Genealogy Chat

All my relations are Irish born- would a subscription to Ancestry give access to all Irish records?

Not sure what you mean by 'ALL Irish records'. Ancestry has some parish and probate records from Ireland but its certainly NOT complete. They also have Immigrants: New York Port Arrival Records, 1846-1851 Ireland 1766 Religious Census The Royal Irish Constabulary 1816-1921 Irish Records Index, 1500-1920 [These records include histories, pedigrees, parish registers, probates, and orphan's court records.] Irish Independent Newspaper Obituaries: May 2001-June 2002 Irish Flax Growers List, 1796 Ireland Gazetteer and Surname Guide but not Irish censuses - only 1901 and 1911 survive and they are not yet available online. The Irish records office in Dublin was severely damaged by fire in 1922 so many records haven't survived. nell

Personaly I don't think it would be very useful for Irish records. They have no census records (except 1766 religious census), no moden BMD's. they have : parish and probate records covering Ireland 1500's to 1800's Some milatry stuff :- Royal Irish Constabulary If could find a free trial or buy 10 credits and have a look to get an idea.

If only, if only! I have never noticed any of my Irish ancestors or my partner's on there (well, only after they had moved to England!) I certainly wouldn't pay a full subscription to ancestry just for the Irish databases, only if you want to do England and Wales lookups too. Kate.

I have a full subscription to ancestry which has been useful for my dads side bring english. Mums side is irish and i haven't found anything . I have found a few baptisms/ marriages on familyseach and the leitrim-roscommon site are slowly transcribing the 1901 census so depending on which county your ancestors are from you may be able to find them on there

Would not recommend Ancestry for Irish Genealogy. Emmigration lists for ships are free online for what use they are to you with common Irish names like Murphy etc! A date of leaving Ireland to access these properly is almost a 'Must'. Otherwise how will you know that John Murphy who left Cobh for Canada/US on a particular ship in 1856 was your John Murphy amongst all the other John Murphys who left Cobh near enough the same date?? If you have a member of the RIC(Royal Irish Constabulary) then you can pick his records up for free at the National Archives at Kew. I have researched these records myself very satisfactorily. Contrary to popular belief the records that were destroyed in Dublin as a result of the 'Irish Troubles' were mainly the old wills and other such like documents as well as many of the Protestant Records pre 1864. Sadly the census for all the years prior to 1901 and 1911 were burnt by successive Irish Governments but fragments do remain and some are online for free. The Catholic Records pre 1864 have always been and still are with all the Parish Churches all over Ireland so you need to know your Townland. These records were never in Dublin. All the pre 1864 records arenow at the National Library in Dublin and most can be accessed for free provided you have the knowledge of whether you are searching Protestant/Catholic records and the Townland you wish to search for on the fiche. Exceptions to this are Tipperary, which is a 'closed' County and County Kerry needs permission from the Bishop to view Catholic Parish Records. Records in Ireland are in existence only from about 1780 and many do not start until 1820+ so the chances of getting back beyond 1790 is very very slim.. Some protestant records go back to the 1600's where they still exist. Irish newspapers are one of the best ways of researching Irish history and these can be researched at the Colindale Newspaper library. All the records of those who joined the Armed Services from Ireland pre 1922 , which was the year of partition, are in TNA. Online Irish Genealogy is very hit and miss and Ancestry have very little. If you can wait another 3 years the 1901 and 1911 Census will be online digitised and maybe Ancestry will be worth having for these Census then. Dublin Census will be online digitised December 06. At present they are only searchable address only through Dublin National Archives and Belfast. Post 1864 Records are in Dublin GRO, Roscommon and Belfast and most LDS centres will pull in the records for you post 1864. Some LDS Centres may also pull in the 1901 and1911 census but you do need to know exactly the area you want. Janet

Thanks everyone for all your help- at least one blind alley seems to be closed now! What a wonderful excuse to save up for a trip to Dublin! In 2004 a daughter took me over to Dad's homeplace for 3 days. We both thought it could be a waste of time, no relatives left there, house derelict. The County Archive Librarian, who found Griffiths lists & the 1901 census, & the lady at the B&B, took up the search, pointed us in the right direction, & chance & Irish curiosity about people took over. In those 3 days, we found out 'background' that brought grand- & g-grandparents to life, & met a 'half' first cousin of my Dad's, & much younger. Neither of us knew of the other's existence. Talking recently to my cousin who grew up there, much of what we learned, from local people & from the library, was news to her too. So we hope to learn more, & solve a few puzzles & discrepancies. That's where I'd hoped Ancestry might help... Leitrim/Roscommon revealed Mum's father, on the 1901 census, but there was nothing for Monaghan. Although the churches do appear to be helpful there, we haven't contacted them yet. So, it's going to be 'on the spot' research- much more fun! Thanks again to you all, for detailed info, & a clear answer Mary

Mary Some websites for Monaghan that might be of use: http://www(.)from-ireland(.)net/contents/monaghanconts(.)htm towards the bottom of this one there are a few BMD's http://www(.)censusfinder(.)com/irish-census-records4(.)htm Scroll down the list to Monaghan or select it from the drop down box on the left hand side http://www(.)failteromhat(.)com/monaghan(.)htm Extracts for Griffith Valuation http://www(.)genuki(.)org(.)uk/big/irl/MOG/ You never know you might get lucky With kind regards Karen

there are records there, but as has been said already many are still with the churches etc. Although some of the counties have centralised/collected BMD and census info very little is free, online etc. I discovered my gt gt gfather came from County Wicklow from his army records (which cost me £60, but well worth it - there was even a physical description!). There is a family history centre in Wicklow, which is not open to personal searching. Instead you have to pay from £40 for a single birth search to over £450 for a 'tree' search. They obviously saw a lucrative business opportunity. Needless to say I think I will try poking about a bit in graveyards, old newspapers etc on a holiday visit first! Linda

Hi Mary Have sent you a PM. Regards Patricia

hi there is some great info on this link. i have irish ancestors and i am struggling so hopefully this will help me many thanks linda x

Anybody who has Cork ancestors can join the Cork Genealogical Society and obtain their journal when they produce one, which is not very often these days. There are a couple of very good Cork Sites with a lot of newspaper material and many census fragments as well as many parish records. Tipperary also has good coverage on the Griffiths Vluation Index and also has a very good Society called The Tipperary Historical Society. I also belong to this Society and they produce a big journal every year which is very indepth knowledge of Tipperary with many names mentioned. Their journals go back to about 1988 but although I have most of them, I am missing about 5 as everybody has latched on to buying the past journals to the point where most are now OUP. The cost of joining has also shot up to £18. The best way forward on Irish History is to go to Ireland and talk to people in a way that we might not do in reserved England! Go to a B&B which actively advertises help with Genealogy. We had our way paved to the Parish Priests by doing it this way. I am back to 1798 on one side of my Irish Family and the very early 1800's on the other side. As they were touched by famine issues I have purchased books on the Famine and there are some very well written books on this subject though there are also some very poor ones. A good knowledge of Irish History will make you very discerning. I will have difficulty getting back much further but found a book written about the family name in an area that I suspected my family may have come from. The purchase of this book has been very rewarding. Go to the newspapers to fill in the background and find out the bookshops in the areas of your interest and find them online to see what books are written about your area. Janet

What an interesting link thanks

Nudged for Claire. I've spent 3 months looking for an Ada Mary Coney and found one born in 1914 in England and Wales, only now to be wondering and some things aren't adding up and I now need to search Irish records. So this thread is useful as I was wondering if it was worth upgrading my current UK subscription on Ancestry. I did notice Ryan Air was doing £20 single fares to Dublin, which may be useful for people wanting to travel there. Thanks Claire