FindMyPast updates recent Northern Ireland deaths collection

FindMyPast has created a distinct record-set – Northern Ireland Deaths 1998-2020 – for its collection of recent Northern Ireland deaths, and uploaded an additional 5,000 records to it. The additions bring to 92,600 the total of records in the collection.

FindMyPast Fridays deliver new records each week

They have been sourced from Wilmington Millennium, a Yorkshire-based company that gathers names and other personal data of deceased individuals and uses it to help insurance, security and other businesses to prevent identity fraud and similar scams. The collected data comes from a variety of non-GRONI sources so the information in each record varies, but it will usually provide full name, birth and death dates, death location and a postcode of residence for each deceased person.

A similar collection of non-GRO records covering England and Wales Deaths, 2007-2020 has also been created in FindMyPast's database. Some 353,000 recent death records have been added to it, bringing the collection total to 3,274,094 records.

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PRONI adds more genealogy/history talks to YouTube

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) has uploaded to its YouTube channel a selection of video recordings of talks, workshops and demonstrations that were presented online since Autumn 2020. Brief details and a link to each recording are below.

Getting Started Workshop — Using Online Resources. These workshops were always over-subscribed when they were held in-person before the pandemic closed PRONI's doors to the public. 48 mins.

British army recruitment in Ulster,1903 1918, with Dr Timothy Bowman. Hosts: PRONI and the Antrim & Down branch of the Western Front Association. 55 mins.

Sexuality & Social Control in the Presbyterian Archive circa 1717-1830, with Dr Leanne Calvert. Who wouldn't want to know about misbehaving ministers and promiscuous Presbyterians. 62 mins.

The Chairman & The Commander: J. Bruce Ismay and Captain ‘E. J.’ Smith, with Mark Chirnside. A talk focusing on two of the key personalities in the Titanic story.

Key Sources for Genealogy - Street Directories, a demonstration of this database in PRONI's ecatalogue. 8 mins

Key Sources for Genealogy - Title Deeds and the PRONI Land Registry Archive, a practical demonstration of searching for land registry records at PRONI. 18 mins.

Conservation Studio - Behind the Scenes, with Sarah Graham, PRONI's Head of Conservation. An overview of the work of the conservators. 9 mins. 

Exploring Victorian Belfast: People, Place & History, an afternoon conference exploring how and why Belfast developed into an industrial city of exceptional and unique importance during the 19th century. 100 mins. Four talks: 

• Seeing Belfast as a Victorian City, with Sean Connolly
• Surviving the industrial city: women, welfare and the workhouse in Victorian Belfast, with Olwen Purdue
• Civic Investment in the Victorian Past, with Robert Heslip
• Middle-class life in Ireland’s bourgeois capital, with Alice Johnson.

30% savings on 6-month subscriptions to Ancestry.ca

It's become relatively rare for Ancestry to offer discounts on its subscriptions, so look sharp and take advantage of this offer if a half-year subscription to Ancestry.ca is likely to prove useful to your family history research.

The 30% saving is available only on 6-month subscriptions to the Canadian and International packages, as follows:

Canada Discovery Plus
Package includes all Canadian records plus worldwide census and BMD records.
The discount reduces the cost from $84.99 to just $59.50 (Canadian dollars).

World Deluxe
Package includes access to 'everything on Ancestry' ie 20 billion records from more than 80 countries.
The discount reduces the cost from $129.99 to just $90.99 (Canadian dollars).

The discount will expire on Wednesday 7 April.

 

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.

Irish genealogy, history and heritage events in April

Thursday 1 April: WWI: Exploring the Irish Experience, a virtual exhibition tour. Host: National Library of Ireland. Free, but need to register. 11am.

Saturday 3 April: Centenary of the Burning of the Custom House, Conference 2021, with Liz Gillis and Mícheál Ó Doibhilín. The conference will be held online in a series of weekly talks to commemorate the event on 25 May 1921. They are free, and there's no need to register, on Facebook at 8pm every Saturday up to and including 22 May. Just join the live stream. Details.

Tuesday 6 April: The Great Pandemic: The 1918-19 Flu in Dublin, with Dr Ida Milne. Part of the Death and Disease in Dublin series from Dublin City Library and Archive. 1-2pm. Online. Free, but need to register.

Tuesday 6 April: The Life of Liam Mellows: Lost Soul of Irish Republican Socialism, with Conor McNamara. Host: Áras Uí Chonghaile/James Connolly Visitor Centre. 8pm. Free. All welcome. Lecture will stream on Facebook. Details.

Thursday 8 April: Yeats: the Life and Works of William Butler Yeats, a virtual exhibition tour. Host: National Library of Ireland. Free but need to book here. Online. 11am.

Saturday 10 April Gaining credentials as a professional Irish genealogist, a webinar. Host: Accredited Genealogists Ireland. A free event for those already working professionally in the industry, and for those who aspire to doing so. 10:30am. Details.

Saturday 10 April The Really Useful Family History Show, an online conference hosted by the Family History Federation. More than 35 talks throughout the day, plus 'exhibition hall', and expert panel. Day ticket £10. Details.

Tuesday 13 April: From Family Tree to Family History, an online class with Mike McKeag explaining how to develop your existing family tree into a readable family history. Host: North of Ireland Family History Society. 2pm – 3pm. Zoom. £10 fee. Book here. All welcome.

Tuesday 13 April: The History of Psychiatric Hospitals in Dublin, with Professor Brendan Kelly. Part of the Death and Disease in Dublin series from Dublin City Library and Archive. 1pm. Free but need to register here.

Wednesday 14 April: Mullingar in 1921, with historian Ruth Illingworth. Host: Westmeath Archaeological and Historical Society. War of Independence Lecture Series. 8pm-9pm. Free. Zoom details.

Thursday 15 April: From Turmoil to Truce: Photographs of the War of Independence, a virtual online exhibition tour. Host: National Library of Ireland Photographic Archive. Free but need to book. 11am.

Thursday 15 April: Partition as Paradigm: Power & Legitimacy in the Making of the New Irelands, with Dr Robert Lynch. Hosts: Ulster Society of Irish Historical Studies (USIHS) and the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. 7pm. Free. Book ticket.

Cancelled.

Thursday 15 April: The Registry of Deeds and its records, with Sean J Murphy. Host: Clare Roots Society. 8pm. Zoom. Members and non-members welcome. Go to society's website for zoom link.

Thursday 15 April: Blitz 80: The morning after the night before: Emma Duffin's tour of Blitzed Belfast, April 1941, with Trevor Parkhill. Hosts: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland War Memorial (NIWM). Online presentation. 2pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register at Eventbrite.

Saturday, 17 April: The Church of Ireland Historical Society Spring Conference. Online at 11am. Conference open to all. COIHS Members free. Fee of €10/£10 for non-members. Details.

Saturday, 17 April: The story of the Dublin Port Archive, with Lar Joye, exploring the archive, collection and future plans. Host: Irish Genealogical Research Society, Ireland Branch. Zoom open at 2:15pm. Lecture starts 2:30pm. Open to members and non-members. Free. Details.

Monday 19 April: The 1641 rebellion, confederate wars, and the Cromwellian conquest – a perspective from "King's County, with Dr Eamon Darcy. Host: Offaly Heritage. 7:30pm. Email info@offalyhistory.com (subject/ref: Zoom Darcy 1641) for Zoom link.

Tuesday 20 April: Soldiers and Sex Workers: Venereal Disease in early 20th Century Ireland. Part of the Death and Disease in Dublin series from Dublin City Library and Archive. 1pm. Free but need to register here.

Tuesday 20 April: Teaching the Nation’s Past: Irish history in Secondary Schools, 1922-69, with Dr Colm Mac Gearailt. Host: Experience Glasnevin - Ireland's National Cemetery Lecture Series, 2021. Free. Online. 7pm. Need to register.

Tuesday 20 April: Mutinies in the early 20th century years of the Irish state, with Éanna De Búrca. Host: Foxrock Local History Club. 8pm. Non-members welcome but need to register. See Details.

Wednesday 21 April: Cures and treatments of Spanish Influenza in Ireland, with Dr Patricia Marsh. World Immunization Week. Host: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. Online presentation. 2pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register at Details.

Wednesday 21 April: The Plight of the Big House, with JAK Dean. Host: Ulster Architectural Heritage. Online lecture, 7-8pm. All welcome. Fee £7.50 Members; £10 non-members. Details.

Wednesday 21 April: Ireland's Ancient East: the land of Legends and Stone, with Jennifer Carbery. Host: Carlow Historical and Archaeological Society. Free. 8pm. On Zoom and Facebook. Details.

Wednesday 21 April: The Fate of the Landlord Class in County Westmeath, with Dr Ian Kenneally. Westmeath Archaeological and Historical Society's online lecture series on the War of Independence. 8pm-9pm. Free. Details.

Wednesday 21 April: We are Black and Tans: Children and the Irish Revolution, with Liz Gillis. Host: South Dublin Libraries Local Studies, a Decade of Centenaries event. 7pm. Free but need to book as spaces limited.

Thursday 22 April: Yeats and the Theatre, a themed exhibition tour introducing Yeats as a playwright and theatre maker Host: National Library of Ireland. Free but need to book. 11am.

Thursday 22 April: Blitz 80: Putting the pieces together: exploring the Blitz through archive images, film and first-hand accounts, with Ann Donnelly, Janet Hancock and Jenny Haslett. Hosts: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland War Memorial (NIWM). Online presentation. 2pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register. Details.

Thursday 22 April: PRONI and CAIN: Using Conflict Archives, with David Huddleston. Host: Conflict Archive on the INternet (CAIN). Free. Online. 2pm to 3:30pm. Details and registration.

Tuesday 27 April: Crisis in a Colonial Capital: The Black Death in Dublin, with Dr Simon Egan. Part of the Death and Disease in Dublin series from Dublin City Library and Archive. 1pm. Free but need to register here.

Tuesday 27 April: Place versus Memory: The Archaeology of the War of Independence and Civil War in Cork, with Dr Damian Shiels. Host: Experience Glasnevin - Ireland's National Cemetery Lecture Series, 2021. Free. Online, 7pm–8:30pm. Need to register.

Tuesday 27 April: Habitually, rankly immoral: state censorship in Ireland after 1930, with Dr A Bhreatnach. Host: National Archives of Ireland. Online. 7pm. All welcome. Free but need to register.

Thursday 29 April: Armagh Robinson Library – 250 years, with Dr Robert Whan. Host: Armagh Robinson Library, Northern Ireland's oldest public library. Talk held on Zoom. 7:30pm. Free and all welcome, but need to book online or email: director@armaghrobinsonlibrary.co.uk.

Tuesday 27 April: Naming and Forgetting: A Lecture on Fieldnames and Minor Placenames in County Clare, with Jake Justice and Micheál Mac Gearailt. Host: Kilrush and District Historical Society. Online. 8pm. All welcome. Details.

Thursday 29 April: Yeats: the Life and Works of William Butler Yeats, a virtual exhibition tour. Host: National Library of Ireland. Free but need to book here. Online. 11am.

Thursday 29 April: Blitz 80: Faces of the Blitz, with Alan Freeburn. Hosts: Public Record Office of Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland War Memorial (NIWM). Online presentation. 2pm. Free. All welcome. Need to register. Details.

Thursday 29 April: 1911 Irish census and technology: bringing past, present & future together, with the Sensible Code Company. The talk will explore how digitised data is being transformed into a flexible format to unlock the value of historic records and open up exciting new possibilities for analysis. Host: National Archives of Ireland. 2:30pm to 4pm. Free online lecture. Booking essential.

Friday 30 April to 2 May: SleuthAbility, a virtual Irish genealogy, DNA and History conference, hosted by BBNY Group. Two days of recorded presentations, some aimed at Irish-Americans, each followed by live Q&A. See programme, schedules, speakers and ticket options here.

Take five*: Recent news in brief for Irish genealogists

It's been a tough month for me, one way or another, and I've been getting behind with posting news. To catch up, and give myself a bit of breathing space, I've come up with a condensing formula where I'll give you the nuts and bolts of five news stories and send you off to find out more for yourselves.

Normal service should resume shortly.

National Archives of Ireland publishes new 5-year strategy

Last week, the National Archives of Ireland launched a new strategy to set the direction for its organisation over the next 5 years.

The new strategy, set out in its document Shaping Our Future in the Information Age, identifies the priorities that will guide its work over this period. They include a new state-of-the-art archive repository, a digital transformation programme, a new framework for records management across government, a commemorations and outreach programme, and building the capacity of the National Archives as a fit for purpose, dynamic and innovative organisation.

Publication of the document (click image to download) came just days before the last tranche of archive material was transported off-site from the NAI's long-time warehouse behind Bishop Street. (The NAI's new archive repository, meeting international standards for the storage of archives, will be unveiled in 2022.)

The online British Newspaper Archive hits another milestone

The BritishNewspaperArchive.co.uk has raced through another milestone, after its overnight upload took the total number of historical newspaper pages in the database to more than 42million.

After a particularly busy March, when no less than nine new Irish titles joined the line-up, the archive holds some 210 Irish newspapers.

Some 152 of these titles were published in places now in RoI, and 58 published in counties now in Northern Ireland.

The entire database is available at the dedicated BNA site and as part of certain FindMyPast subscription packages. It is known as the Irish Newspaper Collection in the latter.

The Dictionary of Irish Biography is now free to explore

The online Dictionary of Irish Biography (DIB), a project of the Royal Irish Academy (RIA), has moved to an open access model, making it free to search, view and explore.

First published in 2009, the DIB now holds almost 11,000 biographies spanning 1,500 years of Irish history. The RIA describes it as telling ‘the island’s life story through the biographies, at home and overseas, of prominent men and women born in Ireland, north and south, and the noteworthy Irish careers of those born outside Ireland.

Researchers can browse by name for individuals and contributors, or search by keywords, such as placenames, and use filters such as religions and field of recognition/career.

The dedicated site is at https://dib.ie.

2nd edition of Credentials for Genealogists published

A new edition of Credentials for Genealogists: Proof of the Professional, by Paul Gorry FIGRS, MAGI, has been published.

The 244-page paperback, by a highly-respected Member of Accredited Genealogists Ireland, was first published in 2018, and sparked much debate among those working (or aspiring to do so) in the genealogy industry into the topics of standards, experience, qualifications, and credentials for professional genealogists.

The book also explores the availability (or otherwise) of such credentials around the world.

While previously available to purchase only through an independent bookshop in Ireland, the new edition is now available for purchase through Amazon, as follows:

Amazon UK | Amazon.com | Amazon Australia |
Amazon Canada. 

 

The treasures of Trinity College Dublin's iconic Library are to go virtual 

Virtual Trinity Library is opening up the unique and distinct collections of the Library of Trinity College Dublin, catalysing research and safeguarding the Library's treasures for generations to come. 

This ambitious, multi-year initiative aims to catalogue, conserve, digitise and research these unique collections of national importance making them accessible to a global audience, from schoolchildren to scholars.

The ambitious digitisation project is centred on the Library of Trinity College's most prized collections across nine representative categories. The nine themes are:

• Dublin for Children's Literature: Trinity's Collections of Children's Literature
• Europe's Diverse Heritage: From Ussher's Library to the Fagel Library
• Global Culture: Papyrus and Objects
• Ireland's Creative Legacy: Performance, Creative Arts and Architecture Archives
• Ireland's Experiments & Great Discoveries: Mathematical, Scientific & Map Collections
• Ireland's Literary Heritage: Literary Archives
• Ireland's Medieval History: Medieval Manuscripts
• Ireland's Religious & Political Evolution: Religious, Legal, Political & Military Collections
• Trinity's Scholarly Contribution to the World: Trinity Icons

Click on the image above to view the website and introdutory video.

* I hear the drums.

RootsIreland adds more parish records for County Cork

The Mallow Heritage Centre has added more than 3,300 RC parish records to its database on RootsIreland.ie.

For an up to date list of all the Cork North East records in the RootsIreland database, click the Mallow Heritage Centre logo, right.

Additions are as follows:

• Castlemagner Baptisms: Additions 1900-1920. Record-set now spans 1832-1920
• Ballyclough Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record-set now spans 1805-1941
• Ballyhea Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record-set now spans 1811-1941
• Doneraile Marriages: Additions 1923-1941, Record-set now spans 1815-1941
• Fermoy Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record-set now spans 1828-1941
• Kildorrery Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record set now spans 1803-1941
• Mallow Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record-set now spans 1758-1941
• Meelin Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record-set now spans 1867-1941
• Milford Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record-set now spans 1823-1941
• Newmarket Marriages: Additions 1923-1941. Record-set now spans 1822-1941
• Cloyne Marriages: Additions 1930. Record-set now spans 1791-1930

Don't forget the St Patrick's Day discount of 25% off 6-month and annual subscriptions runs until 31 March.

Spring edition of Irish Roots magazine published

The Spring edition of Irish Roots, Ireland's only independent family history magazine, has been published and is now available in both print and digital formats

It brings, as always, a compelling mix of informative articles on genealogical and historical themes, comments and observations from industry groups and professionals, news of the latest developments and releases in Irish genealogy, and much more of interest to guide and assist researchers of Irish heritage.

The contents of this edition include:

• Researching your Scots-Irish ancestors
• How comprehensive are Irish civil records?
• Discover the O Callaghan family of Co. Cork
• Irish Australian Connections
• Motherhood and ambiguous grief in WW1
• The (new) Catholic Archives - An exciting endeavour
• Using DNA to find Irish cousins left behind
• What's New? The latest Irish record releases
• A new resource for clergy relatives in Clonfert, East Galway
• And Another Thing: genealogical comment and observations with Steven Smyrl
• Nicola Morris answers your research queries
• Letters to the Editor, Books Ireland selection, and much more.

For more information about buying single copies or taking out a one- or two-year subscription to Irish Roots magazine, click the cover image above. You'll also find a free 4-page sample of the new edition.

England, Scotland & Wales genealogy: 3-week update

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 (for the previous summary, see 2 March 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 (and shared with some FindMyPast subscriptions)

• Stockton Herald, South Durham & Cleveland Advertiser
• Hastings & St Leonards Times
• Harborne Herald
• Neath Guardian
• Formby Times
• Dewsbury Chronicle and West Riding Advertiser
• Gravesend Journal
• Alliance News
• Settmakers' and Stoneworkers' Journal
• Weymouth Telegram
• Northern Guardian (Hartlepool)
• Swansea Journal and South Wales Liberal
• Nantwich, Sandbach & Crewe Star

Scotland's People

• Kirk Sessions and other court records of the Church of Scotland (1million+ images)

FindMyPast

• London Fire Brigade Reports 1915-1918

UPDATED COLLECTIONS

Ancestry

• 1939 Register, England and Wales
• Bristol Non-Conformist Baptisms, Marriages & Burials 1644-1981 (Total 413,736)

FamilySearch

• England, Cambridgeshire Bishop's Transcripts, 1538-1983
• England, Herefordshire Bishop's Transcripts, 1583-1898
• England, Middlesex Parish Registers, 1539-1988
• England, Northumberland Non-Conformist Church Records, 1613-1920
• England, Lincolnshire, Marriage Bonds and Allegations, 1574-1885
• England, Essex Non-Conformist Church Records, 1613-1971
• Isle of Man Parish Registers

FindMyPast

• Essex Baptisms (38,000 records from 16 Anglican churches)
• Kent Baptisms (10,000 records added from two new parishes)
• Kent Marriages & banns 1750-1936 (9,000 records – Lewisham, Westerham, Eltham
• Yorkshire Monumental Inscriptions (27,000)
• British India Office Life Events (Annual rolling year update for marriages and births)
• Leicestershire Parish Records, baptism, marriage, banns and burials

FreeBMD

• Civil registration – births, marriages, deaths, England & Wales (Total 279,220,849)

TheGenealogist

• Military Record Collection (150,000 individuals)
• Map Explorer 'Time Travel' feature added
• Tithe Maps (2,738 maps added for Anglesey, Durham, Devon, Shropshire, Somerset, Suffolk and Wiltshire

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.

Glasnevin burials database is up and running again

Hurrah! After six months offline, the Glasnevin Burial Records database is accessible again, allowing Irish family historians to seek out death and burial details for ancestors laid to rest in five Dublin cemeteries: Glasnevin (the nation's necropolis, which opened in 1832), Dardistown, Goldenbridge, Newlands Cross and Palmerstown.

Glasnevin Trust has been officially rebranded as Dublin Cemeteries Trust, so there's a new name, logo and identity on the equally new website: https://www.dctrust.ie/.

Under the Genealogy tab, you can learn about the archive and how to search and view records.

As previously, the database can be searched for free by name and approximate dates (+/- 10 years), but to view details of individual search results you need to set up an account and purchase credits.

I gave it a test run yesterday and the purchase system is working just fine, but I understand from the Genealogy forum of Boards.ie (a busy and helpful forum that I recommend to all Irish researchers) that the transfer of any previously purchased records to the new site hasn't yet taken place. This should happen this week.

Play gently. Remember it's new.

Irish Newspaper Archives offers 40% saving

The Dublin-based IrishNewsArchives is offering a very generous St Patrick's discount.

It means you can buy a monthly or annual Silver Membership with a huge 40% saving. The Silver package gives you full access to all the 'regular' newspaper titles in the online collection. It does not include the 'Radical' papers.

To take advantage of the offer, click the image, right, to reach the subscribe page. Scroll down to find a listing of all the titles. Then sign up for the Silver package using the promotion code PatSilver40. 

Word of advice: select the silver package first, then enter the promo code. 

The discount will be available until 11:59pm on Sunday 28 March.