Fire. When doing genealogy I cannot even tell you how many times I have heard, "Well, there was a fire...” A few times before the person said it I said, "Let me guess, there was a fire.” Well, as luck would have it, trying to find records of my Irish lineage has not been an easy task. I am still not sure where my family comes from, but it has been narrowed down by my DNA tests. Records before 1860 were lost in a fire in Dublin in 1922. But not all hope is lost. Below are some ways you may still find some information which may be helpful.
Well, there was a fire...
First, even though there was a fire, Ireland still has one of the largest census recordsets online, and it is free. The best part is had I not learned from researching and someone else showing others the different ways to learn how to use census records to look into the past, I would not be able to share the knowledge with you. Sharing is caring and hopefully you can share this as well.
Ireland still has one of the largest census recordsets online, and it is free.
Ask Some Questions
When did your family leave Ireland? How old were they? Did you know the ages of people are on all of Ireland’s censuses? Here is an example of how you could look for your ancestors. Let’s start by taking the 1901 census and putting in the age your ancestor would have been in 1901. Let’s say your ancestor left in 1850 at the age of 34. So they would be 85 in 1901. In the search you find the age you are looking for and then do the +/- 5 years and get the results. You can narrow down by county, too. Now you go through and see if anyone has your ancestor’s name. This is just another way to hunt down those long lost ancestors. You may have to do some digging still, but it is a start because we all know families usually stick close together.
You can actually do so many things with the census records. Such as, do you know the profession, religious affiliation, or even was your ancestor born in Ireland or somewhere else? These are all things you can narrow down when you are searching for your ancestors. With this knowledge you may just be able to verify information you already had and you may be able to find some new information.
Do not give up
Never give up. There are always new ways to track down people. Others share the way they have found ancestors and you try and pass it on. Genealogy really is all about helping out others. Share information. I know Ireland is not easy to track down your family if you have very little to go on. Yet, new techniques and new records come out frequently. Census records really are a treasure. They can open up leads you never dreamed of. Good luck hunting!!
If you need any help finding your family, just let us know.
http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/
