The Scottish GENES Blog (GEnealogy News and EventS): Top news stories and features concerning ancestral research in Scotland, Ireland, the rest of the UK, and their diasporas, from genealogist and family historian Chris Paton. Feel free to quote from this blog, but please credit Scottish GENES if you do. I'm on Mastodon @scottishgenes and Threads @scottishgenesblog - to contact me please email chrismpaton @ outlook.com. Cuimhnich air na daoine o'n d'thà inig thu!
For an up to date list of sources for South Tipperary and to search these records, go to rootsireland.ie/tipperarysouth
Chris
Order Researching Ancestral Crisis in Ireland in the UK at https://bit.ly/4jJWSEh. Also available -Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. To purchase in the USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.
Ireland, 1926 Census of the Irish Free State https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/63564/ Source info: Ancestry.com. Ireland, 1926 Census of the Irish Free State [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2026. Original data: Census of Ireland 1926. The National Archives of Ireland, Apr. 18, 2026. This work includes content from records of the 1926 Census of Ireland, made available by the National Archives of Ireland under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. Please see further: https://nationalarchives.ie/search-the-1926-census-2/permission-to-reuse-census-1926/ Accessed: Apr 18, 2026. To the extent of any conflict between Ancestry’s terms and conditions and the terms of Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence, the terms of Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) will prevail.
About Ireland, 1926 Census of the Irish Free State
General collection information This collection contains an index of information taken from the 1926 Census of the Irish Free State. The index includes a link that connects to images of the original census pages on the National Archives of Ireland website. The original census includes a Household Form A, detailing personal information about each person who was in the house on the night that the census was conducted. It also includes a House and Building Return Form B, which can provide additional information about the size of the house and a more detailed home address.
Using this collection Records in this collection may include the following information:
Name
Relationship to head of household
Age
Gender
Marital status
Birthplace
Residence
Orphanhood
Language
Religion
Years married
Number of children born alive
Number of children living
Censuses are highly valuable sources of information for family historians because they contain information about multiple members of a family in one document. Learning about where your ancestors lived when the 1926 census was conducted can provide clues that help you look for other records related to their lives. For example, the 1926 census provides information on children's ages, helping you search for their birth records. The collection contains information about the marital status of people aged 15 and older, and also has information about the orphanhood of children younger than 15, indicating if one or both of an orphan's parents were dead at the time of the census. These pieces of information can be used to search for marriage and death records, where relevant.
The column titled "Irish Language" may have information about your ancestor's speaking and reading ability in both Irish and English. You may also find information on the original census image that has not been indexed. The census form has columns that may reveal your ancestor's occupation and the name of their employer. This information may provide insights into your ancestor's role in society and daily life.
Your ancestor's place of residence is listed in a separate section on the right side of the Household Form A and on the House and Building Form B. Residence information may help you discover more about your ancestor in one of the collections featured on Ancestry's Ireland Genealogy & Ireland Family History Resources page.
Further details are available via the link.
* Don't forget that my next Scottish GENES Webinar on May 30th looks at all of Ireland's surviving censuses that are available for release, as well as many alternative censuses and substitutes - for full details, and to book, please visit https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_rTFnWym3QNuTWGgie7Kdqw.
Chris
Order Researching Ancestral Crisis in Ireland in the UK at https://bit.ly/4jJWSEh. Also available -Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. To purchase in the USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.
The day has come - the 1926 Free State census for Ireland has finally been released after 100 years at https://nationalarchives.ie/collections/search-the-1926-census/. I have already made several searches in this today, uncovering various situations for my family and that of my wife, and it has been a pleasant search experience, with no site crashes, and an excellent presentation of the resources, which are free to view. This is one area where the Republic of Ireland really does trump the UK, in making its public documents available free of charge, as can also be witnessed through its birth, marriage and death records platform at https://www.irishgenealogy.ie.
The equivalent census for Northern Ireland, taken on the same night, has sadly not survived, but something that I learned during the week is that even if it had done so, it may well have not been released. This is because, unlike the rest of the UK, Northern Ireland astonishingly does not have a 100 year census rule for privacy, thanks to an act of the Stormont parliament from 1969. The same fate awaits the 1937 Northern Irish census, which means that unless a specific law is passed for it to be released, it just won't be. If we want to see it, we'll have to start lobbying our politicians to get their acts together! You can read more about this in an interesting blog post from Professor Marie Coleman of Queen's University Belfast at https://blogs.qub.ac.uk/qpol/the-lost-northern-ireland-census-of-1926.
In the meantime, what details are included in the 1926 Free State census? You can find the answers to this at https://nationalarchives.ie/search-the-1926-census-2/census-1926/. It's not quite as detailed as the 1911 census, but it is nevertheless another very useful document for family history research.
Have fun exploring!
Chris
Order Researching Ancestral Crisis in Ireland in the UK at https://bit.ly/4jJWSEh. Also available -Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. To purchase in the USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.
The National Archives of Ireland (https://nationalarchives.ie) has released a short video giving a tantalising glimpse of the work currently underway to prepare the 1926 Irish census for release on 18 April 2026.
The census covers the 26 counties that formed the Irish Free State at the time, now the republic that is Ireland - the equivalent records for the Northern Irish census, taken on the same night as its southern equivalent, have sadly not survived.
Chris
Order Researching Ancestral Crisis in Ireland in the UK at https://bit.ly/4jJWSEh. Also available -Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page.
About Galway, Ireland, Ballynahinch Estate Records, 1905-1940
This collection contains records from the Ballynahinch Estate in Galway, Ireland. The collection has tenant records from 1905 to 1940 and visitor records from 1905 to 1970. Entries in the registers are handwritten and may be difficult to read.
Using this collection
Records in this collection may include the following information:
Name
Alias
Travel date
Place of residence
These records may help you discover more about your ancestor’s life including where they lived and places they travelled. Some record images include specific addresses. If the record includes a place of residence, you have a place to start looking for other civil or church documents related to your ancestor.
Further details on the records available via the link.
Chris
Order Researching Ancestral Crisis in Ireland in the UK at https://bit.ly/4jJWSEh. Also available - Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors, Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page
My next Researching Irish Land Records course, taught on behalf of Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd, starts on Monday 2nd June 2025, and lasts for five weeks. Here are the details:
Researching Irish Land Records
The issue of land
ownership was a potent question in Ireland for centuries. In the 17th
century vast swathes of land was settled by Protestant British colonists
during the Plantations of Ulster, drawn mostly from Scotland, whilst
the subsequent Cromwellian conquest led to mass confiscation of land
across Ireland, to be conveyed to English soldiers and 'adventurers'.
The Penal Laws had soon dispossessed the native Irish Catholic
population of many rights, including land ownership and inheritance
rights. At the same time, the first national land valuation survey in
the world was carried out, and an elaborate system of land
administration imposed. In the 19th century, Ireland's incorporation
into the United Kingdom was followed by great tragedy with the Famine,
but in its aftermath a new opportunity arose following the Land War to
radically alter rental provisions and then to redistribute land away
from an absentee landlord class.
Following on from the
Progressing Your Irish Research Online course*, this course will look at
the various types of records that can help with land research in
Ireland from the period of the 17th century to the present day. It will
examine the various forms of land tenure that existed, the records of
ownership and rental, the valuation and conveyance of property, maps,
and many other resources. Importantly it will show how to find the most
useful land records, and how to use them for your family history
research.
* Although not compulsory, it is recommended that
students will have first completed the Progressing Your Irish Research
Online course.
Lesson Headings:
The Basics of Irish Land Research
Colonialism and Conquest
Managing the Land
Valuation and Conveyance
The Land War and Redistribution
Relevant countries: Ireland
What to expect:
Each
lesson includes lesson notes, activities and forum exercises for
students to complete during the week and a one-hour live tutorial (text
chat or Zoom) with the tutor and the rest of the class. Times for the
tutorials are set at the beginning of each course by the tutor.
Tutor: Chris Paton Length: 5 weeks Start date: Monday 2 June 2025 Cost: £70
Feedback from previous students:
“I really liked how each lesson
showed why it's important to understand and use different types of
records. It helped me see how one record leads to the next, making it
easier to trace family history. Land records, in particular, can be
tricky, but this course gave me a much better understanding of how
and why they were made, which is key to interpreting them.”
“The content was excellent. The
instructor provided good contextual information for the suggested
links and readings. I learned about resources I might never have
discovered easily.”
“I enjoyed learning about new
approaches to Irish land record research that were either unknown or
forgotten to me.”
“The course notes were amazing and
Chris is a very knowledgeable tutor.”
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
From the Irish Government, news concerning the IrishGenealogy portal at www.irishgenealogy.ie:
A new Irish Genealogy website is under construction, as a result, some services are currently unavailable. The Civil and Church Records search portals remain available.
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
We are delighted to announce the addition of 6,226 new baptismal and marriage records for Sneem parish, Kerry.
Baptisms - 5497 records (1813-99);
Marriages - 729 records (1858-1900).
For an up to date list of sources for Kerry and to search these records, go to kerry.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required.
Chris
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
On Saturday June 29th 2024 I will be giving three talks for a Family Tree magazine hosted Irish Ancestors Study Afternoon. The following will be the programme, which kicks off at 1pm (UK time) - each talk will be about an hour, with Q&A and short breaks in between:
1) Records of Daily Life in Ireland
There are many basic resources available to help us establish the genealogy of our families, but in this session, family historian Chris Paton looks at many additional record sets exist that document their role and status in society, as well as their fate. These include electoral records (including freeholders lists and absent voters lists), the administration of the poor law and the role of the poorhouse in Ireland, and education records.
Chris will also look at judicial records and the records of law enforcement, and explore a case study of a 19th century murder which unblocked a genealogical brick wall within his own ancestry, pushing the family narrative back to the mid 18th century.
2) Researching Irish Occupations
In this session genealogist Chris Paton explores the occupational world of our Irish ancestors, including agricultural Ireland, the factories and shipyards established through industrialisation, the professional classes such as church ministries, physicians and nurses, communications workers, the merchant shipping services, and the military, both British and Irish.
Chris will also look at how Irish people travelled to Britain and beyond for economic opportunities, whether through seasonal work or through longer term economic necessity.
3) A Decade of Remembrance: Researching Ireland 1912-1923
In this talk Chris looks at the landmark events that led to the Partition of Ireland in 1921 and its consequences. It includes the Suffragette struggle in Ireland, the Ulster Covenant of 1912, the formation of the Irish Volunteers and the Ulster Volunteers, the Dublin Lock-out of 1913, the First World War, the Easter Rising, the War of Independence, Partition, and the subsequent Irish Civil War.
As well as addressing the historical events Chris will show how to research ancestors caught up in the period, whether on the British or Irish side, and from across the island and beyond.
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
I'm delighted to announce that a second Irish themed course that I have written will be taught via Pharos Tutors (www.pharostutors.com) from October 21st - here are the details!
Researching Irish Land Records
The issue of land ownership was a potent question in Ireland for centuries. In the 17th century vast swathes of land was settled by Protestant British colonists during the Plantations of Ulster, drawn mostly from Scotland, whilst the subsequent Cromwellian conquest led to mass confiscation of land across Ireland, to be conveyed to English soldiers and 'adventurers'. The Penal Laws had soon dispossessed the native Irish Catholic population of many rights, including land ownership and inheritance rights. At the same time, the first national land valuation survey in the world was carried out, and an elaborate system of land administration imposed. In the 19th century, Ireland's incorporation into the United Kingdom was followed by great tragedy with the Famine, but in its aftermath a new opportunity arose following the Land War to radically alter rental provisions and then to redistribute land away from an absentee landlord class.
Following on from the Progressing Your Irish Research Online course*, this course will look at the various types of records that can help with land research in Ireland from the period of the 17th century to the present day. It will examine the various forms of land tenure that existed, the records of ownership and rental, the valuation and conveyance of property, maps, and many other resources. Importantly it will show how to find the most useful land records, and how to use them for your family history research.
* Although not compulsory, it is recommended that students will have first completed the Progressing Your Irish Research Online course.
Lesson Headings:
The Basics of Irish Land Research
Colonialism and Conquest
Managing the Land
Valuation and Conveyance
The Land War and Redistribution
Relevant countries: Ireland
What to expect:
Each lesson includes lesson notes, activities and forum exercises for students to complete during the week and a one-hour live tutorial (text chat or Zoom) with the tutor and the rest of the class. Times for the tutorials are set at the beginning of each course by the tutor.
Tutor: Chris Paton Length: 5 weeks Start date: Mon 21 Oct 2024 Cost: £58
Comment: This will be the fifth course that I teach through Pharos, and the third that I have written, and I am looking forward to getting stuck in! Athouygh not compulsory, it is recommended that students will have first done my Progressing Your Irish Research Online course prior to this new course - it starts up again on August 19th, and you can find more on this at https://www.pharostutors.com/progressing-your-irish-research-online.
Chris
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
We are delighted to announce the addition of 16,762 new baptismal records for Ballyferriter parish, Kerry, 1807-1899. For an up to date list of sources for Kerry and to search these records, go to kerry.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required.
Chris
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
Celebrate St Patrick's Day With a Special 25% Discount on Annual Subscriptions
Celebrate St Patrick's Day by taking out a 12-month subscription for RootsIreland with 25% off from 6th March to 31st March 2024!
Why take out a subscription to Roots Ireland?
RootsIreland have the most complete and most accurate set of Roman Catholic church records online, as well as millions of Protestant records, civil records, census records, headstone inscriptions and census substitutes. Our index is easily searchable and has features such as standardised surname and forename searches which make your searches even more user-friendly.
We hold over 23 million records, and our database is being added to continually. Since 2020, we have added over 1 million records to our database from Limerick, Clare, Sligo, Kerry, Wicklow, Westmeath, Kilkenny, South Dublin, South Tipperary, Monaghan, Armagh, North Mayo, Cork, Laois, Offaly and East Galway. New records are continually being added to our database throughout the year, which will be announced in due course.
Together, our 34 genealogy centres have an unparalleled amount of local knowledge which can be invaluable to those tracing their ancestors, a service which no other website or company can provide to such a high standard. By taking out a subscription with RootsIreland, you are helping these centres to continue to provide a world-class service and securing many Irish jobs.
If you have any questions please check our Help section and if this does not provide an answer, then you may contact us or one of the county centres. You can check what is available on our site for each county here.
*Offer applies from 6 March 2024 to 12 midnight Irish time on 31 March 2024 only. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.
(With thanks to RootsIreland via email)
Chris
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
My 5 week long course Progressing Your Irish Research Online, taught through Pharos Teaching and Tutoring Ltd (www.pharostutors.com),
kicks off again on Monday February 26th 2024, and I am very much looking
forward to meeting the next group of students! If interested in joining in, there
are still spaces available, which can be booked via https://www.pharostutors.com/progressing-your-irish-research-online.
Here is some further information about the course:
There
is a common belief that if you have Irish ancestors then you should
give up hope of finding out about them, because 'nothing survived the
fire', referring to the destruction of Ireland's Public Record Office
during the Civil War in 1922. The overall aim of this course is to point
out that this is a nonsense, and that the glass is half full and not
empty. Whilst there are certainly challenges to be overcome, a great
deal can still be accomplished with the many resources now rapidly
finding their way online.
This course will describe the many
state created records and church records that can be used to research
your Irish ancestry. It will provide a context to understand why they
were created, and by whom and point out exactly where to find them
online, and how to use them effectively.
Lesson Headings:
Understanding Ireland's boundaries, key repositories and platforms
The vital records of Church and State
Documenting the people: Irish censuses and substitutes
Valuation records and inheritance
The Decade of Centenaries
Each lesson includes exercises and activities and a minimum of 1 one-hour chat per week.
Some reviews from students:
'I
enjoyed all of the course, the lessons, exercises and chat sessions
were all very helpful. I found Chris Paton ran the course and chat
sessions brilliantly. I now feel enthused to carry out more research.'
'The
astonishing range of information presented, the subsequent results
within my own research and the fun, friendly and knowledgeable way it
was all delivered. Excellent course and a tutor I would definitely want
to study with again.'
'It really
opened my eyes to what Chris calls the half FULL glass of Irish records,
plus a glimpse of history and geography. Excellent.'
'It
was beneficial from the standpoints of both improving general knowledge
of Irish history, and illuminating the numerous and often unique
potential sources of genealogical/family history information against
that background.'
'Depth of knowledge. Expertise of tutor. Excellent Handouts.'
'Fantastic tutor. First class lesson materials. Top-notch quality learning programme.'
'The realization that there are more resources and information available than I first thought!'
And if it helps, a brief introductory video explaining what it will hopefully achieve!
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
We are delighted to announce the addition of the Electoral Register for Co. Monaghan, 1938-1939, which consists of 36,616 records. For an up to date list of sources for Monaghan and to search these records, go to monaghan.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required.
Chris
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
From the Irish records transcription website RootsIreland (www.rootsireland.ie):
25% Discount on Annual Subscriptions Extended!
Discover your Irish roots by taking out a 12-month subscription for Roots Ireland with a 25% discount! We have extended the discount for an additional day, until 11th December*.
*Offer applies until 12 midnight Irish time on 11 December 2023 only. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.
Further details via the website
Chris
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
We are delighted to announce the addition of over 9,000 new Kerry Roman Catholic marriage records to our database at Roots Ireland! They are as follows:
For an up to date list of sources for Kerry and to search these records, go to kerry.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required.
Yours Sincerely rootsireland.ie
On the RootsIreland site itself, the following Kerry records were also announced yesterday:
We are delighted to announce the addition of over 25,600 new Kerry
Roman Catholic baptismal and marriages records to our database at Roots
Ireland! They are as follows:
Order Tracing Your Belfast Ancestors in the UK at https://bit.ly/BelfastAncestors. Also available - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records, Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. For purchase in tthe USA visit https://www.penandswordbooks.com. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, on Threads at @scottishgenesblog and via Mastodon at https://mastodon.scot/@ScottishGENES.
We are delighted to announce the addition of over 13,000 Ballingarry RC records to our database at Roots Ireland.
Ballingarry RC Baptisms, 1814-1900: 11,000+ records Ballingarry RC Marriages, 1814-1900: 2,500 records
For an up to date list of sources for South Tipperary and to search these records, go to tipperarysouth.rootsireland.ie and login or subscribe as required.
(Thanks to RootsIreland via email)
Chris
My new book Tracing Your Irish Ancestors Through Land Records is now available to buy at https://bit.ly/IrishLandRecords. Also available - Sharing Your Family History Online, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed), and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records - to purchase, please visit https://bit.ly/ChrisPatonPSbooks. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.
We are delighted to announce the addition of almost 21,000 baptism and marriage Roman Catholic records from County Kerry to our Roots Ireland database at kerry.rootsireland.ie. The records are as follows:
We are delighted to announce the addition of 9,277 baptism and marriage Roman Catholic records from County Kerry to our Roots Ireland database at kerry.rootsireland.ie. The records are as follows:
I've just watched a superb online event hosted by the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (www.nidirect.gov.uk/proni) concerning the Beyond 2022 project (www.beyond2022.ie), which is seeking to recreate much of what was lost with the destruction of the original Public Record Office of Ireland in 1922.
I have written about the project before (see https://britishgenes.blogspot.com/2019/05/beyond-2022-virtually-recreating-irish.html and https://britishgenes.blogspot.com/2019/12/irelands-beyond-2022-project-progresses.html), but today we got to see some of the real deal! As well as a digital walkthrough of the reconstructed original building (see below - and believe me, the next project beyond this should be to have that actually reconstructed, it was gorgeous!), we also got a look behind the scenes at conservation efforts for much of the material which was damaged in 1922 but which survived. When complete, the site will act as both a digital repository, drawing on surviving materials and transcripts, and as a finding aid to locate materials in partner institutions which can act as surrogates for what was lost.
In the months after the fire, damaged material was wrapped up into 378 parcels and stored to await future conservation efforts. In 2017, the Irish Manuscript Commission provided funds to do a conservation survey of the material, which comprises 16,000 vellum sheets and 9000 pages or text blocks. These have been graded into five categories, with Grade 1 needing only a little work to restore them, and Grade 5 being properly messed up material! Of these, the parcels break down as follows: Grade 1 (28), Grade 2 (72), Grade 3 (88), Grade 4 (145), and Grade 5 (45).
To give an idea of some of the gems found, 66 Yeomanry forms from Co. Carlow in 1798 are included (the year of the United Irishmen rebellion), and we also got to see Port and District books for Coleraine (1696, 1738-39, and 1788-89) and Donaghadee (1725-26 and 1775-76), both of which are Grade 2, and Strangford (1751 and 1818-1819), at Grade 4. The materials include accounts of quit rent and hearth tax money, amongst other papers.
In addition to this, we had demonstrations of materials that exist in surrogate form at PRONI that are being drawn into the project - e.g. 17th century Down Survey maps, and Lord Castlereagh's papers (he was basically running the show in Ireland during the 1798 rebellion and the Union of 1801) - but we also heard some really useful nuggets of info of interest to genealogists.
Although the project has been known about for a while now, today's session was the first chance to really glimpse the full potential of what the project hopes to achieve, and also to tilt the balance of the glass back towards 'half full' rather than 'half empty' in terms of what has survived and accessible.
For further details, and to start playing some of what is already available, visit Beyond 2022 at www.beyond2022.ie.
(With thanks to PRONI and all participants - PRONI has recorded the session, and so I suspect it will join the archive's YouTube channel soon)
