The following one-page history of the Carlin clan associated with County Donegal and County Derry is indicative of what the reader can expect to encounter with each of the 300+ histories of surnames compiled by Brian Mitchell in his book, The Surnames of North West Ireland: Concise Histories of the Major Surnames of Gaelic and[…]Read more
Brian Mitchell’s New Pocket Guide to Irish Genealogy is a wonderful combination of how-to book, guide to sources, and case studies–in only 120 pages. It’s expert genealogist Mitchell’s contention that the most important sources for Irish genealogy are the civil registers of births, marriages, and deaths; church registers of baptisms, marriages, and burials; gravestone inscriptions;[…]Read more
The historical roots of what it means to be Scots Irish go back to the 17th century. During that epoch, substantial numbers of Scottish (as well as English) families removed to the northern part of Ireland during the so-called Plantation of Ulster. Between 1717 and 1776, 250,000 Scots-Irish immigrants (also known as Scotch-Irish or Ulster[…]Read more
When Brian Mitchell wrote the original Pocket Guide to Irish Genealogy in 1991, with revisions in 2002 and 2008, access to Irish record sources was through examination of original and microfilm copies of historical sources in record offices. Genealogists now, however, have ready access online to most of Irish record sources. Therefore, Brian Mitchell has[…]Read more
The vast majority of Irish census records prior to 1901 no longer exist. Consequently, as Brian Mitchell explains in his New Pocket Guide to Irish Genealogy, census substitutes are of great importance to Irish researchers. Perhaps the most important, and certainly the most famous, substitute is Griffith’s Primary Valuation. Conducted between 1848 and 1864, the[…]Read more
(The following essay is excerpted from pp. 39-40 from Mr. Mitchell’s book, New Pocket Guide to Irish Genealogy.) With civil registration of births and deaths commencing in 1864, and with the patchy survival of church records before this time, gravestone inscriptions take on a special significance. Many Church of Ireland burial registers were destroyed by[…]Read more
The Midwest Books Review, edited by James A. Cox of Oregon, Wisconsin, has for decades been an important source of advice for library acquisition librarians in deciding what new publications to add to their collections. Brian Mitchell’s New Pocket Guide to Irish Genealogy just received a stellar review from Mr. Cox, and we are reprinting[…]Read more
From the late 1600s, in the age of the sailing ships, to the onset of the Second World War in 1939, when the last transatlantic steamer sailed from the port, Derry~Londonderry was one of the principal emigration ports in Ireland. Prior to the coming of the railways and, in the age of sailing ships, from[…]Read more
Between 1717 and the beginning of the War of American Independence in 1776, 250,000 Scots-Irish, often referred to as Ulster-Scots in Ireland (i.e. Protestant settlers in the nine counties of the Province of Ulster) left Ulster, through the ports of Belfast, Londonderry, Newry, Larne and Portrush, for North America. The Scots-Irish tended to enter North[…]Read more
In my eyes the Future of Irish Genealogy is a promising one. Here are the reasons why: 1. The major Irish record sources can now be examined online, such as: Census enumerations of 1901 and 1911 can be searched at www.census.nationalarchives.ie Irish Civil Records of births from 1864-1920, marriages 1845-1945 and deaths 1871-1970 can be[…]Read more
Brian Mitchell’ New Pocket Guide to Irish Genealogy is a concise, use-friendly overview of tracing ancestors in the Emerald Isle and throughout the Irish diaspora. Author Brian Mitchell makes excellent use of case studies as well as his considerable experience as a genealogist and manager of an Irish genealogy center to explain the basics of[…]Read more
by Brian Mitchell, Derry Genealogy. Email: genealogy@derrystrabane.com Background There are 2,508 parishes in Ireland. You can identify the civil parishes of Ireland, and their associated townlands, at https://www.johngrenham.com/places/civil_index.php by selecting county of interest on the map. To gain insight into the economic and social landscape of 19th century Ireland you can consult A Topographical Dictionary[…]Read more
