irish Newspapers collection. The BNA now holds 46 titles from Northern Ireland and a total of 170 island-wide.



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Thursday, 4 April 2019

BTOP and Genetic Genealogy Ireland 2019 confirmed

https://backtoourpast.ie/
This year's Back to our Past (BTOP) exhibition and Genetic Genealogy Ireland (GGI) conference will be held once again at Dublin's RDS venue in Ballsbridge but will run over only two days rather than the three of previous years. The confirmed dates are Friday 18 October and Saturday 19 October.

Another change will see the BTOP exhibition area in Hall 1 (Main Hall) for the first time.

DNA specialist Maurice Gleeson, the organiser of GGI, has advised Irish Genealogy News that the DNA lectures will take place in the Merrion Room, which has a similar capacity (c100) to the room where GGI has been held previously, and has a built-in screen. It is directly above the main entrance and is accessed via a staircase from the floor of the Main Hall.

GGI is sponsered by Family Tree DNA who will have a stand near this staircase so that delegates will pass by on their way to and from lectures.

"The exhibition and conference will run from 10am to 5:30pm on both days, allowing a maximum of seven lectures per day starting at 10:30am," says Maurice. "I hope to have the draft final schedule in the next month or two but so far the international speakers include the following: Lara Cassidy, Mags Gaulden, Regina Negrycz, Michelle Patient, David Pike and Rob Warthen.

"We will probably have the ISOGG* Day Out on Sunday 20 October and then most people will make their way home on Monday. Rootstech will be on in London the following weekend (Friday to Monday, 25-27 October) so some people will be going on to that."

Maurice will be updating the GGI blog in due course. In the meantime, check out the free video library of lectures from past GGI conferences here.

*International Society of Genetic Genealogy

Irish genealogy lectures at National Archives of Ireland

This year's evening lecture series at the National Archives of Ireland includes four lectures by members of Accredited Genealogists Ireland (MAGIs).

I'll be including them in my weekly events listings, but as some of them are still some months away, it might be as well to get some of these dates in your diary now.

Each presentation will begin at 6pm in the Reading Room of the National Archives of Ireland, Bishop Street, Dublin 8. No booking is necessary.

Here are the topics and speakers:

Tuesday 16 April: Are we there yet? Irish Genealogy Online, with John Grenham

Tuesday 11 June: Estate Records as a Source for Genealogical Research, with Nicola Morris

Tuesday 24 Sept: The Genealogy of an Irish Workhouse: Guardians, Staff & Inmates of the Poor Law, with Clare Doyle

Tuesday 12 Nov: Griffiths Valuation and its place in Irish Genealogy, with Michael Walsh


Wednesday, 3 April 2019

Skibbereen Heritage Centre relaunches website

The website of Skibbereen Heritage Centre, one of the Irish Family History Foundation's island-wide network of heritage and genealogy centres, has been redesigned and re-organised.

https://skibbheritage.com/While I'd not say the old website was difficult to navigate, nor particularly flawed, it was starting to look a little dated. The new look is much more cheerful and appealing and the signposting is more in keeping with the way Internet users now navigate sites. Regarding the latter, there appears to be more content on the site than previously, but this may be because its simply easier to find.

Certainly, access to the Centre's own free databases – of loan, tithe, school and tenant (Wrixon-Becher Estate) records – plus finding aids and the West Cork Graveyards database are quickly to hand via the Genealogy menu on each page.

And while mentioning the West Cork Graveyards database, I should note that two more burial registers – those for Sherkin Island and Kilheangul (near Schull) have been added. Check them out via the home page or go direct here.

The Centre's databases are all essential resources for researchers with connections to this most southerly part of Ireland, but the entire site is definitely work exploring for additional information about the Skibbereen area, its history and heritage, stories of its diaspora, and the Centre's excellent and highly regarded Famine exhibition.


Tuesday, 2 April 2019

Latest updates: Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives

'Erected by Patrick and Owen Doonan for Them
& Their Posterity, Nov AD 1803'. Headstone at
St. Nailes RC churchyard, Kinawley, Fermanagh,
N. Ireland. Photo courtesy of Bev Littig and James
Connolly, and IGP Archives.Click for larger view.
Another batch of headstone photographs, donated and transcribed by volunteers, have been uploaded to the free Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives database during the second half of March, as below:

CAVAN Genealogy Archives - Headstones
St. Patrick's, Corlough RC Graveyard (updated)

DUBLIN Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Mount Jerome, Dublin Parts 214 - 216

FERMANAGH Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Derrylin, Knockninny Parish, St Ninnidh Pt 2
St. Nailes, Kinawley RC (updated)

MAYO Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Naomh Mobhí Cemetery, Kilmovee