Thursday 31 March 2022

March brought more free headstone records to Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives

Republican markers at Holy Rosary
Cemetery, Midleton, Co Cork.
Photo courtesy of Angela Gallagher and IGPA.

With the seasons in changing mode, it's not very surprising that researchers are getting out and about again, and that means one thing to the volunteer team at Ireland Genealogy Projects Archives (IGPA): more headstones to photograph and more inscriptions to transcribe. The haul for March includes precisely this, from four burial grounds from three counties.

Here are the details and links to view the free records:

CAVAN Genealogy Archives - Headstones
St. Peters, Templeport (Updated)

CORK Genealogy Archives - Headstones
St. Colman's Graveyard, Cloyne (Parts 1-3)

CORK Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Holy Rosary Cemetery (R.C.) Part 1, Midleton

GALWAY Genealogy Archives - Headstones
Abbeygormacan R.C. Cemetery (Updated)



Monday 28 March 2022

Irish genealogy, history and heritage events: 28 March to 10 April

Tuesday 29 March: Tithe Records in PRONI, an online talk with Des McCabe. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Causeway Coast and Glens Branch. 7:30pm to 9pm. Free. All welcome. Non-members will need to email Causeway@nifhs.org for zoom link.

Tuesday 29 March: Lives of the Belfast Poor in the 19th Century, an in-person event with Dr Robyn Atcheson. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: Clifton House, 2 North Queen Street, Belfast BT15 1ES. Free. All welcome. Booking essential. 7:30pm to 8:30pm.

Wednesday 30 March: Ireland 1900 - 1925: Crisis, War and Revolution, an online event highlighting some of the archives available in PRONI’s online resources. Speakers: Janet Hancock, PRONI; Dr Timothy Bowman, University of Kent; Jim McBride, Secretary, History Teachers’ Association NI. 1pm to 2pm. Free. All welcome. Need to book.

Thursday 31 March: Revolution, agrarianism and the burning of Ballydugan House, Co Galway, 1922, with Ann O’Riordan. Part of the online Burning the Big House lecture series. Host: Centre for the Study of Historic Irish houses and Estates, History Department, Maynooth University. 7pm to 8pm. Book here. Fully booked

Thursday 31 March: From Treaty to Civil War, with Cormac Moore, Dublin City Council Historian-in-Residence for the North Central Area. This is the second of the Ireland in 1922 online history talks hosted by Raheny Library. 7pm. Free but need to register your place. Book here.

Thursday 31 March: Launch of Demonised: 'The Islandmagee Witches, 1711', with Dr Andrew Sneddon, and Dr Victoria McCollum. Host: PRONI. An online event to mark the 312th anniversary of the trial of the "Islandmagee witches" in Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim in 1711. 12:15pm to 1:30pm. Free. All welcome. Details.

Monday 4 April: Women and the Great War in Ireland, with Dr Fionnuala Walsh. An online lecture hosted by Offaly History. All welcome. 7:30pm via Zoom. Free. Email info@offalyhistroy.com for the link.

Monday 4 April: The Citizen Army is out today, with Lorcan Collins. An online talk. Part of the Mondays at the Mess series hosted by Richmond Barracks, Dublin. 7pm to 8pm. All welcome. Free, but need to book.

Wednesday 6 April: Griffith’s Valuation and Other Irish Land and Property Records, an online workshop with Miles Davenport. Host: McClelland Irish Library, Phoenix, Arizona USA. 11am–1pm. A Level II / Intermediate workshop. All welcome. Members $15 / Non-Members: $20. Details and registration.

Wednesday 6 April: The Decade of Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, an online webinar with Chris Paton. 7.30pm. Free to members and non-members. After the live event, a recording will be available for one month. Need to register. Details.

Wednesday 6 April: Irish Diaspora webinar, an online webinar with Claire Bradley providing advice and tips for identifying your Irish ancestor's place of origin in Ireland. Host: CBGenealogy, Dublin. 8pm – 9:30pm IST/BST. Fee: €10. Need to register in advance. Details.

Thursday 7 April:A barbarous mania of incendiarism’: house burnings in Co Louth, 1921-23, with Jean Young. Part of the online Burning the Big House lecture series. Host: Centre for the Study of Historic Irish houses and Estates, History Department, Maynooth University. 7pm to 8pm. Booking. Fully booked.

Thursday 7 April: The Civil War, with Cormac Moore, Dublin City Council Historian-in-Residence for the North Central Area. Part of the 'Ireland in 1922' online history talks hosted by Raheny Library. 7pm. Free. Need to book here.

Thursday 7 April: Lost Presbyterian Meeting Houses of Belfast, an online lecture with Tom Hartley. Host: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. 2-3pm. Free and all welcome. Need to register.

Thursday 7 April: Using Ancestry DNA, an online class with Martin McDowell. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. 7pm to 8pm. All welcome. £10. Need to book by 5 April.

Friday 25 March 2022

Genealogy updates for England, Scotland & Wales: 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 over the last two weeks (see previous summary, 9 March).

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 48,825,218 pages)
  • New titles in main collection ($£€)

Historic England


UPDATED COLLECTIONS


Ancestry

FamilySearch

FindMyPast

Free BMD

Scottish Indexes


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.

Thursday 24 March 2022

5,300+ Irish-born recorded in newly-released Scottish gaol registers

A few weeks ago, in my last summary of new and updated records for English, Scottish and Welsh genealogy, I noted that Scotland's People had uploaded a new collection of Scottish prison registers. It holds details of more than 50,000 admissions to prison . Unfortunately, I didn't have time to check out the collection at the time, but luckily genealogist Jill Williams FIGRS gave me a heads up yesterday that 10% of the prisoners entered in the indexes had been born in Ireland.

Click to search the index

This first batch of prison records are from Perth Prison and date from 1867-1879 and 1888-1921, with gaps. They include both men and women held in custody, tried or untried.

The index doesn't reveal which status relates to each individual, nor does it give up details of their alleged crimes, sentences, occupations, height, general health and religion. Such information is restricted to those researchers who choose to pay to view the full register entry.

I was pleased to find that from the name index I could sort and filter search results under a number of headings, including place of birth, age, date admitted and whether the individuals used an alternative/alias name. For now, since only Perth Prison is represented in the collection, there is no reason for filtering the index according to prison, but this could become a useful option as records are added from other places of detention.

The Irish-born contingent in the collection numbers 5,320 individuals, 80% of them men. One of the regular female prisoners was Bridget Cassidy ('2nd surname' Duchart), from Ballyshannon, Co Donegal. She was admitted eight times to the prison from courts in both Falkirk and Perth between 1907 (aged 34) to 1915. She reveals her home town only twice, other times stating only 'County Donegal' or 'Ireland'.

The youngest person taken into custody was 12-year-old Belfast-born Thomas Connely, while the oldest was James MacKenzie of Dublin who was aged 65 when admitted in 1889.

For more information about the new collection, see Scotland's People's article here.

RCB Library presents early 19th-century map of Glasnevin, Dublin

The Archive of the Month from the RCB Library for March shines a spotlight on a beautiful map that makes up part of Ms 1104, a recent addition to the Library’s extensive manuscript collection.

The map of Glasnevin that accompanies the deed.
RCB Library Ms 1104/8

Much like the Lindsay collection of which it is a part, the map is an important document for historians as well as for genealogists researching family members who lived in the area at this time. It provides visual cartographic evidence that predates the Ordnance Survey maps for this area, in which detailed lists of landowners or tenants who lived in this area at the beginning of the 19th century are included.

It was located with a deed dated 22 October 1833 between Hon Rt Revd Charles Dalrymple Lindsay (1760-1846), Dean of Christ Church Cathedral and Bishop of Kildare from 1804 until his death, and William John Gore of Dublin. It was surveyed by John Longfield in 1807

The map is focused primarily on the area surrounding Glasnevin village, incorporating areas that would be familiar to Dubliners today, such as Cross Guns, as well as references to Drumcondra to the east and the ‘Lands of Finglass’ towards the north.

What is striking is what is not visually depicted. For example, although the Botanic Gardens were founded here in 1795, the only reference that the map makes to its presence is a plot of land labelled ‘The Dublin Society under Christ Church’.

Click the map for an enlarged view.

Wednesday 23 March 2022

New / updated genealogy collections for USA: four-week summary

Below is a summary of US family history collections released or updated by the major genealogy databases in the last four weeks. (The previous summary list was published on 23 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

New York City Municipal Archives

FamilySearch

FindMyPast

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.

Monday 21 March 2022

Irish genealogy, history and heritage events, 21 March to 3 April

Monday 21 March: Titanic, an in person event with Tom Hartley. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: Falls Park Bowling Pavilion, 63 Andersonstown Rd, Belfast BT11 9AH. Free. All welcome. 11am to 12noon.Booking essential.

Monday 21 March: Symbolism and Belfast City Cemetery, an in-person event with Tom Hartley. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: Elmwood Building - Geography Building, Queen's University, Elmwood Avenue, Belfast.Lecture starts 7:30pm. Tea available from 7pm. Free. All welcome. Booking essential.

Monday 21 March–29 April Burning the Big House: The Story of the Irish Country House in Revolution, 1920-23, an in-person exhibition curated by Professor Terence Dooley. Venue: Irish Architectural Archives, 45 Merrion Square East, Dublin 2. Free. 10am to 5pm.

Tuesday 22 March: Researching Irish Presbyterian Family History, with Dr William Roulston. An online event hosted by the North of Ireland Family History Society, Belfast Branch. 7:30pm-9pm GMT. Free. All welcome, but non-members need to request zoom link via Belfast.Treasurer@nifhs.org.

Tuesday 22 March Online burial research, with PRONI and PlotBox. Part of the City Cemetery Lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: PRONI, 2, Titanic Boulevard, Belfast, BT3 9HQ. Free. All welcome. You can attend this event in-person or watch it live online via Zoom. Booking is essential for both. 12:30 to 1:30pm.

Wednesday 23 March: Viscount Pirrie – Mister Titanic, an in-person lecture with Mark Doherty. Part of the City Cemetery Lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: EastSide Visitor Centre, 402 Newtownards Road, Belfast BT4. All welcome. 7:30pm to 8:30pm. Free, but booking essential.

Thursday 24 March: What’s new in Family Tree Maker, an online interactive discussion with Mark Olson, Stefan Harms and Pierre Clouthier. A two-hour session exploring new plug-ins for the software and giving you the opportunity to ask questions and receive answers from the FTM team. 7pm-9pm GMT. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. Free. Need to email for link. Details.

Thursday 24 March: An Overview of Ireland in 1922, with Cormac Moore, Dublin City Council Historian-in-Residence for the North Central Area. This is the first of the Ireland in 1922 online history talks hosted by Raheny Library. 7pm. Free. Need to book here.

Thursday 24 March: Burning the Big House: the story of the country house during the Irish Revolution, 1920-23, with Terence Dooley. First of the online Burning the Big House lecture series. Host: Centre for the Study of Historic Irish houses and Estates, History Department, Maynooth University. 7pm to 8pm. Booking. Fully booked.

Friday 25 March: Emigration, from Ireland to Australia and New Zealand, an online class with Mike McKeag. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. 2pm-3pm GMT. All welcome. Fee: £15 for class and notes, or £10 for class only. Booking.

Friday 25 March: PRONI's online records, an online class with Andrew Kane, an online class with Mike McKeag. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. 2pm-3pm GMT. All welcome. Fee: £10 for class only. Booking.

Saturday 26 March: Material Legacies: The Archaeology of the Irish Revolutionary Period, a free online conference. A collaboration between UCD School of Archaeology in association with Abarta Heritage and the Landscapes of Revolution Project. 9:30am to 4pm GMT. Details and booking.

Saturday 26 March: Carrickfergus, as it was during the Second World War, an in-person guided walk with Lead The Way Tours. 10:30am to 1pm. Details and tickets (£5, under 16s; £10, adults). Need to book by 25 March.

Sunday 27 March: The Merchants who Grew a City: a Tour of Belfast’s Industrial History, an in-person tour by Imagine! Belfast Festival of Ideas & Politics. Meet at the Big Fish, Donegall Quay, Belfast, BT1 3NG. 2pm to 4:30pm. See details and buy tickets (£15) at eventbrite.

Tuesday 29 March: Tithe Records in PRONI, an online talk with Des McCabe. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, Causeway Coast and Glens Branch. 7:30pm to 9pm. Free. All welcome. Non-members will need to email Causeway@nifhs.org for zoom link.

Tuesday 29 March: Lives of the Belfast Poor in the 19th Century, an in-person event with Dr Robyn Atcheson. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: Clifton House, 2 North Queen Street, Belfast BT15 1ES. Free. All welcome. Booking essential. 7:30pm to 8:30pm.

Wednesday 30 March: Ireland 1900 - 1925: Crisis, War and Revolution, an online event highlighting some of the archives available in PRONI’s online resources. Speakers: Janet Hancock, PRONI; Dr Timothy Bowman, University of Kent; Jim McBride, Secretary, History Teachers’ Association NI. 1pm to 2pm. Free. All welcome. Need to book.

Thursday 31 March: Revolution, agrarianism and the burning of Ballydugan House, Co Galway, 1922, with Ann O’Riordan. Part of the online Burning the Big House lecture series. Host: Centre for the Study of Historic Irish houses and Estates, History Department, Maynooth University. 7pm to 8pm. Booking. Fully booked

Thursday 31 March: From Treaty to Civil War, with Cormac Moore, Dublin City Council Historian-in-Residence for the North Central Area. This is the second of the Ireland in 1922 online history talks hosted by Raheny Library. 7pm. Free. Need to book here.

Thursday 31 March: Launch of Demonised: 'The Islandmagee Witches, 1711', with Dr Andrew Sneddon, and Dr Victoria McCollum. Host: PRONI. An online event to mark the 312th anniversary of the trial of the "Islandmagee witches" in Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim in 1711. 12:15pm to 1:30pm. Free. All welcome. Details.



Thursday 17 March 2022

St Patrick's Day deliveries from FindMyPast.ie

FindMyPast.ie has created and released an index + transcriptions record set to a collection of Waterford County Burials Registers. The registers are from three cemeteries: St Carthage's in Lismore, St Declan's in Ardmore, and (producing more that 15,000 index entries) St Otteran's. The latter is also known as Ballinaneeshagh and is located two miles to the west of Waterford City.

The records span 1862 to 2006.

These registers have been freely available (with others) as unindexed pdf images for some years on the website of Waterford City and County Archives, so if you don't have a findmypast subscription, you could browse through them here.

In addition, a new, free collection of Views of Ireland has been uploaded. Comprising 117 photos (some colourised) and illustrations dating from the 19th century, they take in some of the island's most beautiful scenery.

They capture landscapes in 17 counties: Antrim, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Fermanagh, Galway, Kerry, Kilkenny, LondonDerry, Louth, Mayo, Sligo, Waterford and Wicklow.


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 IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Largest collection of free NYC vital/bmd records released online

The largest collection of publicly available New York City birth, marriage, and death records has been released, free, on the Department of Records and Information Services (DORIS) website.

Some of my free haul

As far as I'm aware, this was not intended to be a St Patrick's Day gift, but for those researchers descended from the vast number of Irish-born immigrants who arrived in New York City in the 19th and early 20th centuries, it's a pot of Irish gold, all right!

The database holds 9,318,625 indexed and imaged vital records dating from 1855 to 1949. The images are copies of birth certificates, marriage certificates, marriage licences and death certificates

This number represents about 70% of the New York City Municipal Archives' holding from across all five boroughs, so if you can't find your ancestors now, just be patient: they may be along as the digitisation project progresses.

You'll find charts showing the digitisation status by year for each type of record in each borough on the Digital Vital Records page here. You should also bear in mind, if searching for births, that about a quarter of babies born before 1909 were not reported so there will be no file.

The Search page is here: You have a choice of searching by Certificate Number or by Name, the latter facility being still in Beta, so may not be entirely accurate. Since I didn't know any certificate numbers for my extended family, I used the Name search and screengrabbed more than 70 Santrys for my one-name study. However, I became suspicious that the search function wasn't picking up varient spellings. Sure enough, when I searched for Sauntry, I found another eight events. Do bear this in mind.

Happy hunting.

New book tells 900-year story of St James's Church and Graveyard

Genealogist and lecturer Sean J Murphy has published another book: A History of St James's Church and Graveyard. This Dublin burial ground was once the capital's largest inner city graveyard, with an estimated total of 100,000 individuals interred from the 12th century to 1989.

Founded back in 1189–92, the church and burial ground has an intriguing history. It was named for the saint said to be buried in Santiago de Compostela in Spain, and over the past 900 years has become the final resting place of many celebrated/famous people.

The church building closed as a place of worship in 1963 and, following refurbishment and conversion, is now home to the Pearse Lyons Distillery, while the cemetery surrounding and behind it has long been overgrown and inaccessible. Now in the care of Dublin City Council, it is currently being restored and will (hopefully) be reopened the public.

Sean's 180-page book is published by Kilmainham Tales. It costs €12:50 plus postage and packaging, direct from the publisher. For further details, and P&P-inclusive prices to other regions, click the book's cover picture, right.

ISBN: 978-1-908056-89-4

Ireland's 2022 Census: Leaving a message to your descendants

Over the last two weeks, a team of some 5,100 enumerators has been delivering Census 2022 forms to households across the Republic of Ireland. These forms relate to the five-yearly census postponed from last April (due to Covid-19). All homes should have received their form by Census Night, Sunday 3 April. Whether you've received yours already or not, use the next few weeks to think about what you might, or might not, include as a message for future generations. I'm not alone is still scratching my head.

This year's census offers what's being called the Time Capsule. This is a space at the end of the form for you to leave your own personal message, if you would like to do so. It's purely voluntary, but I suspect most genealogists can imagine the delight of reading a message – perhaps a secret, a snippet of harmless gossip, a silly joke, or some insight into character – in their ancestor's handwriting from a century earlier.

This Time Capsule 'message' will, along with the rest of the form, remail confidential for 100 years and will then be made available to the public.

I can already hear future genealogists competing for the 'Best Ancestor's Time Capsule Awards 2123!

There are no restrictions on what is written in the Time Capsule. This freedom is a problem: the possibilities are endless. Surely writing nothing would be disappointing for your ancestors. But so would writing about the weather, the price of bread, your favourite socks, or what you think of the spring TV schedule. I'm sure many individuals will take the opportuntity to reveal racy, sad, shocking personal or family stories. Others might take the maxim 'revenge is best served cold' to its nth degree and dish it up to the world 100 years on.

Rejigged question, with 'No religion' as the first option

I almost dread to think what some of these Time Capsules will contain, but there will also be plenty of amusing anecdotes, quirky comments, and many messages of hope that our generation woke up and responded to climate change in time, and that we did – eventually – give peace more than just a chance.

Collectively, the Time Capsule message will create a fascinating insight to Ireland's mind-set in 2022. And they'll give journalists, genealogists and historians a wide new stream of material to write about well into the 22nd century.

In addition to the Time Capsule, the upcoming census asks eight new questions, including ones on remote working and sustainable energy. The religion question has also been re-ordered, so that 'no religion' is at the top of the selection list; this is expected to deliver a clearer picture of the size of the Republic of Ireland's non-religious cohort.

To find out more about this year's census, click the Census 2022 logo above. To download a sample of the census form, click here.

Wednesday 16 March 2022

Dublin City Libraries calls for participants for Transcription Week

Dublin City Libraries is calling for participants to join Transcription Week (Monday 28 March to Friday 1 April) as part of Europeana.eu's annual Transcribathon. The event will see individuals from all over the island unlock important historical documents and make them more easily available, free of charge, to genealogists, historians and other researchers.

The documents to be transcribed cover almost two hundred years of Dublin history from 1695 to 1881, and reveal the City’s transformation from a medieval city to the modern capital we know today. The major collections involved are the Wide Streets Commission and the Dublin City Council Manuscript Minutes.

Until now, these handwritten records have been available only in hard copy or, in some cases, as digital photographs. However, the text has not easily been accessible, and because of that these important sources have not been as widely consulted as they could be.

During Transcription Week, images of these documents will be available on the Transcribathon website. Transcribers can type in the handwritten information and enrich the documents by identifying place-names, dates or other historical data.

Plenty of support is available for transcribers. Starting next week, a series of pre-recorded videos will be released to provide more context about the record collections, how to register for a Transcribathon account, and how to use the transcribing software. During Transcription Week itself, a daily live 60-minute workshop will demonstrate how to transcribe and add to documents, and will troubleshoot any problems participants may encounter. These workshops will be held in the afternoons and are optional.

For more information, and to view some of the documents transcribed in previous Transcribathon events, see the Dublin City Library blog.

Monday 14 March 2022

Irish Genealogy Essentials – an online course: starts 20 March

Ulster Historical Foundation’s first online genealogy course of the year will be starting next week: on Sunday 20 March.

This comprehensive online genealogy course takes all the key components of the UHF’s Irish Genealogy Essentials programme and makes them available digitally, allowing participants to complete the programme at their own pace and from the comfort of their own home.

It consists of:

  • 21 pre-recorded lectures on essential topics relating to Irish genealogical research (over 28 hours of content)
  • Four live “Q and A” sessions/tutorials with the course lecturers (these will be scheduled to suit different time zones)
  • Downloadable lecture handouts and reading list

Click the image above for a full course summary. You can book here.

Irish genealogy, history and heritage events, 14 - 26 March

Monday 14 March: Researching your Irish ancestors, an in-person day conference with the Ulster Historical Foundation. Host: Central Library, Brown County Library, 515 Pine Street, Green Bay, WI 54301, USA. 9am to 4pm. Register by 7 March. Phone 920.448.5815 or email bc.library.LHG@browncountywi.gov. Download details.

Monday 14 March: Update on Beyond 2022, an online talk by the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. Hosted by the North of Ireland Family History Society's Newtownabbey branch. 7pm–8:30pm GMT. All welcome. Free. Non-members can request zoom link here.

Monday 14 March: County Offaly, 400 years ago, from the writings of Sir Mathew de Renzy, an in-person AND online lecture with Kieran Keenaghan and James Scully. In-person at Offaly History Centre, Bury Quay, Tullamore, Co Offaly. and also streamed live via Zoom (email info@offalyhistory.com for link). 8pm. Free. All welcome.

Monday 14 March: Jewish community in Belfast, a free in-person event with Steven Jaffe. Part of the City Cemetery Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: Whiterock Community Centre, 4 Whiterock Close, Belfast, BT12 7RG. 7:30pm to 8:30pm. Free. All welcome. Booking essential.

Tuesday 15 March: Crime, punishment and the assize record in late C17th Tipperary, an in-person lecture with Dr Colman Dennehy. Host: Tipperary People and Places Lecture series, from Tipperary Studies. Venue: The Gallery, The Source Library, Thurles, Co Tipperary. Free. All welcome. No booking required. 7pm.

Tuesday 15 March: The Future of Family History, a free online talk with Dr Nick Barratt. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society, South Tyrone Branch. 8pm. All welcome. Non-members can email SouthTyrone@nifhs.org for link.

Tuesday 15 March: Digging up the Raj in Deansgrange Cemetery, with Shabnam Vasisht. An online AND in-person event hosted by Foxrock Local History Club. In-person venue: Foxrock Pastoral Centre Hall, Kill Lane, Dublin 18; all welcome, non-members €5. Online via zoom - non-members should email info@foxrocklocalhistory.ie for link - free to all. Starts 8pm.

Wednesday 16 March: Irish Genealogy Research Program, with Fintan Mullan and Gillian Hunt of the Ulster Historical Foundation. An online AND in-person event at the Ruggles Hall, Newberry Library, Washington Square, Chicago, Illinois, USA. 10am CT. Free but need to register in advance. Details.

Wednesday 16 March: Walshes and Fitzgeralds: A Waterford merchant dynasty in 17th and 18th century Tenerife, an in-person event with John Bergin. 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 17 March: Researching Your Irish and Scots-Irish Ancestors, an in-person workshop with the Ulster Historical Foundation. Host: St Charles County Historical Society. Venue: St Charles Community College, Social Sciences Building Auditorium, 4601 Mid Rivers Mall Drive, Cottleville, MO 63376, USA. 9am to 1pm. All welcome. Free. Download Details. Registration by 14 March.

Thursday 17 March: St Patrick's Day. Bank Holiday across the island.

Saturday 19 March: Researching your Irish ancestors, an in-person AND online seminar with the Ulster Historical Foundation. Host: Tennessee Genealogical Society. Venue: Germantown Church of Christ, 8723 Poplar Pike, Germantown, TN, USA. All welcome. See program, fees and registration details.

Saturday 19 March: Tracing your Irish Ancestors: Emigration & Diaspora, with Roz McCutcheon FIGRS and Jill Williams FIGRS, an online half-day workshop hosted by the Society of Genealogists. 2pm to 5pm. Fee: £16 Members; £20 non-members. All welcome. Details and booking.

Saturday 19 March: Castlecomer to Montague: A Case Study in Irish Protestant Immigration to Upper Canada, with Janice Nickerson. An online event hosted by the Kingston Branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society. 10am ET. Free. Register here.

Saturday 19 March: Finding the Source; a Survey of Irish Genealogical Websites and Databases, an online workshop with Miles Davenport. Host: McClelland Irish Library, Phoenix, Arizona USA. 11am–1pm. An overview of the top 14 websites for Irish family history research. Prerequisite: Previous attendance of the Library's 19th Century Irish Genealogy Research' workshop or good working knowledge of Irish records and jurisdictions is strongly recommended. All welcome. Members $15 / Non-Members: $20. Details and registration.

Monday 21 March: Titanic, an in person event with Tom Hartley. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: Falls Park Bowling Pavilion, 63 Andersonstown Rd, Belfast BT11 9AH. Free. All welcome. 11am to 12noon.Booking essential.

Monday 21 March: Symbolism and Belfast City Cemetery, an in-person event with Tom Hartley. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: Elmwood Building - Geography Building, Queen's University, Elmwood Avenue, Belfast.Lecture starts 7:30pm. Tea available from 7pm. Free. All welcome. Booking essential.

Monday 21 March–29 April Burning the Big House: The Story of the Irish Country House in Revolution, 1920-23, an in-person exhibition curated by Professor Terence Dooley. Venue: Irish Architectural Archives, 45 Merrion Square East, Dublin 2. Free. 10am to 5pm.

Tuesday 22 March: Researching Irish Presbyterian Family History, with Dr William Roulston. An online event hosted by the North of Ireland Family History Society, Belfast Branch. 7:30pm-9pm GMT. Free. All welcome, but non-members need to request zoom link via Belfast.Treasurer@nifhs.org.

Tuesday 22 March Online burial research, with PRONI and PlotBox. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: PRONI, 2, Titanic Boulevard, Belfast, BT3 9HQ. Free. All welcome. You can attend this event in-person or watch it live online via Zoom. Booking is essential for both. 12:30 to 1:30pm.

Wednesday 23 March: Viscount Pirrie – Mister Titanic, an in-person lecture with Mark Doherty. Part of the City Cemetery lecture Series from Belfast City Council. Venue: EastSide Visitor Centre, 402 Newtownards Road, Belfast BT4. Free. All welcome. 7:30pm to 8:30pm. Booking essential.

Thursday 24 March: What’s new in Family Tree Maker, an online interactive discussion with Mark Olson, Stefan Harms and Pierre Clouthier. A two-hour session exploring new plug ins for the software and giving you the opportunity to ask questions and receive answers from the FTM team. 7pm-9pm GMT. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. Free. Need to email for link. Details.

Thursday 24 March: Burning the Big House: the story of the country house during the Irish Revolution, 1920-23, with Terence Dooley. Part of the online Burning the Big House lecture series. Host: Centre for the Study of Historic Irish houses and Estates, History Department, Maynooth University. 7pm to 8pm. Booking. Fully booked.

Friday 25 March: Emigration, from Ireland to Australia and New Zealand, an online class with Mike McKeag. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. 2pm-3pm GMT. All welcome. Fee: £15 for class and notes, or £10 for class only. Booking.

Friday 25 March: PRONI's online records, an online class with Andrew Kane, an online class with Mike McKeag. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. 2pm-3pm GMT. All welcome. Fee: £10 for class only. Booking.

Saturday 26 March: Material Legacies: The Archaeology of the Irish Revolutionary Period, a free online conference. A collaboration between UCD School of Archaeology in association with Abarta Heritage and the Landscapes of Revolution Project. 9:30am to 4pm GMT. Details and booking.



Friday 11 March 2022

Ancestry DNA test kits: Mother's Day offer for Ireland and UK

Ancestry is offering a 25% saving on its Ancestry DNA test to coincide with Mother's Day in Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Although the discount is being promoted as a Mother's Day gift, there's no obligation to give it to your mother or any other female relative or friend! It's up to you who receives it. Even if it's you!

You can see the saving and reduced prices in the image to the right.

The discount expires at 11:59pm, Friday 15 April.

To take advantage of the saving, place your order below according to your preferred currency:


AncestryDNA test kit €59, reduced from €95. Shipping extra.
UK: AncestryDNA test kit £59, reduced from £79. Shipping extra.

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.

BritishNewspaperArchive: 30% discount on all new subscriptions

The BNA holds some 230 Irish titles in its database

The British Library's online newspaper collection at BritishNewspaperArchive.co.uk (BNA) is running a 30% discount across its range of subscriptions.

Any length of new subscription – monthly, three-monthly or annual – will attract the saving, and this includes gift subscriptions.

To take advantage of the offer, be sure to place your order by 11:59pm on Monday 14 March.

If you click the image above you'll be taken to the subscription page and will find the discount code has already been applied.


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 IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Thursday 10 March 2022

BritishNewspaperArchive grows with five more Irish titles

The BritishNewspaperArchive (BNA) has added five new Irish titles, presumably as a St Patrick's Day gift. They are:

The Limerick Gazette & Advertiser.
Planned holding 1804 and 1808–1820.

Leitrim Journal & Carrick-on-Shannon Advertiser.
Planned holding 1850–1872

Dungannon News & County Tyrone Advertiser.
Planned holding 1893–1915

Ireland's Saturday Night. Sports reports and scores. Published in Belfast. Planned holding 1874–2008 (1874–95 Ulster Saturday Night).

Frontier Sentinel & Down/Armagh/Louth Advertiser. Planned holding 1904–1960.

In addition, the holding for The Limerick Reporter & Tipperary Vindicator has been extended by three years with the upload of editions published 1892–1894. The holding now spans 1839–1894, with gaps.

These uploads have been shared with the Irish Newspaper Collection at FindMyPast, the BNA's sister company.

UPDATE, 11 March: BritishNewspaperArchive announced a 30% discount across all its subscriptions. Click the image below to take advantage of the offer. It expires at 11:59pm GMT on Monday 14 March.

Click image to check out this offer. You'll find the promo code has already been applied.


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 IrishGenealogyNews online. See Advertising Disclosure tab above.

Wednesday 9 March 2022

English, Scottish & Welsh genealogy records: two-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 over the last two weeks (see previous summary, 23 February).

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


Ancestry

BritishNewspaperArchive, shared with FindMyPast (total 48,825,218 pages)
  • New titles in main collection ($£€)

FamilySearch

FindMyPast


UPDATED COLLECTIONS


Ancestry

FamilySearch

Families In British India Society FIBIS
  • The Home Missionary Society of India (HMSI)
  • Ranchi Area Churches and Cemeteries
  • Bengal Pres, Dera Ismail Khan Cemetery
  • St Stephens CNI Cemetery, Bandra, Bombay
  • Mahabaleshwar Christian Cemetery
  • Jhansi Lychgate Cemetery
  • Katchehari Cemetery Civil Lines, Kanpur
  • Lal Kurti Christian Cemetery, Kanpur
  • Subedar Ka Talab Cemetery, Kanpur

FindMyPast

MyHeritage

Society of Genealogists
  • Suffolk, Denham burials 1539-1850
  • Buckinghamshire, Weston Underwood RC register c.1791-1887
  • Cheshire, Heswall burials 1559-1729
  • Lancashire, The Church of St James Didsbury burials Part II, 1561-1757
  • Berkshire, Upton Parish 1588-1741
  • Kent, Staplehurst Parish Registers 1596-1695
  • Cornwall, Madron Parish Register 1577-1726


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 7 March 2022

St Patrick's Day savings: Ancestry DNA + 3-month sub only US$60

To mark St Patrick's Day and help USA-based researchers discover whether they have any Irish heritage, Ancestry is offering big savings on its Ancestry DNA Bundle.

The Bundle consists of an Ancestry DNA test kit plus a three-month World Explorer subscription. Purchased individually at standard prices the kit + subscription would cost $178.95 plus shipping. Bought together as a bundle, the standard price would by $100 plus shipping.

But until the close of play on St Patrick's Day, you can buy the bundle for only $60 plus shipping.

The World Explorer subscription gives you access to billions of US and international records, so wherever you discover your ancestors may have originated, you're sure to advance your family history project.

Click the Buy Now strip to find out more, read the terms and conditions, and place your order. The discounted bundle offer will expire at 11:59pm ET on Thursday 17 March.

RootsIreland offers St Patrick’s Day discount to 31 March

RootsIreland.ie, the online database of records transcribed by genealogists working at the IFHF's island-wide network of 34 family history and heritage centres, is offering a Saint Patrick's Day discount on a 12-month subscription. This isn't a one-day wonder, however! The 25% saving will be available from now until midnight, 31 March, so you've plenty of opportunity to check out the database and the mix of records searchable for each county.

You can view the range of searchable records for each county via this widget.

RootsIreland has the most complete and most accurate set of Roman Catholic church records online, with many county collections extending to the very end of the 19th century and up to 1920. (Most online Irish RC register records stop at 1880/1.) In addition, the database has huge collections of records from Church of Ireland (Anglican), Presbyterian, Quaker and other denominations, civil records, census records, headstone inscriptions and census substitutes.

The database holds more than 23 million records, and continues to grow. In the last two years alone, one million have been added from Counties Limerick, Clare, Sligo, Kerry, Wicklow, Westmeath, Kilkenny, Monaghan, Armagh, Cork, Laois and Offaly, plus East Galway, South Tipperary, South Dublin and North Mayo.

Click the RootsIreland logo above to start exploring the website.