New Records Online for Fingal/North Dublin Genealogy Centre

Fingal/North Dublin Genealogy Centre has added over 30,000 new records to its online database at Dublin North  The new records include St. Margaret’s RC baptisms and marriages, county council interments, many new marriage records for Skerries, Balbriggan, Rush and Lusk, as well as various other additions and updates to all of its databases.

The full list of available sources for the Fingal/North Dublin Genealogy centre can be viewed at Dublin North

Two new books by Brian Mitchell, the genealogist with Derry City and Strabane District Council, are now available.  The Derry genealogy service is part of the Irish Family History Foundation and you can find out more about the service at www.rootsireland.ie/derry-genealogy

The People of Derry City, 1921: Extracted from the Derry Almanac and Directory available via www.genealogical.com

This publication by Irish genealogist Brian Mitchell lists inhabitants, in alphabetical order by surname, in Derry city in 1921. As transcribed here, the work contains five fields: Surname of Head of Household, First Name of Head of Household, Street Address, House Number, and Page Number of the listing in the Derry Almanac. In all, the Derry Almanac and directory of 1921 name 8,288 heads of household in Derry city.

Especially significant about the 1921 directory for Derry researchers are its references to Derry inhabitants amidst the turmoil of (1) the June 1920 six-day “civil war” between Nationalist and Unionist supporters in Derry city, which left 23 people dead and many wounded, and (2) the subsequent Irish War of Independence and Anglo-Irish Treaty, from 21 January 1919 to 6 December 1921. In effect, this work from Brian Mitchell is the closest thing we have to a census for Derry during this period of upheaval.

The Place Names of County Derry 

Available via www.genealogical.com – The Place Names of County Derry

The Place Names of County Derry consists of two parts. In Part One researchers will find a list of 1,750 place names, in alphabetical order, as recorded in the 1901 census returns for the city and county of Londonderry (also known as Derry). Part Two, County Derry Parish Reports, features record sources–both civil and church–of value to family historians, compiled and recorded by parish.

This transcription of the inmate registers of the Ballarat Benevolent Society is an ongoing project by Brett Weinberg. The inmate registers belong to Ballarat Health Services, who, with Brett, have allowed the transcripts to be published on the Ballarat Historical Society website.

There is an alphabetically searchable list of the inmates of the Ballarat Benevolent Asylum in Victoria, Australia, providing details of age, birth place, parents names, residence, arrival date in Victoria, Australia, and remarks.

www.ballarathistoricalsociety.com/index.php/the-collection/bbsr

Thanks to Brett for letting us know about this source.

The Foundation’s move to the Corn Exchange – An update from the Executive Director

Our recent move to new offices in the Corn Exchange is already helping to transform the Foundation’s ability to engage with those who we exist to serve. And it is increasing our ability to interact more with the general public, who are curious about their history.

In the short time that we have been operational in the new premises we have already been able to host three events with an international dimension:

A presentation by representatives of the Maine Ulster-Scots Project who discussed their archaeological dig in Somersett, Maine – a settlement of Ulster immigrants dating from the early eighteenth century.

A visit by representatives of Ancestry’s ProGenealogists team (from Salt Lake City and Dublin).

A morning exploring Ulster ancestral research with a group of family historians who are currently touring with the British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa (BIFHSGO).

This is in addition to the already increasing number of personal research consultations that we are providing for local people and overseas visitors interested in their Ulster roots.

This is why the Foundation sought to move to the city centre – to be more accessible to our users and so we can continue to develop more practical partnerships with kindred organisations (e.g. The Belfast Charitable Society (Clifton House), Linen Hall Library, Tourism Northern Ireland, and of course the other organisations with which the Foundation shares the building).

Moreover we have made it easier for ordinary folk to use the services and benefit from the knowledge of the Foundation’s team in the new offices. The central location is easing the burden on our team of volunteers, some of whom are disabled, and for whom the old unit at Malone Road was a less than perfect location.

Furthermore, the installation of a new elevator in the building will soon be completed meaning our accessibility for disabled visitors will be enhanced ensuring the Foundation’s staff can welcome everyone who wishes to call.  It also means we have been able to increase the number of intern and placement opportunities for local students, and have had expressions of interests already about the possibility of providing summer internships for some overseas students.

Therefore we would like to offer a huge note of thanks to everyone who has helped to support the move through practical assistance or by €˜’buying a brick’. Your generosity is greatly appreciated by the volunteers, staff, and trustees. It has enabled the Foundation to open a new chapter in our history, in the sixtieth anniversary year since the organisation was established.

The fundraising contributions have made it possible to complete the move and install most of what we need. We are a little short still of where we would like to be – to date we have raised £27,875, leaving a shortfall of £2125, thus if you think you can help by making a donation, we would be delighted to have you join our band of supporters.

It has been a busy 3 months since we moved to the Corn Exchange (at the end of January 2016), and we have had some fun bringing order to the chaos of storage crates – the joy and despair of moving – with which anyone who has moved house will be familiar.

You can see how we are progressing by visiting our updated photo gallery of images related to the move. And do revisit from time to time, as you will see other important developments taking shape – including the installation of our new library.

Thank you again for generously supporting our fundraising, we hope you can see the positive change and improvements the relocation is already bringing to the work of this charitable organisation.

Best regards
Fintan Mullan
Executive Director
www.ancestryireland.com

The 14th Annual Historic Houses of Ireland Conference will take place on the 9-10 May 2016 at Maynooth University.

The theme of the conference is The Country House and Landed Estate in Time of Revolution and the conference will also include the launch of the CSHIHE and Maynooth University Library exhibition ‘1916 and the Irish Country House: Rebellion and War’. (http://historicirishhouses.ie/news-and-events/14th-annual-historic-houses-ireland-conference)

The Programme and Booking Form are now available at https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B1WSkAvkaV4jNEFPSFBVUWdrRGs

Niall and the Stone of Destiny

Niall and the Stone of Destiny is the first fully-illustrated children’s book about legendary Celtic High King, Niall of the Nine Hostages. Embark on an exciting journey, following Niall through his boyhood adventures and quest to become High King of Ireland. This well-researched historical fiction is designed to engage a younger generation of Niall’s descendants in their Irish heritage and ancestry. Niall and the Stone of Destiny is a heroic tale with more than a dozen vivid-color, full-page illustrations. This story is sure to capture the interest and imagination of all readers, especially children ages 6 – 11.

Who is Niall?

Niall Noígíallach, translated in English as Niall of the Nine Hostages, was the renowned High King of Ireland during the late 4th and early 5th centuries, AD. Niall and the Stone of Destiny is a historical fiction inspired by the 2006 DNA discovery made by Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland that gives evidence of Niall’s nearly 3 million descendants worldwide.

The author has a Kickstarter Campaign to help raise funds to print the first edition of the book. Here is the link to the campaign: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1195848313/niall-and-the-stone-of-destiny

The ALLEN y-DNA Project & The ALLEN Guild of One Name Studies

The Allen DNA Project is partnering with the Allen Guild of One Name Studies in an exciting new Research Endeavor. The Allen DNA Project is a USA based group, but is very interested in expanding our membership to a world-wide audience by actively seeking out Allens from England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Mainland Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or anywhere else on the planet.

Additionally, any spelling variation of the Allen surname is welcome: Allan, Allyn, Allin, etc.
To this point, FREE yDNA 37 marker tests will be made available to any males carrying the Allen surname and residing outside the United States who are willing to join the project and participate in the testing. The only requirement for a free yDNA test is a known Allen/Allan (any spelling) lineage to at least the participant’s Great Grandfather Allen/Allan (any spelling) in any country. Additionally, The Allen DNA Project is setting aside a specific Sub-group within the Project with a full commitment of assistance from Allen Project Co-Administrator Dr. Eric Allen who will be overseeing this specific International Sub-group.

Guild of One Name Studies: http://one-name.org/name_profile/allen/
Allen DNA Project: https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/allan/about/background

Direct Contacts:
Mr. Chris Allen: cdpallen@gmail.com
Dr. Eric Allen: ericallen@alton.k12.mo.us

Westmeath Genealogy has added 36,000 new records to its online database at www.westmeath.rootsireland.ie. The new records include Mullingar death records, Westmeath Gravestone inscriptions and various baptisms and marriages between the years 1900 to 1920.

The full list of available sources for the Westmeath Genealogy Centre can be viewed at http://westmeath.rootsireland.ie/generic.php?filename=sources.tpl&selectedMenu=sources

Rootsireland.ie is the highest ranked Irish website in the annual Genealogy in Time Top 100 Genealogy Websites survey. Rootsireland.ie listed at No. 56. This is great news for our service which is run by county genealogy centres, family histories societies and volunteers throughout Ireland.

According to Genealogy in Time “Since we began this list five years, it has become the gold standard for genealogy lists. Part of the reason is the care and attention we put into the process to create an independent, objective list. We start by compiling an extensive list of genealogy websites from around the world. We then used the services of Alexa (the internet traffic people) to help us rank actual internet traffic to each website.

Internet traffic can be a tricky thing to measure. It is more than just the number of visitors to a website. Other important considerations include the amount of content consumed by a typical visitor to the website and the amount of time spent at the website. Thus, our rankings are based on a combination of three factors: visitors, content and time. The result is an objective and independent ranking of the top 100 genealogy websites.”

See more at: http://www.genealogyintime.com/articles/top-100-genealogy-websites-of-2016-page01.html#sthash.nsaM5mwI.dpuf