Irish Roots Magazine - Autumn Issue No 87 Sept, 2013 | Page 4

Irish Roots 2013 Number 3 NEWS Kerry Genealogy Road Show Officially Launched As Part Of The Kerry Gathering Programme A unique project and the first of its kind in Ireland, the Kerry Genealogy Road Show was recently launched in Killarney, Co. Kerry, as part of The Gathering Ireland 2013. The Kerry Genealogy Road Show is a freestanding mobile genealogy unit which will exhibit at 25 selected events around County Kerry. Professional genealogists will assist visitors with their genealogy queries and help them trace their family trees. The mobile unit will also have free “live” online search facilities which will provide access to genealogical sources including Census Returns, Tithe Applotment Books, Griffiths Valuation, Civil Birth, Death and Marriage Records, Church Baptism and Marriage Records and others. The genealogists will provide general information about the principal Kerry families/family names, and their origins and distribution, including famous family members. There will also be an exhibition on “finding your Kerry /Irish ancestors”. Detailed information can be obtained from [email protected]. Tel: +353 87 050 5296. www.ancestor.ie. 70,000 Limerick Cemetery Burial Records Go Online Staff from Limerick City Archives in conjunction with the History Department of Mary Immaculate College of Education, have spent the past two years manually transcribing thousands of handwritten records of those buried at Mount St. Lawrence Cemetery between 1855 and 2008. The records include the name, age, address and in many cases, the cause of death of those buried in the 164-year-old cemetery. See www.limerickcity.ie/Archives for further details. To receive daily genealogy news updates ‘like’ us on facebook at www.facebook.com/irishrootsmag or follow us on twitter @IrishRootsMag Minister of the Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan with John Hamrock of Ancestor Network at the launch of the Kerry Genealogy Road Show. Also in attendance were County Kerry local events organisers, tourism groups, local historians, genealogists, and visitors from the Irish Diaspora. CAGI To Provide Genealogy Service At The National Archives Of Ireland CAGI - the new Consortium of Accredited Genealogists, Ireland - has won the contract to provide the National Archives of Ireland’s Genealogy Service (GS) for the next twelve months. For the consortium members it is a return to familiar ground, as each worked in the GS during the time it was operated directly by the Association of Professional Genealogists in Ireland (APGI). From its establishment in 2003 the Genealogy Service has provided expert advice to visitors at the National Archives in Dublin, free of charge. Each year it has guided thousands of family historians, overseas visitors and Irish residents alike, in doing their own research. It gives them time-saving tips and provided them with a strategy to fit their own particular family. In so doing, it has played a central role in enhancing the research experience for all visitors. Previously Unseen Clare Historical Collections To Be Digitised Clare County Library’s entire archival collection dating back to the early 18th century is to be digitised and made publicly available online. The finished project will feature a searchable database of previously unseen historical collections profiling Ireland’s turbulent history from the pre-famine settlements and granting of lands in County Clare, the famine and its evictions, the economic depression in the late 19th century and the ‘land war’ agitation. Amongst the collections being digitised are the Roger Casement papers (19131916), The Sampson Collection (1790-1961) and the Registers of Electors from 1858. 4 According to Rene Franklin, Clare County Archivist: “This massive digitisation project to be undertaken by the County Archives service over the next two years will unlock the riches of our archival collections by making them available online to users throughout Ireland and around the world. The larger collections hold immense potential for researchers, historians and genealogists alike and display indepth and as yet unseen information.” The digitised archival material will be made available through the Clare County Archive’s webpage, findmypast.ie and Europeana, Europe’s digital library, archive and museum www.europeana.eu. Genealogy Course For Monaghan Diaspora Visiting From Abroa d Announced A unique Monaghan-focused Family History initiative is being organised as part of The Gathering 2013. It will provide two 4-day training courses within the county for tourists tracing their Monaghan ancestors. The project is entitled ‘County Monaghan Genealogy - home to the little hills’. It will give participants information on the genealogical sources available, the cultural history of County Monaghan and the diversity of origin of its people. The courses will take place in North Monaghan from Monday to Thursday, 14-17 October, and in Carrickmacross from Monday to Thursday, 21-24 October. The courses are designed for individuals and groups with Monaghan ancestry living overseas and members of Irish societies and social clubs abroad. Contact:- [email protected] Tel: +353 87 0505296, Twitter: @ancestornetwork, www.facebook.com/MonaghanGenealogyTraining.