Archives for February 2017

The Dublin City Council Libraries and Archives Digital repository has launched an online archive of over 43,000 historic photographs and documents. Users can search documents online by archive, date, and location at no charge.

Photos of events like the Eucharistic Congress and the North Strand Bombing are included, as well as everyday events such as social events and Dublin scenes. The Fáilte Ireland Photographic Collection with images dating from the 1930s onwards of people, places and tourist locations from across Ireland is also available.

The archive includes pictures of old documents and objects, with the oldest document dated to 1757 – of an old planning map of Dublin City.

You can find the archive at http://digital.libraries.dublincity.ie/vital/access/manager/Index

Anon. Pilgrimage to St. McDara’s [Macdara] Island – leaving the Island by currach and gleoiteog [galway hooker], Co. Galway.

Want to discover your Irish and Scots-Irish ancestors?

Many people believe that researching Irish ancestors is impossible because of the destruction of the Public Record Office in 1922. While many records were destroyed, others survived and large collections have come online in recent years.

Join Fintan Mullan and Gillian Hunt from the Ulster Historical Foundation during their annual U.S.A. lecture tour to learn how to get the most out of Irish resources and records, gain strategies for breaking down brick walls, and grasp important historical context that may help fill in gaps in your research.

Whether you are just beginning your Irish research or have been at it for years, you won’t want to miss these workshops!

Fuller contact details with additional information can be found at: www.ancestryireland.com/northamericantour2017

Friday, 03 March – Phoenix, AZ (9:00am–5:00pm)
Location: Irish Cultural Center, 1106 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85004
Host: The McClelland Library
Web: www.azirish.org/upcoming-ulster-historical-foundation
Tel./e-mail: 602-864-2351, 623-225-6352 (Mobile)
Main Contact: Cindy Patricki – cindy.patricki@azirishlibrary.org

Saturday, 04 March – Phoenix, AZ (9:00am–5:00pm)
Location: Irish Cultural Center, 1106 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85004
Host: The McClelland Library
Web: www.azirish.org/upcoming-ulster-historical-foundation
Tel./e-mail: 602-864-2351 623-225-6352 (Mobile)
Main Contact: Cindy Patricki – cindy.patricki@azirishlibrary.org

Sunday, 05 March – Tacoma, WA (1:00pm–5:00pm)
Location: Pierce County Libraries, Administrative Center Library, 3005 112th St E, Tacoma, WA 98446
Host organisation: Lakewood and South Hill Libraries
Tel/e-mail: 253-548-3425 or 316-300-3383 (mobile)
Register online: www.piercecountylibrary.org/calendar.aspx?id=281
www.facebook.com/events/618976198289299

Tuesday, 07 March – The Hermitage, Nashville, TN (6:00pm–9:00pm)
Location: The Hermitage, 4580 Rachel’s Lane, Nashville, TN 37076
Host: Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage
Web: thehermitage.com/event/exploring-your-scotsirish-genealogy
Tel./e-mail: 615-889-2941, info@thehermitage.com

Thursday, 09 March – Michigan City, IN (9:30am–4:00pm)
Location: Michigan City Public Library, 100 E. 4th Street, Michigan City, IN 46360
Host: Michigan City Public Library
Web: www.mclib.org
Tel./e-mail: 219-873-3049 (call Robin Kohn to register)

Saturday, 11 March – Bentonville, AR (9:00am–4:00pm)
Location: Bentonville Community Center, 1101 SW Citizen’s Circle, Bentonville, AR 72712
Host: Northwest Arkansas Genealogical Society
Web: www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~arnwags, www.facebook.com/groups/nwags
Tel./e-mail: 479-271-6820, genealogy@bentonvillear.com

Sunday, 12 March – York County, PA (1:00pm–5:00pm)
Location: York County History Centery, 250 East Market St, York, PA 17401
Host: South Central Pennsylvania Genealogical Society
Web: www.scpgs.org/meetings
Tel./e-mail: 717-887-7508, richardkonkel@yahoo.com

Monday, 13 March – Green Bay, WI (3:00pm–8:30pm)
Location: Brown County Library, 515 Pine Street, Green Bay, WI 54301
Host: Brown County Library
Web: www.browncountylibrary.org
Tel./e-mail: 920-448-5815
Main Contact: Sue Lagerman or Mary Jane Herber

Wednesday, 15 March – Fountaindale, IL (9:30am–5:00pm)
Location: Fountaindale Public Library, 300 West Briarcliff Road Bolingbrook, IL 60440
Host: Fountaindale Public Library and Plainfield Public Library
Web: host7.evanced.info/fountaindale/evanced/eventcalendar.asp, www.fountaindale.org
Tel/e-mail: Debra Dudek (main contact) – 630-685-4201 – ddudek@fountaindale.org
Register by phone (630) 685-4176 or Register online for the seminar: http://ow.ly/OLiy308phOz

Thursday, 16 March – Fountaindale, IL (9:30am–4:30pm)
Location: Fountaindale Public Library, 300 West Briarcliff Road Bolingbrook, IL 60440
Host: Fountaindale Public Library and Plainfield Public Library
Web: host7.evanced.info/fountaindale/evanced/eventcalendar.asp, www.fountaindale.org
Tel/e-mail: Debra Dudek (main contact) – 630-685-4201 – ddudek@fountaindale.org
Registration: Free Event! In-person attendance limited to 70 in Main Lecture Room, and 35 in

Friday, 17 March – Richmond, VA (9:00am–12:30pm)
Location: Library of Virginia, 800 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219
Programme Title: Irish Ancestry Day (note: the full event runs from 09:00 to 16:00)
Host: Library of Virginia
Web: libraryofvairishancestryday.eventbrite.com, http://www.facebook.com/educationLVA
Tel./e-mail: 804-692-3500 (general number)
Main Contact: Catherine Fitzgerald Wyatt – catherine.wyatt@lva.virginia.gov

Saturday, 18 March – Philadelphia, PA (9:00am-4:30pm)
Location of programme: Brookside Manor, 50 Bustleton Pike, Feasterville, PA, 19053
Host: The Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania (GSP)
Web: https://genpa.org/events/
Tel./e-mail: 215-545-0391 email info@genpa.org

Sunday, 19 March – Pittsburgh, PA (9:00am-4:30pm)
Location of programme: Heinz History Center, 1212 Smallman St., Pittsburgh, Pa. 15222
Host organisation: Heinz History Center & Westmoreland County Historical Society
Main contact (handling registration): Sierra Green
Tel: 412-454-6361, mobile: 724-456-4769
Email: sgreen@heinzhistorycenter.org

Tuesday, 21 March – Little Rock, AR (6:00pm–9:00pm)
Location: Hillcrest Hall, 1501 Kavanaugh Blvd, Little Rock, AR 72205
Host: Arkansas Genealogical Society, Butler Center for Arkansas Studies.
Web: www.butlercenter.org
Tel./e-mail: 501-320-5711
Main Contact: Christopher Stewart – cstewart@cals.org

What better way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day itself, than by making a start on your Irish and Scots-Irish ancestral quest. Your Irish genealogy is waiting to be discovered.

With sixty years’ experience of serving Irish people everywhere, let the Ulster Historical Foundation help you discover your family’s story.

From its creation as the Established Church in the second half of the 16th century up to the Court of Probate Act of 1857, the Church of Ireland was responsible for legally administering some aspects of vital life events such as registering marriage bonds and licences for those people who did not want to marry by banns. These were usually registered, but mot always, in the diocese of the bride’s local parish.

Marriage Licence Bonds were an alternative to marriage banns, although both were designed to prevent clandestine marriages. Banns were read in both the bride’s and groom’s parish on three consecutive Sundays to allow anyone knowing a reason that the marriage should not go ahead to come forward. Marriage licence bonds worked slightly differently. They allowed a couple to go to court and pay a sum to sign a witnessed declaration that the marriage was free to go ahead. Before 1858 marriage licence bonds were exclusively handled by the ecclesiastical courts of the Church of Ireland.

These new additions to armagh.rootsireland.ie are the indexes of marriage licence bonds taken through diocesan and prerogative courts across Ireland. Copies were kept by the Public Records Office but many were destroyed in the explosion during the Irish Civil War in 1922. These bonds may offer a rare opportunity to find your Irish ancestors before the 19th century. Dating back as far as 1727 they are an invaluable resource for many family historians.

Each record contains a transcript of the original register. The amount of information varies, but you can find out the following about your County Armagh ancestor: Name, Name of spouse, Year of marriage.

This is an ongoing computerisation project and we have released the records for the surnames beginning with the letters from A-L. These will contain many other marriages for surnames beginning with letters between M-Z if they married someone who surname began with the letters from A-L. Most marriage bonds will appear twice in our records as they were recorded by both married parties surnames.

We hope to complete the outstanding records in the near future; however, we offer a manual search service for these non computerised records for a nominal fee and full details can be obtained contacting Armagh.Ancestry@armaghbanbridgecraigavon.gov.uk

Just added to www.wexford.rootsireland.ie are the transcripts of the registers of the Catholic parish Rathangan, Co. Wexford:

Baptisms: 1803 – 1892
Marriages: 1803 – 1806 and 1813 – 1890