Monday 28 February 2022

Irish genealogy and history events, 1 - 13 March

All the events below will be presented online, unless clearly described as 'in-person' in bold type.

Tuesday 1 March: Legacy of the Irish, with Barbara and David Dickson examining Irish immigration to Canada in the 19th century, and how their contributions are commemorated. A free online presentation. 7-8pm EST. Host: Richmond Hill Public Library, Ontario. Registration.

Wednesday 2 March: 1000 Years of Irish Coinage with Dr Edith Andrees. An online lecture hosted by Rathmichael Historical Society. 8pm. Free. All welcome. Details and link. Details

Thursday 3 March: The Civil War: the first phase – June to August 1922, an in-person lecture with Pat McCarthy. Host: Dunhill Winter Lecture Series 2022. Venue: Dunhill Multi-Education Centre, Enterprise Park, BallyPhilip, Dunhill, Co Waterford. 7pm. Lecture followed by Q&A and light refreshments. All welcome. Free.

Thursday 3 March: The Women’s Mission: An Examination of Irish Women’s Political Movements in the 19th Century and their Role in the Fight for Women’s Franchise, with Dr Ciara Stewart. An online talk hosted by the National Library of Ireland. 7pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register.

Thursday 3 March: RootsTech, a free online conference organised by FamilySearch. 1,500+ sessions, some of them on genealogy. Details.

Friday 4 March: RootsTech, a free online conference organised by FamilySearch. Link above.

Saturday 5 March: RootsTech, a free online conference organised by FamilySearch. Link above.

Saturday 5 March: Precious Documents & how they are Conserved, an in-person demonstration with Sean Madden. Host: Armagh Robinson Library. Venue: No 5 Vicars' Hill, Armagh City. 2pm-4pm. All welcome. Free. Need to book.

Monday 7 March: The Letters of Constance Markievicz, with Lindie Naughton. An online talk. Part of the Mondays at the Mess series hosted by Richmond Barracks, Dublin. 7pm to 8pm. Free, but need to register.

Monday 7 March: In the Ranks of Death, an online talk with Richard Doherty. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Foyle Branch. Free. 7pm to 8:30pm GMT. All welcome, but non-members will need to request zoom link. See details.

Monday 7 March: The Women’s Mission: An Examination of Irish Women’s Political Movements in the 19th Century, and online lecture with Dr Ciara Stewart to mark International Women's Day. Host: National Library of Ireland. 7pm. Free. All welcome. Details and registration.

Monday 7 March: Our Houses through Time In Balloo & Ballyminstragh, Part I: A tale of two Houses, with Leslie Simpson. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, 8pm. All welcome. Free. Online. Details. Email Killyleagh@nifhs.org for zoom details.

Tuesday 8 March: Tracing your Irish ancestors through Land records, with Chris Paton. An online lecture hosted by the Genealogical Society of Ireland. Follow AGM. 8pm. All welcome. €5 donation appreciated. Non-members can contact membership@familyhistory.ie for zoom link.

Tuesday 8 March: SS ISOLDA: Censorship, Secrecy and Grief in Emergency Ireland, with Elleesa Rushby. An online AND in-person event hosted by Foxrock Local History Club. Online venue: zoom. In person at Foxrock Parish Pastoral Centre, Co Dublin. 8pm. All welcome. Non-members should send email for zoom link to info@foxrocklocalhistory.ie.

Tuesday 8 March: Far from the Green Fields of Erin: Ulster Emigrants and their Stories, an online talk with Dr David Hume. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Lisburn Branch. 7:30 pm - 9pm UK time. Free. All welcome, but non-members need to email for zoom link.

Wednesday 9 March: Introduction to research in the National Library, an online Lunchtime Talk with Maeve Casserly introducing the National Library of Ireland as a source for research ie its collections and online sources and how to search the catalogues. Hosted by the NLI as part of the Aontas Adult Learners' Festival 2022. 1:10pm. All welcome. Need to register.

Wednesday 9 March: The Role of Women in Irish History, an online talk with Sean Murphy. Hampton Falls Free Library, New Hampshire, USA. 6:30pm–7:30pm EST. Free. All welcome but need to register in advance.

Thursday 10 March: Rebel Women: The Cumann na mBan in Waterford City and County, an in-person talk with Christina Knight O'Connor. Host: Dunhill Winter Lecture Series 2022. Venue: Dunhill Multi-Education Centre, Enterprise Park, BallyPhilip, Dunhill, Co Waterford. 7pm. Lecture followed by Q&A and light refreshments. All welcome. Free.

Friday 11 March: Griffith’s Valuation Records, an online class with Anne Johnston. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. 7pm-8pm GMT. All welcome. Fee £10. Details.



Friday 25 February 2022

Updated and new collections for USA genealogy: 3-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 three weeks. (The previous summary list was published on 2 February – 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 or 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, and the revised total. I do not include updates of fewer than 1,000 records.


NEW COLLECTIONS


Ancestry

FamilySearch

FindMyPast



UPDATED COLLECTIONS


AmericanAncestors
  • Massachusetts: RC Archdiocese of Boston Records, 1789-1920 (191,000+ names added)
    Our Lady of Pity, Cambridge | Holy Trinity, Lawrence | St John the Evangelist, North Chelmsford | Holy Rosary, Lawrence | Sacred Heart, Lawrence | St Anne, Lawrence | Sacred Heart, Middleborough | St Francis of Assisi, Braintree | Sacred Heart, Quincy | St Mary, Quincy.

Ancestry

FamilySearch

MyHeritage

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Thursday 24 February 2022

HistoryIreland publishes fourth volume of Irish Revolution series

A fourth volume in the History Ireland commemorative series on aspects of the Irish Revolution has been published. The latest supplement, The Split: Treaty to Civil War, 1921–1923, introduces ground-breaking articles on women and the Treaty, the role of Eamon de Valera, the establishment of the GardaĆ­, the dead of the Civil War, the global reaction to Ireland's Independence, and the violence inside the new Northern Ireland state and along the border.

The Treaty, Civil War and Partition profoundly shaped today's Ireland. This latest supplement discusses controversial questions regarding Michael Collins and military dictatorship, why the Free State won the Civil War and how Northern Ireland came into being. It looks at how the war has been remembered and asks whether the era of Civil War politics has ended.

An impressive line-up of contributors includes President Michael D. Higgins, John Borgonovo, Theo Dorgan. Bill Kissane, Mary McAuliffe, David McCullagh, Elizabeth Malcolm, Margaret O’Callaghan, John M. Regan and Charles Townshend.

  • THE SPLIT – Treaty to Civil War 1921-23
  • ISBN: 978-1-913934-64-4
  • Editor: Tommy Graham
  • €12.00
  • 272 pages


Wednesday 23 February 2022

RootsIreland adds 7,643 RC baptisms to its County Kerry database

RootsIreland.ie has added a further 7,643 Roman Catholic baptismal records to its County Kerry database.

The new records are for Kilgarvan Parish, which sits on the Kerry side of the border with west County Cork and is about 10 miles east of Kenmare. It rubs up against the Cork parishes of Bantry, Iveleary and Ballybourney.

The baptism records date from 1818 to 1895. They join some 1,300 marriage records covering the same dates, which were uploaded last September. All have been transcribed from locally held registers. Those dated up to 1880 link to the National Library of Ireland's online images of Catholic registers.

To view the full menu of County Kerry records on RootsIreland – they are currently all Catholic records from 27 parishes – click the image above.

MyHeritage adds index to 61,500 Jewish births in Ireland, 1807-2018

MyHeritage has added nearly 6million records Jewish historical records from 28 collections. It includes an index to 61,503 birth records of Jewish people born in Ireland. The earlist record I found related to one David Abraham Stibbe who was born in 1807, and the most recent was in 2018.

         Click image to search the new Irish collection

As I don't have a subscription to MyHeritage I can't offer you more insight on this latest upload. Search results provide name, birth date and birthplace. I don't think there are links to images.

The new collection includes records from a number of European countries. Some contain birth, marriage, death, tax, electoral and immigration records and obituaries, and further instalments will be added in due course, including records from North America, the Middle East, North Africa and beyond.

Whether additional Irish records, perhaps for marriage or death events, will be forthcoming in the future, I don't know.

The collection has been provided to MyHeritage by JewishGen, Inc.

Tuesday 22 February 2022

Advanced Irish genealogy course starts at National Library in March

The National Library of Ireland will again be hosting Sean Murphy's Advanced course in Genealogy this spring. It starts on 9 March, runs for eight weeks on Wednesday afternoons, and classes will be held online.

Being an advanced course, participants are expected to have some prior knowledge of research sources.

The course aims to guide students in the use of more advanced genealogical sourses such as memorial inscriptions, wills, deeds, the National Library and Genealogical Office manuscripts collections, newspapers, directories, occupation/Service records, and Landed Estate Papers etc.

At the end of the course, students should be able to use these advanced sources to further their own family history and use them to research propertied families. All students are encouraged to compile a portfolio of records and notes on the history of a chosen family.

The course fee is €100 and places are limited. The last class will be held on Wednesday 27 April.

To find out more information or to go on the list for this course (it will fill up quickly!), contact Brid by emailing: bosullivan@nli.ie.

Monday 21 February 2022

Irish Historical Towns Atlas project: what's new and what's coming

The Royal Irish Academy recently provided an update on its Irish Historical Towns Atlas (IHTA) project, which I confess to being a great fan of. Not only are the historical maps excellent, but the story of how each featured town developed provides an understanding of the changing environment our ancestors experienced during their lives.

Although restricted, work on the IHTA project during the pandemic has continued, and we have many more atlases to look forward to in the not-too-distant future.

Next in line for publication, after many years of intense research, will be Cork City, by Howard Clarke and MƔire Nƭ Laoƭ.

It will be the largest Atlas to date, and has been progressed in a partnership with Cork City Council. Like all previous atlases, it will offer thematic maps and photographs, an early nineteenth-century plan at the scale of 1:2500 (these show the pattern of housing plots before industrialisation and other development), maps showing the towns’ surroundings, and a modern town plan.

It will be accompanied by an explanatory text and historical gazetteer.

The number of atlases currently underway has grown, too. At various points of the production process are the following: Tralee (Marc Caball), Cavan (Jonathan Cherry/Brendan Scott), New Ross (Linda Doran), Tullamore (Michael Byrne), Ballyshannon (Angela Byrne), Clonmel (David Fleming), Westport (Eamon O’Flaherty/SiobhĆ”n Sexton), Arklow (Jim Rees), Waterford (Eamon McEneaney and Donnchadh Ɠ CeallachĆ”in).

Other towns more recently in progress are Cahir, Carlow, Cashel, Naas, Newry and Roscommon.

Click the map above for an enlarged view of the towns and cities already published and those still to come.

The most recent Atlas – published in October last year – was Rathmines, by SĆ©amas Ɠ MaitiĆŗ. It joined Colm Lennon's Clontarf, which was reprinted last month, in the Dublin Suburb Series of the IHTA. This series is published in a revised but complementary format with numerous historical and modern maps, illustrations and photographs as well as an accompanying essay and individual histories of topographic sites in the featured town.

Next to appear will be Drumcondra (Ruth McManus), Kilmainham/Inchicore (Frank Cullen) and then Ringsend/Irishtown. This series is part-funded by Dublin City Council.

I can claim an ancestral connection to at least three of the towns/cities in the IHTA 'pipe', so I better start saving my shillings!

Irish Manuscripts Commission: titles soon out of print

The Irish Manuscript Commission has advised that some of its publications are almost out of print and only limited stock remains for purchase.

Take a look at the titles below. If one catches your eye, don't delay. Once they have gone, you'll be out of luck.

  • Eoin MacNeill: memoir of a revolutionary scholar — Brian Hughes (ed.) Details.
  • Letterbook of Richard Hare, Cork merchant, 1771–1772 — James O’Shea (ed.) Details.
  • The letters of Katherine Conolly, 1707–1747 — Marie-Louise Jennings & Gabrielle M. Ashford (eds) Details.
  • Court of Claims: submissions and evidence, 1663 — Geraldine Tallon (ed.) Details.
  • The Convert Rolls — Eileen O’Byrne and Anne Chamney (eds) Details.
  • The diary (1689-1719) and accounts (1704-1717) of Ɖlie BouhĆ©reau — Marie LĆ©outre, Jane McKee, Jean-Paul Pittion & Amy Prendergast (eds) Details.

Limited stock shelves at the Irish Manuscripts Commission. When they're gone, they are gone.

Irish genealogy, history & heritage events, 21 February to 6 March

All the events below will be presented online, unless clearly stated as 'in-person' in bold type.

Monday 21 February: Rathrobin and the two Irelands: the photographs of Middleton Biddulph 1900–1920, with Michael Byrne. An online lecture hosted by Offaly History. All welcome. 7:30pm via Zoom. Free. Email info@offalyhistroy.com for the link.

Monday, 21 February: Uitlanders in Africa: Ulster Emigrants in the 19th & 20th centuries, with Dr David Hume. An online lecture. Host: NIFHS Larne Branch. 7:30pm - 9:00pm GMT. All welcome. To join, send email to Larne@nifhs.org before 12pm on the 19th Feb. Details.

Tuesday 22 February: Beyond 2022, an update on the virtual reconstruction of the Public Record Office of Ireland, with Tim Murtagh. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Belfast Branch. 7:30pm - 9:00pm GMT. All welcome. To join, send email to Belfast@nifhs.org. Details.

Tuesday 22 February: The Register of Deeds, an online talk with Brian O’Hara. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Causeway Coast and Glens Branch. Free. 7:30pm to 9pm. All welcome, but non-members need to request zoom link. See Details.

Tuesday 22 February: Surveillance of and violence against women during the War of Independence; case studies from Co Clare, an online lecture with Dr Mary McAuliffe. Host: Kilrush and District Historical Society. 8pm. All welcome. Free. Details.

Wednesday 23 February: Exploring Ireland's Cartographic Heritage. An online lecture with Keith Lilly and Dr Catherine Porter. 7:30pm to 8:30pm. Armagh Robinson Library. Free (but donations appreciated). Need to book. All welcome.

Thursday 24 February: The O’Hara’s of Crebilly, an online talk with Brian O’Hara. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Ballymena Branch. 7:17pm-9pm GMT. Free. All welcome, but non-members need to request zoom link. See Details.

Thursday 24 February: Radicals and Rebels: Ulster Protestant nationalists, c1898-1920, with Dr Conor Morrissey. An online talk in the Librairies NI Heritage from Home series. Free. 12:30pm to 1:30pm. All welcome. Details.

Thursday 24 February: Tracking Thomas Francis Meagher across Panama, an in-person lecture with Ray McGrath. Dunhill Winter Lecture Series 2022. Venue: Dunhill Multi-Education Centre, Enterprise Pk, Ballyphilip, Dunhill, Co Waterford. 7pm. Followed by Q&A and light refreshments. All welcome. Free.

Thursday 24 February: The Buildings and Personages of Dublin 1760-1820, with Rory O'Farrell. An online event hosted by Pembroke Library with Ballsbridge Donnybrook & Sandymount Historical Society. 1pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register.

Friday 25 February: Tales of Two Cities: Dublin and Bristol, a free public seminar, in-person AND streamed online, marking the 850th anniversary of Henry II's grant of Dublin to Bristol. Host: Friends of Medieval Dublin and Dublin City Libraries. Venue: Wood Quay Venue, Dublin CC offices, Dublin. All welcome. Registration required. Details.

Tuesday 1 March: Legacy of the Irish, with Barbara and David Dickson examining Irish immigration to Canada in the 19th century, and how their contributions are commemorated. A free online presentation. 7-8pm EST. Host: Richmond Hill Public Library, Ontario. Registration.

Wednesday 2 March: 1000 Years of Irish Coinage with Dr Edith Andrees. An online lecture hosted by Rathmichael Historical Society. 8pm. Free. All welcome. Details and link. Details

Thursday 3 March: The Civil War: the first phase – June to August 1922, an in-person lecture with Pat McCarthy. Host: Dunhill Winter Lecture Series 2022. Venue: Dunhill Multi-Education Centre, Enterprise Park, BallyPhilip, Dunhill, Co Waterford. 7pm. Lecture followed by Q&A and light refreshments. All welcome. Free.

Thursday 3 March: The Women’s Mission: An Examination of Irish Women’s Political Movements in the 19th Century and their Role in the Fight for Women’s Franchise, with Dr Ciara Stewart. An online talk hosted by the National Library of Ireland. 7pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register.

Thursday 3 March: RootsTech, a free online conference organised by FamilySearch. 1,500+ sessions, some of them on genealogy.

Friday 4 March: RootsTech, a free online conference organised by FamilySearch.

Saturday 5 March: RootsTech, a free online conference organised by FamilySearch.

Saturday 5 March: Precious Documents & how they are Conserved, an in-person demonstration with Sean Madden. Host: Armagh Robinson Library. Venue: No 5 Vicars' Hill, Armagh City. 2pm-4pm. All welcome. Free. Need to book.



Tuesday 15 February 2022

England, Scotland and Wales genealogy updates in last fortnight+

Below is a summary of new and updated family history record collections for England, Scotland and Wales released by the major genealogy databases over the last three weeks (see previous summary, 28 January).

My 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, shared with FindMyPast (total 47,992,861 pages)
  • New titles in main collection ($£€)

FindMyPast


UPDATED COLLECTIONS


FamilySearch

FindMyPast
FreeBMD

TheGenealogist



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Monday 14 February 2022

Ulster Historical Foundation's 2022 USA Tour announced

For the first time in two years, the Ulster Historical Foundation will be touring the USA presenting workshops, lectures and seminars on Irish and Scots-Irish genealogy research. 

The tour takes in eight states. Each event is planned as a live, in-person event with social distancing and reduced participant numbers as standard. However, should health and safety precautions make it necessary, the events will be held online.

Click the tour logo right for more information, or see links below for the event taking place at your preferred destination.

Irish genealogy, history and heritage events, 14 - 27 February

All the events below will be presented online, unless clearly stated as 'in-person' in bold type.

Monday 14 February: The Anglican Record Project, and Beyond, with Mark Williams. An online lecture. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Newtownabbey Branch. 7:00pm - 8:30pm GMT. All welcome. To join, send email to Newtownabbey@nifhs.org. Details.

Tuesday 15 February: Launch of re-designed IrishAncestors.ie, the website of the Irish Genealogical Research Society. A celebration event with demo, chat and prizes. All welcome. 8pm to 9pm. Free. Register here.

Tuesday 15 February: 'Languages have no respect for human borders': Geography, culture and politics in Northern Ireland, with Karen Corrigan. An online talk as part of the Heritage from Home lecture series. Hosted by LibrariesNI. 12:30pm. Free. All welcome. Details and registration here.

Wednesday 16 February: Irish Civil War to Irish Free State, with Professor Henry Patterson, Liz Gillis, Dr SĆ­obhra Aiken and chair Dr Adrian Grant in an online panel discussion exploring post Anglo-Irish Treaty Ireland. Hosted by the Creative Centenaries project. Free. All welcome.7pm. Registration and details.

Thursday 17 February: The Cult of Patrick and his Later Medieval Latin Lives, with Dr Elizabeth Dawson. Host: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland and the Ulster Society for Irish Historical Studies (USIHS). 7pm to 9pm. Free. Online. All welcome. Need to book. Registration closes one hour before the event and an invite link will be sent to everyone registered one hour before the beginning of the event. 

Thursday 17 February: 'Killed by Partition and Politics'; The decline of Irish cross border railways 1921 to 1965, with Jim McBride. An online talk as part of the Heritage from Home lecture series. Hosted by LibrariesNI. 12:30pm. Free. All welcome. Details and registration here.

Saturday 19 February: Researching Your Irish and Scots-Irish Ancestors, a day of live, online workshops presented by the Ulster Historical Foundation. Hosted by the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania. 9am to 4pm. Fee: $35.00 for GSP Members and $40.00 for non-members (includes two-weeks' access to recordings. Registration and details.

Monday 21 February: Rathrobin and the two Irelands: the photographs of Middleton Biddulph 1900–1920, with Michael Byrne. An online lecture hosted by Offaly History. All welcome. 7:30pm via Zoom. Free. Email info@offalyhistroy.com for the link.

Monday, 21 February: Uitlanders in Africa: Ulster Emigrants in the 19th & 20th centuries, with Dr David Hume. An online lecture. Host: NIFHS Larne Branch. 7:30pm - 9:00pm GMT. All welcome. To join, send email to Larne@nifhs.org before 12pm on the 19th Feb. Details.

Tuesday 22 February: Beyond 2022, an update on the virtual reconstruction of the Public Record Office of Ireland, with Tim Murtagh. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Belfast Branch. 7:30pm - 9:00pm GMT. All welcome. To join, send email to Belfast@nifhs.org. Details.

Tuesday 22 February: The Register of Deeds, an online talk with Brian O’Hara. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Causeway Coast and Glens Branch. Free. 7:30pm to 9pm. All welcome, but non-members need to request zoom link. See Details.

Wednesday 23 February: Exploring Ireland's Cartographic Heritage. An online lecture with Keith Lilly and Dr Catherine Porter. 7:30pm to 8:30pm. Armagh Robinson Library. Free (but donations appreciated). Need to book. All welcome.

Thursday 24 February: The O’Hara’s of Crebilly, an online talk with Brian O’Hara. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Ballymena Branch. 7:17pm-9pm GMT. Free. All welcome, but non-members need to request zoom link. See Details.

Thursday 24 February: Tracking Thomas Francis Meagher across Panama, an in-person lecture with Ray McGrath. Host: Dunhill Winter Lecture Series 2022. Venue: Dunhill Multi-Education Centre, Enterprise Park, BallyPhilip, Dunhill, Co Waterford. 7pm. Lecture followed by Q&A and light refreshments. All welcome. Free.

Thursday 24 February: The Buildings and Personages of Dublin 1760-1820, with Rory O'Farrell. An online event hosted by Pembroke Library in association with the Ballsbridge Donnybrook and Sandymount Historical Society. 1pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register. Details.

Friday 25 February: Tales of Two Cities: Dublin and Bristol, a free public seminar, in-person AND streamed online, marking the 850th anniversary of Henry II's grant of Dublin to Bristol. Host: Friends of Medieval Dublin and Dublin City Libraries. Venue: Wood Quay Venue, Dublin CC offices, Dublin. All welcome. Registration required. Details.

Saturday 12 February 2022

National Archives of Ireland's Genealogy databases are inaccessible

The National Archives of Ireland's Genealogy website isn't working properly this afternoon. It seemed fine this morning, but now, while you can navigate around the site as if all was well, you can't reach any of the databases.

I can't remember this happening before. It's gone kapput a few times, but not like this.

It's a Saturday. I can't find out what is wrong nor when it might be fixed.

I won't be monitoring it all night! I'll take a look in the morning.

UPDATE, Sunday 13 Feb: no change.

UPDATE, Monday 14 Feb: full access restored.

UPDATE, Tuesday 15 Feb: Groundhog day! All systems down again. The techies are aware of it and are working to restore access asap.

UPDATE, Tuesday 15 Feb, 2.15pm: Full service has resumed.

Friday 11 February 2022

Workaround to view Connacht & Munster Landed Estates database

All of you who've been missing access to the still-offline LandedEstates.ie database following last  September's attempted hack of NUI Galway's computer systems (see most recent blogpost) are going to be happy bunnies this weekend.

This is how the pages will look

Yesterday, in response to my tweet on Wednesday about the ongoing lack of access to the Connacht and Munster Landed Estates database, I was contacted by Dr Paul Greaney. Paul, a genealogist, lectures in Computer Science at the Letterkenny Institute of Technology (LYIT), and he's found a semi-functional version of the site.

Here's how to reach the database:

  • Type into your browser http://52.18.205.240/
  •  Landing page has several monochrome placeholder boxes and looks dead. But it isn't.
  • Below the top-left grey '260x80' placeholder is a row of options: Family, Estate, Houses or Maps. The Home link doesn't work, but the others do!
  • Click one, and you're in.

It's not pretty, and some of the search functions, Google Maps and general functionality aren't operational, but for most research purposes, it's almost as good as!

Huge thanks to Paul @paulkilgill for finding this workaround. He makes no promises as to how long it will work!


8 April 2022: The site is back up and running! See blogpost.

Valuation Office's Revision Books digitisation project: latest news

An update for you regarding the Valuation Office's Archive Preservation Project, which we all know as the 'Republic's slow project to digitise the Griffith's Valuation Revision Books and associated maps'.

When visiting the VO Public Office at the Irish Life building on Abbey Street, researchers can now search and view electronically the Revision Books and material from the following 17 counties/cities: Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork City & County, Donegal, Dublin City & County, Galway (not the city), Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Limerick City (most areas) & County, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary and Wexford.

Some areas of Limerick and Galway cities are not currently available, but should be soon (they are being scanned).

Also 'away with the scanners' are books for Dundalk (Louth), and County Longford.

This leaves just Counties Laois, Leitrim, Louth (minus Dundalk) Wicklow, Westmeath and Waterford still accessible only by the original manuscript books.

There is no official word on when the project is expected to complete. The Valuation Office's Strategic Plan 2021-23 anticipated completion in 2023, but that needs to be reviewed in light of the Lockdowns of the last two years. Still, at least we know the final destination of the project: it will be online and free to access.

Galway City's Revision Books are currently offsite, being scanned.

In the meantime, the organisation continues to operate an appointment-only service for free access to the Griffiths Valuation collection (photocopies €1). 

Three appointments are available in the morning, and the same in the afternoon. It is likely this will continue for some time as the staff have found they are able to offer a better level of service to visitors, especially those who may not be familiar with the material, within the appointment-only format.

It is possible the appointment-only format will remain in place after the VO Public Office makes its move (probably by the end of this year) to the new Tailte Ɖireann HQ in The Distillers Building in Smithfield, which is still in construction.

The space allotted to the VO Public Office is smaller in the new premises than currently enjoyed in the Irish Life Building (which is hardly overly generous!), so restricting the number of visitors may become a permanent feature until the online archive becomes a reality.

For researchers who cannot or choose not to visit the Public Office, VO staff operate a Research Service. I've never used this myself, but other researchers have praised it and feel it is good value (€30 plus photocopy costs). Details are here.

Index to North Irish Roots, the Journal of the NIFHS, published

The North of Ireland Family History Society (NIFHS) has launched an index to the surnames and locations mentioned in articles, features and other material published in 18 recent editions of North Irish Roots, the Society's bi-annual journal. More than 2,000 surnames, 2,100 locations, and 134 resources for follow-up exploration are noted in the 44-page Guide to the Contents of North Irish Roots Journals 2013-2021, which is presented in searchable pdf format.

The project to create the Guide started life with Audrey McKeown, the Society's current Journal Editor. She was convinced a wealth of material of benefit to family historians was held in back issues of North Irish Roots, but she knew it could be difficult for researchers to find.

Together with volunteer members living in Australia and the US, she spent more than six months identifying what information to include and how to present it, and then to complete the indexing.

The resulting members-only publication, launched yesterday, is sure to be a useful reference for all those actively engaged in research.

Following up their finds in the Guide will not be difficult because members have free access to back issues of the Journal via JSTOR; North Irish Roots has long been digitised in a partnership between Queens University Belfast and JSTOR - a digital global library of academic journals, books, and primary sources & and is accessible via JSTOR's Ireland Collection. The latter holds not only copies of North Irish Roots dating from 1984 to 2018, it holds publications from more than 70 other Irish journals from a wide range of societies, groups and associations. See a full list, here.

One of the many benefits NIFHS members receive as part of their subscription is free at-home access to this entire Irish Collection on JSTOR. (Some libraries offer access, too.) Members will now be able to search the new Guide for names, places and terms eg Royal Navy, Graveyard name etc and, if they hit bingo and find a likely match, they can note the Journal edition and page number, and locate the article precisely and quickly on JSTOR.

Wednesday 9 February 2022

Connacht+Munster LandedEstates Database: latest post-hack news

I had a word this afternoon with the Specials Collections team at NUI Galway' James Hardiman Library about the Connacht and Munster Landed Estates Database, which has been offline for four months since the University's IT system was attacked. See my original blogpost on this topic here.

Sadly, there is no good news to report. The landedestates.ie database is still offline and will remain so for some time. Realising an attack was being attempted back in September, the University's IT department decided to take all its systems and material down rather than have it lost or damaged. This means the techies are having to build back all of its systems from scratch – a huge and time-consuming operation.

The one-off databases dedicated to the Library's special archival collections are among those that have not yet been restored and will only gradually make their way to the front of the queue. The LandedEstates database has its own peculiarity in that it is actually hosted by the Moore Institute rather than by the Library directly. Let's hope this one-step-removed connection won't delay its return to live status.

If I had to guess, and it is only a guess, I'd be surprised (and delighted) if the database was operational again during the current academic year.

UPDATE 11 February: Please see my blogpost 'Workaround to view Connacht & Munster Landed Estates database'.


8 April 2022: The site is back up and running! See blogpost.

Tuesday 8 February 2022

New-style online Irish Genealogy course starts 16 February

Professional Genealogist Tony Hennessy will be running a new 10-week online course in Irish Genealogy from next Wednesday, 16 February. An interesting feature of this course is that the live classes (two-and-a-half hours long each Wednesday) will be presented in two time slots to allow each participant to choose the time that best suits them.

The time slots are 10:30am–1pm GMT and 6:30pm–9pm GMT. Take your pick! (If you live in a different time zone, see timeanddate to work out the corresponding times where you live.)

A recording of each class will be shared the day after it was held only with those who attended it. This will allow each participant to review and work through the class at their own pace.

Tony has been a Member of Accredited Genealogists Ireland for 11 years, and has taught in-person and online classes for family historians at University College Cork, University of Limerick, and City Colleges Dublin. He has recently been appointed to the National Library of Ireland Genealogy & Heraldry Committee.

He says the course will be aimed at beginners and more advanced researchers. You can find full details on his website Tony Hennessy Genealogy.

The course fee is €250.

Irish Registry of Deeds Index Project: first updates of 2022

My goodness, those wonderful volunteers of the Irish Registry of Deeds Index Project have been working like the clappers over the festive season and the depths of winter!

Nick Reddan FIGRS, who founded and manages the project, attributes this great output to the northern hemisphere's cold season and covid issues, and he, enjoying the sunshine in Canberra, is probably right!

Since the last update in the middle of December, the free online index has expanded by nearly 11,000 entries and the Townland index has grown by nearly 60,000 new entries.

The Grantor Index, which can be a bit more testing to transcribe, was updated by only a few hundred entries. The total memorial count in the main index is now at 49,381, so chuggling along nicely towards 50,000.

All the Indexes are free to search.


Wednesday 2 February 2022

Three-week summary of new and updated US genealogy collections

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 14 January – 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 or 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, and the revised total. I do not include updates of fewer than 1,000 records.


NEW COLLECTIONS


FamilySearch

UPDATED COLLECTIONS


AmericanAncestors

Ancestry

FamilySearch


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A newly discovered account book records names and earnings of building labourers working at Armagh Workhouse in 1846

The RCB Library's Archive of the Month for February 2022  features an unusual and rare set of building specifications and related materials concerning various church-related properties and other premises in the city and county of Armagh during the mid-19th century.

While these may not be a first port of call for all readers of Irish Genealogy News, there's a real gem in this collection for family, social, and local historians. It's a fascinating workman's account book detailing workmen's names, hours and payments per day while engaged on works at various locations in Armagh City: the Northern Bank, 1845; the Workhouse, 1846; and 'Works Generally, 1846'. (RCBLibrary MS 1116/3/1.) The Archive of the Month feature includes a sample from it.

These collections were found in records from St John’s Cathedral in Sligo, and after some investigation, it has transpired that all of the materials relate to properties in Armagh, and most were executed by or for John Farr, Builder, The Mall, Armagh. The material includes estimates and specifications for specific named buildings and works such as a new shambles for the city, a school house for St Mark’s parish, and repairs of the Precentory building attached to the Cathedral.


A sample from the Workmen's Account for April 1846
showing days worked and earnings for the men grafting at the Workhouse.
Click image to view detailed page.


Tuesday 1 February 2022

A busy start to 2022 for Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives

January was a busy month for the volunteers who kindly donate transcriptions and photographs to Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives. As you'll see below, there's a great mix of records in the bag, originating from six of the island's counties. All free for researchers to explore.

Headstone erected by Maurice Caffery in memory of his
father, William. In St Paul's Ballysax, Co Kildare.
Photo courtesy Angela Gallagher and IGP Archives.
Click for larger image.

CLARE Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Kilmurry Ibrickan Graveyard

CORK Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Aghada Presbyterian Graveyard

DONEGAL Genealogy Archives - Church Records
Templecarn (CoI) Marriages 1845-1921

DUBLIN Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Mount Jerome, Part 273
Deansgrange, St. Kevin's Section Pt 3

KILDARE Genealogy Archives - Headstones
St. Paul's Graveyard, Ballysax

FERMANAGH Genealogy Archives - Church Records
Boho (CoI) Marriages, 1845-1921
Clabby (CoI) Marriages 1871-1921
Clabby (Methodist) Marriages
Ederney (R.C.) Baptisms
Ederney (R.C.) Marriages
Knockninny (Methodist) Marriages 1878-1921
Lisbellaw (CoI) Marriages 1845-1935

FERMANAGH Genealogy Archives - Education
School Attendance Records, Letterkeen School (Infants-6) 1878-1879


Irish genealogy, history and heritage events, 1-20 February

Most of the events listed here are scheduled to be held online, so I have taken this as the default position. However, some in-person events are beginning to be held again, and I included them; they are clearly noted as such below, in bold type with their location.

Tuesday 1 February: Glasnevin Cemetery – Women’s Tour, as part of Brigit 2022, Dublin City Celebrating Women programme. A special in-person tour of some of the influential women are buried in the nation's necropolis. Free. Starts 10:30am. Host: Glasnevin Cemetery, Finglas Road, Glasnevin, Dublin 11. Booking required. Details.

Tuesday 1 February: Ireland 1922: Women in independence, partition and civil war, an online discussion with Fionnuala Walsh, Lindsey Earner-Byrne and Mary McAuliffe. Chaired by Darragh Gannon. Hosts: Royal Irish Academy and Department of Foreign Affairs. 6pm to 7pm. No booking required. Free. All welcome. Details.

Tuesday 1 February: Smart Women, French Letters and Fast Commission – the second wave of Irish Feminism, Catriona Crowe in conversation with Suzanne Lynch. Host: Embassy of Ireland, Belgium, marking St Brigid's Day. 6pm in Belgium. 5pm Irish time. Online. Free but need to register.

Wednesday 2 February: Antrim - the Irish Revolution, 1912-23, with Dr Brian Feeney, author of a newly published book of the same name. The online talk will explore how the Ulster Crisis, Great War and Irish Revolution in Antrim shaped the political, economic and social aspects of people’s lives from 1912 to 1923. Host: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI). Free. All welcome. 7pm to 8pm. Booking required. Registration closes one hour before the event and an invite link will be sent to everyone registered one hour before the beginning of the event.

Wednesday 2 February: Getting Started with Irish Genealogy Research, an online workshop with Miles Davenport. Host: Irish Cultural Center and McClellan Library, Phoenix, USA. 11am to 1pm. Cost: Members: $15 | Non-Members: $20. Find out more, here.

Wednesday 2 February: Mapping Death: Burial in the Late Iron Age and Early Medieval Ireland, with Dr Elizabeth O'Brien. An online lecture hosted by Rathmichael Historical Society. 8pm. Free. All welcome. Details and link.

Saturday 5 February: Getting Started with Irish Genealogy, an in-person afternoon workshop hosted by BBNY GROUP at the New York Irish Center, 1040 Jackson Avenue, Queens, New York, USA. 2-5pm. Fee: $40+, includes refreshments and handouts. Registration required. Note proof of covid-19 vaccination requirement.

Monday, 7 February: H & J Martin, the Builders, with Joanne Martin talking about her Martin family. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Killyleagh Branch. 8pm - 9:30pm GMT. Free. All welcome. To join the online meeting, send email to Killyleagh@nifhs.org.

Monday 7 February: DNA – Life, Death, Disease & Genealogy, with Professor Anthony Bjourson. An online lecture. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Foyle Branch. 7pm - 8:30pm GMT. All welcome. Free. To join the meeting, send email to Foyle@nifhs.org. Details.

Tuesday 8 February: Belfast and the Slave Trade, with Clifton House. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Lisburn Branch. 8pm - 9:30pm GMT. Free. All welcome. To join the online meeting, send email to Lisburn@nifhs.org.

Tuesday 8 February: Newfoundland and Labrador: A mosaic founder population of an Irish and British diaspora from 300 years ago, an online lecture by Dr Edmund Gilbert. Host: Genealogical Society of Ireland. 8pm. Non-members can email (to Membership@familyhistory.ie) for link.

Wednesday 9 February: Oral history – an introductory workshop with Dr TomĆ”s Mac Conmara who will discuss the value of oral history and the key skills required. Free. 7pm to 8:30pm. Online. To book a place email heritage@westmeathcoco.ie.

Wednesday 9 February: To Hell and Back: Ghosts and Perceptions of the Afterlife from Medieval Cork, an online lecture with Br ColmĆ”n Ɠ Clabaigh. Host: Cork Historical and Archaeological Society. 7:30pm. Register in advance. All welcome. Zoom link and details here.

Thursday 10 February: From ‘Bridgets’ to business magnates: a celebration of 300 years of Irish women in America. Join Ireland's Ambassador to the United States, Dan Mulhall, in coversation with Liz Evers and Niav Gallagher, editors of 'Irish Lives in America'. Hosts: Royal Irish Academy and Department of Foreign Affairs. Online. 6pm to 7pm. Free, but booking is required.

Monday 14 February: The Anglican Record Project, and Beyond, with Mark Williams. An online lecture. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Newtownabbey Branch. 7:00pm - 8:30pm GMT. All welcome. To join, send email to Newtownabbey@nifhs.org. Details.

Tuesday 15 February: Languages have no respect for human borders: Geography, culture and politics in Northern Ireland, with Karen Corrigan. Host: LibrariesNI Heritage From Home 2 series. 12:30pm. Free. Need to register. Details.

Tuesday 15 February: Ringforts in the Barony of Ikerrin … and beyond, with Dr Matthew Stout. An in-person lecture hosted by Tipperary Studies. Part of the Tipperary People and Places Lecture series. Venue: The Source Library, Thurles, Co Tipperary. 7:30pm. All welcome. Details.

Thursday 17 February: The Cult of Patrick and his Later Medieval Latin Lives, with Dr Elizabeth Dawson. Host: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland and the Ulster Society for Irish Historical Studies (USIHS). 7pm to 9pm. Free. Online. All welcome. Need to book.

Thursday 17 February: Killed by Partition and Politics; The decline of Irish cross border railways 1921 to 1965, with Jim McBride. Host: LibrariesNI Heritage From Home 2 series. 12:30pm. Free. Need to register. Details.