Athenry News & Views Spring 2026

Spring 2026

Since the last edition, I hope you have been successful in accessing the following free websites on your family tree journey: https://nationalarchives.ie/collections/search-the census/ https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/ https://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/ https://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/ The 1926 census will be available from April 18, 2026 on the National Archives website. The saddest statistic from the 1911 census is the number of children born to a couple and the number of children surviving. The 1926 census may continue to collect such data or other data not previously recorded. It might be a very interesting exercise to compare the buildings and out-houses returns from 1901, through 1911 to 1926, which may suggest an improvement or decline in family fortunes. For Irish people, a decline in family fortunes or a lack of opportunity in Ireland meant taking the boat to Britain, the USA or Australia. Movement to Britain was not treated as emigration/immigration when Ireland was under British rule, and I am unaware of free websites containing immigration records. https:// heritage.statueofliberty.org/passenger is a free website which lists immigrants to America between 1820 and 1957. Passengers may have travelled directly from an Irish port or may have travelled to Britain and onwards to the USA. This website is currently being updated but intends to add millions of names which will be available from March 22 inst. The Irish National Archives website contains records on penal transportation to Australia between 1788 and 1868. Records are not complete as some were destroyed in 1922. https://trove.nla.gov.au/ is a free Australian website which allows access to Australian newspapers, articles and other documents. Continuing with family tree research through free websites, numerous local and national papers are available on https://irishnewsarchive.com/ which can be accessed in local libraries. The number of people able to read gradually increased through the 1800s as a result of the National School system which came into being in 1831. More newspapers were published Useful Free Websites continued Family History Research

By: Rena Cloonan

in the latter half of the 1800s and the activities of local people were reported upon. When searching the website use “name” when searching for your ancestor. This website is especially useful if your ancestor had a business, was involved in politics, or appeared in court. Reports of funerals in the early 1900s often listed the names of the chief mourners. The news archive can also be searched by townland, which might produce a story about a local land agent being assaulted, applications for drink licences, or names of contributors to a fund raiser. A description of townlands can be found on https://www. askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/ under the Name Books tab. John O’Donovan was commissioned to survey Ireland in the second quarter of the 1800s with a view to producing a map of the country. He and his team sent back reports to Dublin and some in the form of ‘Name Books’ describe the townland that was being surveyed. The Name Books also give the Irish name of the townland and its meaning. Another free website which may be useful to some families is https://www.militaryarchives.ie/ A search through any of the four options in their online collections section may reveal an ancestor who was active during the period 1916-1923. Applications for pensions or medals (whether awarded or not) usually detail the applicant’s activities during the period and name other comrades. It is always good practice to look at the other names on civil records (or any record) – who were the witnesses of marriages, the sponsors of children and the informant of a death. As forenames were repeated in families, it is important to have at least two sources to confirm ancestral connections and any of the above pieces of information might help to identify your ancestor. And don’t forget google! A cursory search of my own surname in Australia produced the discharge papers from the Australian Army in 1919 of an ancestor that I had not been aware of, but the discharge papers gave his place of birth as my home. His sibling names were given in a report in the local newspaper when he returned on holidays and his birth record on genealogy.ie confirmed his father’s name. Continued happy researching!

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