‘One Eye – wears a black ribbon’
13 April 2018The Rebellion papers are a fascinating collection housed in the National Archives [RP/620]. They date from 1790 to 1808 and for the most part are made up of letters and reports sent to the Chief Secretary in Dublin Castle. The time period cover the two rebellions of 1798 and 1803 and...
The Preacher and the Prelate
13 April 2018A new title from Merrion Press – The Preacher and the Prelate: The Achill Mission Colony and the Battle for Souls in Famine Ireland, by Patricia Byrne – tells the extraordinary story of an audacious fight for souls on famine-ravaged Achill Island during the nineteenth century. This is the extraordinary story of an audacious...
Finding Your “Known” using “Unknown”. A Lesson from Henry Shackleton’s Children
13 April 2018When doing family history, one wants – and often needs – the civil birth registration records for all the children of a given marriage. If all goes according to plan, one can find a birth record for the searched-for person, which then also provides (or confirms) information on the parents’...
Online Consultations now available on the IFHC Website
13 April 2018As promised we’re delighted to announce that you can now book an Online Consultation, via Skype or Google Hangouts, with one of our Expert Genealogists! Their knowledge, and decades of experience, will make them invaluable to furthering your research. Online Consultations can be pre-booked (48 hours in advance) as 60 minute...
Using Reverse Genealogy to Knock Down Brick Walls in Your Research
31 March 2018As family historians we look beyond the immediate line of descent, to trace all members of the family – the singletons who for whatever reason, never married; the shadowy ones that died young; and the ones that left to go overseas. Have you ever wondered what happened to all those family...
St. Patrick’s Festival: Time-Travelling Treasure Hunt!
31 March 2018This St. Patrick’s Festival the Irish Family History Centre held a treasure hunt for the smaller detectives in the family. Participants could choose from two levels of clue-finding challenges, ranging from finding sea monsters in our time lines, to more complex puzzles that involved delving into the records to find...
Visit of President of Ireland Michael D. Higgins
31 March 2018Having celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day with our Family History Treasure Hunt the team did not have to wait too long for some further excitement. On the 21st March we were honoured by a visit from President Michael D. Higgins and his wife Sabina. From Left: Fiona Fitzsimmons, Sabina Higgins, Michael D....
Mark Hamill’s Irish Ancestry
17 March 2018Star Wars star Mark Hamill, better known to a generation as Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker, will be the first ever “International Guest of Honour” at this year’s Dublin St. Patrick’s Day, watching the parade from the presidential stand alongside Michael D. Higgins. It is well-known that the spectacular scenery of...
Expert Workshop: Katie Donovan and how Family inspires Creativity
16 March 2018Poet Katie Donovan led our most recent Expert Workshop on how family influences creativity. No stranger to public speaking, Katie eloquently spoke about how the theme of the family has been central to the work of writers since the days of Ancient Greece. Taking us through the works of leading...
News Digest: March 2018
16 March 2018Irish Traveller Ethnicity Celebration in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham http://ethnicitycelebration.ie/?page_id=18 On 15th March 2018, the Royal Hospital Kilmainham played host to the first ever Traveller Ethnicity Celebration, showcasing the culture, heritage, language and identity of Ireland’s only indigenous minority. This free event included exhibitions, workshops, film, live music, children’s entertainment...
POORHOUSE Screening at IFI
16 March 2018POORHOUSE, a half hour film by Frank Stapleton and Catherine Tiernan (1995) is screening this month in the Irish Film Institute as part of the lunchtime Archive screenings on the Famine. Poorhouse is a film set during Ireland’s famine era, about about an ailing woman who works in the Cavan...
Family History Treasure Hunt
16 March 2018Our St. Patrick’s Festival Treasure Hunt has returned again this year and is proving popular again. Starting Thursday 15th March and running until Monday 19th March visitors are completing our fun quiz to help explore Irish roots and search for Irish Ancestors. Knowledge is gained such as: What does your...
