Thursday, 31 December 2020

Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives: final 2020 updates

Headstone belonging to Daniel O'Neil of Caple (sic)
St., Dublin, in memory of his wife, Jane Sweetman of
Clontarf who died 19 May 1762, and 3 children.
Photo courtesy Eadaoin Breslin and IGP Archives.
.
The final 2020 batch of volunteer-contributed headstone photos and transcribed records has been added to the free Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives database.

It brings pix and transcribed inscriptions from County Dublin and parish records from Counties Fermanagh and Tipperary, as follows:

DUBLIN Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Kilbarrack Graveyard, Sutton (35 additional)

DUBLIN Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Mount Jerome Cemetery - Part 268, 269 & 270

FERMANAGH Genealogy Archives - Church Records
Aghavea (CoI) Marriages 1845-1921
Mullaghfad, (CoI) Marriages, 1845-1916

TIPPERARY Genealogy Archives - Church Records
Fethard Parish Baptisms (RC) 1815 - 1816

US genealogy collections update: last 3 weeks of 2020

Below is a summary of US family history collections that have been released or updated by the major genealogy databases in the last three weeks. (The previous summary list was published on 10 December, see blogpost).

My regular summaries are designed to help family historians whose Irish ancestors emigrated, temporarily or permanently, to the United States.

By default, they should also be useful to anyone carrying out research in the US, regardless of the origin of their ancestors.

The figures in parenthesis in the New Collections section are the numbers of records/images in each new record set, if provided by the database.

Unless otherwise stated, the figures in parenthesis in the Updated Collections section reflect the number of records added to the collection in the recent update, if a number has been clearly noted by the supplier. I do not include updates of fewer than 1,000 records.


NEW COLLECTIONS

Ancestry


FamilySearch
MyHeritage

UPDATED COLLECTIONS


AmericanAncestors


Ancestry


FamilySearch


Some of the above content 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 Irish Genealogy News online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Wednesday, 23 December 2020

Festive brain food: Irish history - videos and podcasts

With so many restrictions on movement and travel this festive season, I thought some readers of Irish Genealogy News might find themselves with a rare bit of quiet or spare time over the next couple of weeks. So here's a list of recent videos and podcasts, all freely available online, covering Irish history topics that genealogists may find of interest. I hope they'll help keep your brain supple!

Videos

Man, maps and map history: John Andrews, 1927–2019. Host: Royal Irish Academy. Lecture about John Andrews, a founding member of the Irish Historic Towns Atlas, presented by Arnold Horner. Filmed November 2020. RIA. 1hr 13mins.

Behind the Scenes of PRONI's Conservation Studio, a virtual tour with Sarah Graham, head of conservation. Host: Public Record Office of Nothern Ireland. YouTube PRONI Online channel. 9 minutes. Filmed October 2020.

How to use PRONI's e-catalogue, with Gemma Eaton, workshop tutor. Host: Public Record Office of Nothern Ireland. YouTube PRONI Online channel. 6mins. Filmed August 2020. 

Landholding in the new English settlement of Hacketstown, Co. Carlow, 1635–1875, with Oliver Whelan. Host: Carlow Historical and Archaeological Society (CHAS). Filmed November 2020. YouTube CHAS channel. 1hr 11mins.

Beyond 2022, and the hunt for lost records, with Ciarán Wallace. Presented at the AGM of the Irish Genealogical Research Society (IGRS) in August 2020. YouTube/IrishAncestors. 1hr 9mins.

Offaly in the Military Service (1916-23) Pensions Collection, with Cécile Gordon. Host: Offaly Historical and Archaeological Society. Presented October 2020. YouTube OffalyHistory channel. 55mins.

Carlow and the Crusades, c1095-1291, with Aoife Haberlin. Hosted by Carlow Historical and Archaeological Society (CHAS). Filmed December 2020. YouTube CHAS channel. 8mins. 

In Search of the 1490: Tracking the Famine Migrants from Strokestown to Canada in 1847, with Professor Mark G McGowan. Host: Irish Embassy, Canada. YouTube. Recorded October 2020. 1hr 12mins. 

The Butlers of Kilcash in the 18th century, with John Flood. Hosted by Tipperary Studies. YouTube TippStudies channel. 32mins.

The Irish DNA Atlas – Revealing Irish History through Genetics, with Dr Edmund Gilbert. Host: Genealogical Society of Ireland (GSI). Recorded March 2020. YouTube. 39mins.

DNA for beginners, with Andy Hochreiter. Host: Genetic Genealogy Ireland. Presented February 2020. YouTube. 57mins.

Death and the Irish, with Professor Salvador Ryan. Hosted by Tipperary Studies. Filmed November 2020. YouTube TippStudies channel. 58mins.


Podcasts

John Charles McQuaid - A Ghost of our Catholic Past, with Finn Dwyer interviewing Dr Aoife Bhreathnach. Through the mid 20th century, the archbishop of Dublin come to symbolise not only the power of the Catholic Church at the time but also for many the abuse of that power. IrishHistoryPodcast. 30mins. December 2020.

Dead and buried in Dublin, with Donal Fallon exploring the history of the capital's cemeteries. ThreeCastlesBurning. 41mins. October 2020.

Bloody Sunday: the day that shook Dublin, with Padraig Yeates, John Borgonovo and Michael Foley. Dublin Festival of history. 1hr 9min

The Forgotten Lives of the Women of Cahir. Finn Dwyer interviews three women contributors to a book profiling 20 Tipperary women. Irish History Podcast. 45 mins.

The Vegetarian Restaurant of the Irish Revolution. Donal Fallon explores the significance and history of the place where the 1916 Proclamation was signed.ThreeCastlesBurning. 25mins. November 2020.

The Connaught Rangers mutiny — 1920, 1970 & 2020, a panel discussion of the events and their subsequent commemoration with John Gibney, Cécile Gordon, Brian Hanley and Kate O’Malley. HistoryIreland. 1hr 9mins. June 2020.

In Mountjoy Jail one Monday morning — the Irish Revolution in ballad and song, with Liz Gillis, Eunan O’Halpin, Pádraig Óg Ó Ruairc and Fintan Vallely. But who was Kevin Barry? Why was he immortalised in song? And what has been the significance of the ballad tradition generally in the Irish Revolution and, indeed, of the Irish Revolution in the ballad tradition? HistoryIreland. 1hr 16mins. October 2020.

Belfast and the North 1920-22, with Tommy Graham in discussion with Marie Coleman, Kieran Glennon, Brian Hanley and Brian Walker. As the War of Independence raged in southern Ireland, a different type and more deadly form of conflict erupted in the northeast, and in Belfast in particular. Should this be considered part of the overall Irish revolution? HistoryIreland. 56mins. November 2020.

Terence MacSwiney — martyrdom, civil resistance & the Irish Revolution. The centenary of his death, after 74 days on hunger strike, fell this October. John Borgonovo, Dr Sarah-Ann Buckley, Dr Kate O’Malley and Dr Pádraig Yeates discuss his legacy and the relationship between passive, civil and physical resistance. HistoryIreland. 1hr 7mins. August 2020.

By the way, the Famine's not funny. Jason Burke interviews comedian, actor and historian Tim McGarry. Historical Belfast. 27mins.

A Short History of Ireland in 250 episodes, a popular and recommended book written by Dr Jonathan Bardon, who died earlier this year. BBC Radio Ulster presents two series of podcasts, each of 5 minutes to 30 minutes duration. Some 61 podcasts are now available here Each podcasts covers a number of topics, as you can see from the examples below.

  • Series 1: Omnibus 8 ● Famine ● The Black Death ● Gallowglasses ● More Irish Than the Irish Themselves ● The Statute of Kilkenny
  • Series 1: Omnibus 23 ● The Battle of the Boyne ● Galloping Hogan and the Walls of Limerick ● Athlone and Aughrim ● Limerick - A Second Siege ● The Wild Geese

Monday, 21 December 2020

British genealogy releases & updates: 2-week summary

Below is a summary of new and updated family history record collections for England, Scotland and Wales released by the major genealogy databases since 5 December (for the last summary, see 4 December blogpost).

This regular summary of releases and updates relating to British collections is designed to help family historians whose Irish ancestors migrated, temporarily or permanently, to England, Scotland or Wales.

By default, it will also be useful to anyone carrying out research in those three nations, regardless of the origin of their ancestors.

The figures in parenthesis in the New Collections section are the numbers of records/images in the new record set.

Unless otherwise stated, the figures in parenthesis in the Updated Collections section reflect the number of records added to the collection in the recent update. In some instances, the supplier has not made this figure available. Where two figures are given, the first is the number of additions, the second is the new total.

Please note that I don't usually include updates of fewer than 1,000 records.


NEW COLLECTIONS


BritishNewspaperArchive (also at FindMyPast)

UPDATED COLLECTIONS


Ancestry
FamilySearch
FindMyPast
FreeBMD
TheGenealogist

Some of the above content 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 Irish Genealogy News online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Friday, 18 December 2020

Belfast and Ulster Directories join FindMyPast

FindMyPast has added a collection of Ireland, Belfast & Ulster Directories to it database. As far as I can tell, the directories have been sourced from the North of Ireland Family History Society.

The publications were produced by the Belfast Newsletter, and cover 1890 to 1947, a period that spans the decades either side of Partition and creation of Northern Ireland.

Before 1922, the publications were entitled The Belfast and Province of Ulster Directory and cover all nine counties of the historic province of Ulster.

From the 1890 Belfast and Province of Ulster Directory

In 1923 the publication dropped coverage of the three counties – Cavan, Donegal and Monaghan – which remained in the Irish Free State (later the Republic of Ireland) and retitled itself as The Belfast and Ulster Directory and provided details about only counties Antrim, Armagh, Down, LondonDerry, Fermanagh and Tyrone.

Together, these directories hold some 1,666,724 indexed records, and can be searched by place, name and occupation. Each volume is divided into 

  • Civil establishment (government, courts, institutions)
  • Street directory (for Belfast only) 
  • Residents list (for larger towns)
  • Trades and professional directory.

Generally, you will discover the name, address and occupation of each person recorded. Each volume also provides a description, as well as important statistical, economic and social information, for each place with a special emphasis on Belfast city. 

While directories are not comprehensive and generally exclude women (unless they were in a profession), and many of the labouring poor, they cover a wide proportion of the population.

Thursday, 17 December 2020

Irish Genealogy Matters: latest edition published

A new edition of Irish Genealogy Matters has been published. 

As always, it brings news from the Irish Family History Foundation's island-wide network of local genealogy and heritage centres, and of additions to the group's database at RootsIreland.ie. 

This edition includes an overview of the records added during the year, and it's a pretty impressive showing! 

 I'll let them tell you all about it. Here's the link to download the pdf or click/tap the image, right.

Tuesday, 15 December 2020

General Register Office of Ireland increases some fees

The General Register Office of Ireland reopened last week (on Monday 7 December) and has increased the cost of 'research' copies of entries in the birth, marriage and death civil registers. (Research copies are photocopies of entries in the civil registers, and contain all the genealogical information supplied on an official bmd certificate. They have no legal standing and are used only by researchers.)

Each research copy is now €5, up from €4. This new price will be charged for research copies whether supplied from the GRO at Roscommon HQ, local authority registration offices, or the GRO Search Room in Dublin.

The only other fee increase relates to the 5-consecutive-years search available only in the Search Room. This has risen from €2 to €5. The general search fee (all years, searchable on one day) remains €20. All payments must be made by card.

Under pandemic arrangements, drop-in access to the Werburgh Street Search Room is no longer allowed. All visits are on an appointment-only basis. There are two or three slots available each morning, with another two or three slots in the afternoon. The number of slots depends on staff availability. Appointments can be requested by emailing GROResearchRoom@welfare.ie.

That same email address can be used, under the current pandemic arrangements, to request 'research' copies of all Irish BMD events. This service is useful for those family historians whose research covers time-periods/events not presently available at IrishGenealogy.ie*, or for certificates relating to still-births, adoption, civil partnership etc. Full details here.

For those lucky enough to get an appointment, be aware that all visitors have to:

  • wear masks at all times, 
  • wear gloves (GRO provide them) when handling Index Books, and 
  • socially distance at all times.

* Images of the following historic BMDs can be viewed and downloaded at www.irishgenealogy.ie, free of charge: Births 1864 - 1919; Marriages 1845 - 1944; Deaths 1870 - 1969.

h/t Claire Bradley, professional genealogist, via the online forum Boards.ie.

Four-month summary of new and updated Australian & NZ genealogy records

Below you'll find my summary of the new and updated Australia and New Zealand records released by the major genealogy database suppliers since my last update on 26 August.

These regular listings of additional sources are designed primarily to help family historians whose Irish ancestors emigrated to Australia or New Zealand, but you don't have to have heritage from Ireland to use them!

They may prove useful to any researchers looking for a brief update of what's relatively recently been made available for the two countries.

Unless otherwise stated, the figures in parenthesis reflect the number of records uploaded to a new or updated collection. Where there is a second figure in parenthesis, it is the revised total number of records in an updated collection.


NEW COLLECTIONS


Ancestry


BritishNewspaperArchive (shared with FindMyPast)

MyHeritage

UPDATED COLLECTIONS 


Ancestry

FamilySearch

NOTE: Researchers with Australian connections will also be interested to check out the Royal Australian Historical Society's launch of Finding Your Ancestors, a series of introductory videos and virtual seminars created to help the NSW Aboriginal community trace their ancestors. More...


Some of the above content 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 Irish Genealogy News online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Monday, 14 December 2020

Two new Fellows for Accredited Genealogists Ireland

Accredited Genealogists Ireland (AGI) has elected Máire Mac Conghail and Helen Kelly as Fellows of the association. The award of Fellowship recognises “invaluable service...to AGI” or a “particularly outstanding contribution to the study of Irish genealogy”.

Máire and Helen have enjoyed long and successful careers as professional genealogists and have been members of AGI since the 1990s. Both have contributed much time and effort in senior AGI roles, including President, as the group continued to grow and develop its well-established status as an accrediting and representative body for professional genealogists across the island of Ireland.

Any genealogist with ambitions of becoming an accredited professional would do well to read AGI's announcement and the details it gives of the careers of the two new Fellows.

They clearly demonstrate how the benefits of joining - and actively contributing to - a group of your peers can help an individual extend their knowledge and professionalism, respond to changing technological and marketing developments, find new sources of genealogical work, and extend their own personal recognition as an expert within the field.

You'll find the press release at accreditedgenealogists.ie.

Friday, 11 December 2020

New online repository for Irish Roman Catholic archives

A new online repository – CatholicArchives.ie – has been launched to facilitate greater access to collections of material held by Roman Catholic congregations and religious communities in Ireland.

Click image of home page to visit the site

The benefits of such a central repository include the provision of a platform for smaller archives to receive greater exposure, while researchers can enjoy free online searching and browsing of a wider range of material, catalogued to international standards, from archives that normally have fairly limited access arrangements.

The catalogue is fully searchable, by name, places, events, subjects and archival institution, allowing for cross-referencing and browsing by users. It's been created using open-source software, so it's uncluttered in presentation and easy to move around and narrow down items of interest.

So far, the site holds collections from the following archives:

  • The Passionists - Ireland & Scotland
  • Glenstal Abbey
  • The Sisters of St. Joseph Chambery
  • The Irish Capuchin Provincial Archives

Among the existing catalogued material is an online gallery of photographs from the Dublin-based Archives of the Passionist Order in Ireland and Scotland and a collection of correspondence and papers of Capuchin Friars detailing their involvement with participants in the nationalist struggle for independence including material relating to the 1916 Rising, the War of Independence and the Civil War.

The next additions to the site will be from the archives of the Presentation Brothers.

Thursday, 10 December 2020

Irish genealogy services: what's open/what's closed

With much of the island now opening up again after the latest round(s) of Lockdown, here's an overview of what's available (or about to become available) at the repositories where Irish genealogists usually like to hang out.

Northern Ireland

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland
PRONI will reopen tomorrow (Friday 11 December) with visitor restrictions in place. Research appointments that had been scheduled but then cancelled when the October lockdown was introduced will be rescheduled for dates in December 2020 and January 2021. A number of digital access only appointments at PRONI will also be available from 11 December until the New Year.

Dates for new research appointments to view original records and/or microfilms at PRONI will not be released until early January. 

In the meantime, the PRONI enquiry service will continue to provide quidance and offer a fee-paying search and copying service for open records.

The General Register Office of Northern Ireland
GRONI will reopen its public search room on Monday 14 December. The website hasn't yet been updated, but specific details of hours, appointments and other information for visitors will no doubt be posted shortly.

In the meantime, you can apply for life event certificates by phone on 0300 200 7890 or online ordering life event certificate.

Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland
The Presbyterian Historical Society Library and Archive premises remain closed and all postal business is suspended. However, the Society is maintaining an email service for enquiries at phsilibrarian@pcinet.org


Republic of Ireland

National Archives of Ireland
The NAI has reopened from 10:30am–12:30pm and 2pm–4pm and there is detailed visitor information here. An appointment-only system is in place for those with a Readers Ticket. It looks as though there are no available appointments for the rest of the year.

National Library of Ireland
The NLI has reopened some areas to registered Readers only. Access is by appointment-only to the Main Reading Room, the Microfilm Reading Room, the Manuscript Reading Room and the Family History Room. The latter is open for researchers to use its online resources and reference books but no genealogy consultations are being offered. Café Joly is closed. So, too, is the NLI's Photographic Archive in Temple Bar.

A detailed breakdown of the current restrictions, visitor rules and booking system can be found at Using the NLI's Onsite Services.

Registry of Deeds
The archive has reopened for limited public appointments to access pre-1970 records. These bookings are available only for essential legal purposes and can be made online.

All other PRAI public rooms, including the Research Room (for the Griffiths Valuation Revision Books and maps) at the Irish Life centre are closed. A date for re-opening will be confirmed in due course.

General Register Office of Ireland
The GRO Research Room in Dublin is open again with a restricted appointment system in place. While the number of appointments remain so limited, an email service is available. Details.

RCB Library (Church of Ireland Archive)
The library and archive remains closed to visitors, but an email service is available for guidance at library@ireland.anglican.org.

New/updated US genealogy records: 2-week summary

Below is a summary of US family history collections that have been released or updated by the major genealogy databases in the last two weeks. (The previous summary list was published on 26 November, see blogpost).

My regular summaries are designed to help family historians whose Irish ancestors emigrated, temporarily or permanently, to the United States.

By default, they should also be useful to anyone carrying out research in the US, regardless of the origin of their ancestors.

The figures in parenthesis in the New Collections section are the numbers of records/images in each new record set, if provided by the database.

Unless otherwise stated, the figures in parenthesis in the Updated Collections section reflect the number of records added to the collection in the recent update, if a number has been clearly noted by the supplier. I do not include updates of fewer than 1,000 records.


NEW COLLECTIONS


Ancestry
FamilySearch
MyHeritage

UPDATED COLLECTIONS


Ancestry
FamilySearch
FindMyPast


Some of the above content 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 Irish Genealogy News online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

New resources for tracing Irish Presbyterian roots

Here's some rare good news about Lockdown! The closure of the Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland's premises and Library in Belfast has allowed home-working staff members the opportunity to produce and publish new resources for genealogy researchers and historians. As a result, a range of Guides to Presbyterian Congregational Records has been created.

The Guides have been produced for each of Counties Antrim, Armagh, Cavan, Down, Fermanagh, LondonDerry, Monaghan and Tyrone, and for Belfast City, and each lists the records for its area, recording what records exist and where they can be accessed.

These new resources are online and available only to logged-in PHSI members.

If you have Presbyterian ancestors, now might the right time to consider joining the Society. Regular Annual Membership starts at £16 (or £5 for students), but there is also an Associate Membership which provides access to all members-only online resources. See the PHSI's Membership page for details.

Tuesday, 8 December 2020

RootsIreland adds South Tipperary genealogy records

RootsIreland.ie has added more than 20,000 RC baptisms for the parish of Killenaule (aka Moyglass). They have been transcribed by South Tipperary Genealogy, one of the Irish Family History Foundation's island-wide network of genealogy centres, which is located in the Brú Ború Centre in Cashel.

The records are unusual for their early survival date – 1742 – but unfortunately some 12 years of register pages (from January 1802 to January 1814) have not survived. Transcribed from locally-held registers, the RootsIreland records continue to 1900. Those recorded up to 1881 link to the National Library of Ireland's register images.

For an up to date list of sources for South Tipperary on RootsIreland, see the online menu. To search these records, go to www.tipperarysouth.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required.

Clare Local Studies team continues to upload material

County Clare Library's Local Studies Centre, Ennis

Family historians with connections to Clare have long enjoyed the hard work of the County Clare Library's Local Studies Centre, so there shouldn't be any great surprise that the team has continued to graft throughout the pandemic. Much of that work has, of course, been done behind closed doors, but it might have ground to a halt, at least in so far as transcribing records in the possession of the library and uploading donated material from researchers were concerned.

So I was mighty impressed to see how the Library's online genealogy holdings have grown since I last reported on new additions in early summer. Here are some examples:

  • Subscriptions to Entrance of Tulla Catholic Church, 1869
  • Kelly of Kilrush, Mangan of Ennis and Gort, Galway and Kelly of Tuam, Galway
  • RIC and Black and Tans in Clare
  • RIC and Black and Tans from Clare
  • RIC Barracks, Huts and Protection Posts in Clare
  • Auctioneer's Posters of John Holohan of Feakle 1870-1941
  • 1882 Petition to Lord Lieutenant by Clergy and Gentry of Clare
  • Kilrush Convent of Mercy: List of Subscribers
  • War of Indpendence Activity Files and Nominal Rolls for the East, West and Mid Clare Brigades and Cumann na mBan
  • RC Marriage Records for Doonass and Truagh Parish 1851-1880 (383 records)
  • Finavarra Plaque and O'Daly Monument
  • Killaloe RIC Barracks 1916-1921

You can view the full list of these (and more) free resources, and the names of the generous donors, where relevant, on the Library's Local Studies Genealogy What's New page.

In addition, a big batch of links has been uploaded as part of County Clare's Decade of Centenaries commemoration. You'll find online lectures, musical events and exhibitions, podcasts and reading material among them.

Monday, 7 December 2020

Irish education records join TheGenealogist database

TheGenealogist, the database of the London-based Society of Genealogists, has uploaded more College and University registers into its expanding Educational Records collection, and among the two additions of relevance to Irish family historians is the Alumni Dublinenses, 1593–1846, which was published in 1924.

It describes itself as 'A Register of Students, Graduates, Professors and Provosts of Trinity College in the University of Dublin'.

Perhaps of more general appeal to those whose ancestors were neither wealthy nor privileged, is the second record set. It holds a number of late-19th-century lists from the Irish Intermediate Education Board, specifically:

  • Intermediate Education Board for Ireland, Exhibition and Prize Lists, 1889
  • Intermediate Education Board for Ireland, Exhibition and Prize Lists, 1890
  • Intermediate Education Board for Ireland, Examinations Held in 1889 Pass Lists, Boys
  • Intermediate Education Board for Ireland, Examinations Held in 1892 Pass Lists, Boys
  • Intermediate Education Board for Ireland, Examinations Held in 1891 Pass Lists, Boys

These reveal the candidates’ names, addresses and grades in all their subjects, which include (according to the Grade of Exam) some or many of Greek, Latin, French, German, Italian and Celtic, plus English, Arithmatic, Algebra, Euclid (geometry), Triganometry, Elementary Mechanics, Natural Philosophy, Chemistry and Drawing.

Only those who passed their exams are identified. Those who failed were able to hide behind their alphabetically assigned student number.

I wasn't expecting any of my Santrys to be included in these lists, so it was a nice surprise to find one: Denis Santry sat and passed the Preparatory Grade exam in 1892 when he'd have been 13 years old. He was the son of a Cork City-based carpenter called Denis Santry (his two grandfathers bore the same name), and after leaving Ireland in the early 1900s, he went on to become a famous political cartoonist and architect.

He and his Cork-born wife, who he met, so the family tale goes, at the City's Crawford School of Art, lived most of their lives abroad, especially in South Africa, New York, Malaysia and Singapore. His most famous architectural design was the Singapore Cenotaph.

Back in his school days, his Latin wasn't up to much, and he seems to have scrapped a pass in most other subjects, but at least he passed the 'Drawing' paper of his Prep Exam! (see image below)


From the Preparatory Examination Results 1892. Click for larger view.

Dungarvan gets the Irish Historic Towns Atlas treatment

The latest release in the Irish Historic Towns Atlas (IHTA) series is No. 30, Dungarvan/Dún Garbhán, by John Martin.

Published by the Royal Irish Academy, the book is full of historical details, illustrations and more than 30 historic maps, that capture the development of Dungarvan from its foundation as an Anglo-Norman settlement at the beginning of the 13th century.

This legacy is still evident in the 800-year-old market town's street pattern, castle and abbey.

The publication marks the culmination of some 12 years of work by author John Martin and the IHTA team in Dublin. The work includes detailed histories of some 1,400 sites dating from its medieval origins to the present-day, and is presented in an attractive, large format with loose sheets of historic maps and views accompanied by a detailed text. See the video below to better understand how the Atlas is presented.

With its publication, the Dungarvan Atlas joins 560 towns and cities internationally that have been studied as part of the wider European Historic Towns Atlas scheme. Eact of these town atlases contains broadly similar information, allowing Irish towns to be studied in their European context.

The IHTA is one of the Royal Irish Academy's long-term research projects.

The printed Atlas is available to purchase online from the RIA (click image above), price €30. It can also be bought in Dungarvan itself, at Garvey’s SuperValu and Easons, and in Waterford City at the Book Centre. The local library has a copy available for consultation, too.

A digital version of the Dungarvan Atlas is also available, free of charge, here.

Friday, 4 December 2020

Latest additions to Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives

Carolan family, St Patrick's, Carrickallen,
Co Cavan. Photo courtesy Carmel O'Callaghan
and IGPArchives. Click for larger image.

There were plenty of donated files to upload to Ireland Genealogy Project Archives in the second half of November.

As you'll see below, not only do they cover six counties, they offer a nice assortment of headstone photos and inscriptions, and records from church and civil registers, and they're all ready for researchers to check out, free of charge, via the links.

CAVAN Genealogy Archives - Headstones Carrickallen Graveyard (adjoining St.Patrick's Church)

FERMANAGH Genealogy Archives - Church Records
Garvery Marriages (C. of I.) 1869-1930
Sallaghy (CoI) Marriages 1845-1921

GALWAY Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Ballynakill Cemetery (partial)
Kilnalahan Monastery Graveyard, Abbey (partial)

MONAGHAN Genealogy Archives - Vital Records
Clones Registry Office Marriages 1845-1920

SLIGO Genealogy Archives - Church Records
Ahamlish RC Baptisms Gilmartin/Kilmartin 1796-1812
Ahamlish RC Deaths Gilmartin/Kilmartin, 1797-1830
Ahamlish RC Marriages Gilmartin/Kilmartin 1797-1830

TIPPERARY Genealogy Archives - Miscellaneous
Trades extracted frm Fethard Registers, 1810+


1970s Church of Ireland Gazette editions now online

The RCB Library has announced the online release of all the Church of Ireland Gazette's editions published in the 1970s. They can now be searched and viewed, free of charge, at https://esearch.informa.ie/rcb, along with all previous editions back to 1856.

Church of Ireland Gazette, 2nd May 1975
In the now familiar pattern of the RCBL's Borderless Church series, the latest release is the subject of the Library's Archive of the Month presentation.

Written by David Bird, it examines the decade through the lens of the Church's weekly paper, and its viewpoint on the political, social and economic issues and events of the day.

These occurred as a “darkening cloud was gathering over the island of Ireland” – the intensifying “murder and mayhem” characterising this phase of The Troubles.

Mr Bird writes: “Most of the bombings, shootings and murders occurred in the North... the pages of the Gazette are full of the events of this period. Among them were the shooting of unarmed civilians on Bloody Sunday in Derry and the bombing of the Abercorn Restaurant in 1972, and, in 1979, the assasination of MP Airey Neave, the killing of 18 British soldiers at Warrenpoint, and the murder of Queen Elizabeth's second cousin, Earl Mountbatten.

Yet the presentation also clearly shows that green shoots of hope began to emerge with a growing desire for peace throughout the island. Click the image above to view the Library's Archive of the Month for December: 'Charting a course through the 1970s'.

The digitisation of the Gazette is an ongoing project to make freely available the complete run of the Church's all-island paper. It has been made possible with the support of the Irish Government’s Reconciliation Fund, administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Three-weeks of new/updated British genealogy records

Below is a summary of new and updated family history record collections for England, Scotland and Wales released by the major genealogy databases since mid-November (for the last summary, see 17 November blogpost).

This regular summary of releases and updates relating to British collections is designed to help family historians whose Irish ancestors migrated, temporarily or permanently, to England, Scotland or Wales.

By default, it will also be useful to anyone carrying out research in those three nations, regardless of the origin of their ancestors.

The figures in parenthesis in the New Collections section are the numbers of records/images in the new record set.

Unless otherwise stated, the figures in parenthesis in the Updated Collections section reflect the number of records added to the collection in the recent update. In some instances, the supplier has not made this figure available. Where two figures are given, the first is the number of additions, the second is the new total.

Please note that I don't usually include updates of fewer than 1,000 records.


NEW COLLECTIONS

BritishNewspaperArchive

DeceasedOnlne


UPDATED COLLECTIONS

FamilySearch

FindMyPast

TheGenealogist

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Thursday, 3 December 2020

MyHeritage updates its photo colourisation tool

MyHeritage has enhanced its MyHeritage In Color[™] tool to give even more vibrant renditions of our favourite old family photos.

The original tool was launched earlier this year. Unless you were living under a rock at the time, you'll have heard of it, but just in case you're a rock hugger, you can learn about the arrival of this feature in my February blogpost, here.

It's certainly a neat addition to the family historian's box of tricks. I've been using it in the run-up to the festive season to produce calendars for loved ones with colorised versions of photos we've known for years in black-and-white only. It's lovely (and ever-so slightly disorienting) to see familiar images reveal details previously 'hidden' within the monochrome.

The new colourisation model of the tool is now the default on the MyHeritage site and has been named November 2020 to distinguish it from the original model, February 2020. There's more detail and examples in the company's blogpost here.

Here's an example pic from my morning's colourisation session showing a photo in its original b&w form next to the February 2020 enhancement; the November 2020 version is in front. It shows my mam with her brother, Paddy, at The Rocks, Bagenalstown, Co Carlow, in the mid-1930s. (I've never previously asked my mam what she was holding. Now I'll have to. At first glance of the newly enhanced picture, it looks like a phone!)

RootsIreland adds 61,000 BMD records from Co. Clare

Clare Heritage & Genealogical Centre has updated its database on RootsIreland.ie with the upload of more than 61,000 records.

This big bundle of new records includes Roman Catholic baptisms and marriages and, from civil records of both births and deaths, as follows:


Roman Catholic Baptisms
  • Doora-Barefield: 1821-1900
  • Ballyvaughan: 1856-1900
  • Kilfiddane: 1868-1900
  • Kilmihil: 1849-1900
  • Ogonelloe: 1832-1900

Roman Catholic Marriages

  • Clarecastle: 1854-1900
  • Doonbeg: 1867-1890
  • Killaloe: 1828-1900
  • Kilmurry-McMahon: 1837-1889
  • Newmarket-on-Fergus: 1828-1900

Civil Births

  • Carrigaholt Civil: 1896-1949
  • Clarecastle Civil: 1893-1949
  • Killaniv Civil: 1895-1949
  • Kilrush Civil: 1899-1949
  • Quin-Clooney Civil: 1899-1949

Civil Deaths

  • Carrigaholt Civil: 1864-1970
  • Clarecastle Civil: 1864-1970
  • Killaniv Civil: 1864-1970
  • Kilrush Civil: 1902-1970
  • Kilrush: 1864-1939
  • Quin-Clooney Civil: 1864-1965

(Kilrush Deaths are tagged under both Kilrush Civil and Kilrush.)

To search and view these records, go to www.clare.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required. You can also check out the full menu of Clare sources by clicking the logo/image above.

Notes: Roman Catholic records up to 1880/1 link to the National Library of Ireland's images; after that date, the Clare Genealogy records are transcription-only and not currently available elsewhere online. In the case of Civil registration records, these transcriptions of local civil birth registers run to 1949 – nearly 30 years later than those available at IrishGenealogy.ie, while the transcriptions of local civil death registers include 1864-1870, a period indexed-only at IrishGenealogy.ie.

Tuesday, 1 December 2020

Irish genealogy and history online events in December

I'll be adding any events I hear of during the next couple of weeks.

Tuesday 1 December: Peace After The Final Battle: The Irish Revolution, 100 Years on, with John Dornay and Eamon Delaney. Host: National Library of Ireland. 7pm on Zoom. Free. Booking required.

Tuesday 1 December: Cartography and Settlement in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries, with Annaleigh Margey. The 2020 D.A. Chart Seminar on Maps. Host: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. 7pm to 8:15pm. Free. On Zoom. Tickets.

Thursday 3 December: Neutrals, Immigrants, Aliens, Evacuees: The Irish In Britain during WW2, with Dr. Jennifer Redmond. Host: Host: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. 7pm. Free. On Zoom. Register.

Friday 4 December:Surveillance, Violence and Forcible Hair Cutting of Women by Republicans during the Irish War of Independence, with Dr Mary McAuliffe. A History Research Seminar. Free. 4pm on MS Teams. All welcome. RSVP to happhistoryseminars2020@gmail.com by 4pm on Thursday 3 December.

Friday 4 December:The other great pandemic: Spanish flu in Ireland 1918-19, with Dr Ida Milne. Host: Muckross House Research Library. All welcome. To receive Zoom link email library@muckross.ie before 5.30, Wednesday 2nd December. Talk is free. 7:30pm.

Monday 7 December: The Hunger: The Story of the Irish Famine, documentary narrated by Liam Neeson. Second of a two part RTE documentary series based on the award-winning book 'Atlas of the Great Irish Famine'. 9:35pm on RTÉ One.

Monday 7 December: Rolling back the Road: A Journey in Irish Traveller Family History, with Tony Hennessy MAGI and Michael Collins. Host: National Library of Ireland. An online event via Zoom. 7pm. Free, but you need to register. Details.

Monday 7 December: Book Launch of Women and the Irish Revolution, edited by Linda Connolly. This online launch and panel discussion with the editor and chapter authors will be hosted by Irish Academic Press and the Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute. 7pm. All welcome. Free. Details.

Tuesday 8 December: Centenaries, 1920-23: commemorations, conflict and conciliation, with Prof Brian Walker. Host: Irish Linen Centre & Lisburn Museum. Free. Online via YouTube at 7pm. Book by telephone 02892663377 or email to ilc.reception@lisburncastlereagh.gov.uk for link.

Wednesday 9 December: Mapping the Burning of Cork, 11-12 December 1920, a lecture with Dr Helene O'Keeffe. Host: National Library of Ireland. An online meeting on Zoom. All welcome. Free. Booking required.

Wednesday 9 December: The Unknown Warrior, an Untold Story, Mark Scott. Hosts: Antrim & Down Branch of the Western Front Association and the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. 8-9pm. Free. All welcome. Zoom event. Booking required.

Thursday 10 December: From Turmoil to Truce: Photographs of the War of Independence, an online Zoom tour of an exhibition at the National Library of Ireland Photographic Archive. 11am. Free. All welcome. Booking required.

Thursday 10 December: Local Revolution - City Hall and the War of Independence, with Bernard Kelly. Chaired by James Curry. Host: Dublin City Council. Online. Free. All welcome. 7pm. Need to register.

Friday 11 December: 1920: A Year of Terror, with Liz Gillis. Host: Muckross House Research Library. All welcome. To receive Zoom link email library@muckross.ie before 5.30, Wednesday 9th December. Talk is free. 7:30pm.

Friday 11 December: Christmas in the Poor House, an online talk hosted by Clifton House/Belfast Charitable Society. 1pm to 2pm. All welcome, but numbers limited. €5 per person. Details.

Thursday 17 December: WWI: Exploring the Irish Experience, a virtual exhibition tour. On Zoom. 11am. All welcome. Free. Need to book

Friday 18 December: Ask the Archivist, an online presentation by the National Archives of Ireland. Hosted by Dublin City Council Culture Club. Free, on zoom. All welcome. Details

Monday 21 December: Online tours of the National Museum of Ireland - Archaeology's ‘Prehistoric Ireland’, ‘Ór – Ireland’s Gold’ and 'The Treasury' exhibitions. Learn (on the winter solstice 2020) how passage tombs such as Newgrange are aligned to the Winter Solstice, discover artefacts on display in the Museum that have been found in Ireland’s tombs and see artefacts linked to solar symbols including gold lunulae and sun discs dating to the Bronze Age. Links to view Tour on YouTube will be published on Facebook at 4pm. Tour runs 4pm to 5pm. Free. Details.