Over the last few issues of Irish Roots Magazine I have given an overview of the most common records used in Irish research. However unless you know where in Ireland your ancestors came from it’s almost impossible to locate your ancestor in any Irish records. Key points to remember when locating the origins of an ancestor Until 1922 Ireland was part of the British Isles with total freedom of movement between the two islands.  Thus from the earliest of times people travelled back ... More

Using U.S. Sources To Trace Your Irish Ancestors Who Worked At Sea Occupation Sources: U. S. Merchant Seamen by Judith Eccles Wight, AG When I was first approached about writing quarterly articles for Irish Roots, I immediately thought about occupation sources.  It has taken me a couple of years to actually address this subject.  This is the first article in a series that will be written for future issues of Irish Roots. In genealogical research we are often faced with the dif ... More

Over the centuries, one of Ireland’s greatest exports has been its people. This has taken many guises be it voluntarily to travel the world, to explore seeking fame and fortune, economic migrants, trade, colonise, govern or forcibly transported, to fight or to garrison some far off settlement". It is estimated that there are over one million people of Irish birth in Britain today, plus numerous second, third or fourth generation Irish - precise figures are not available. Over 40 mi ... More

Locating Living Descendants By Nicola Morris - Part One Issue No 93 Irish Roots magazine March 2015 I have met many people researching their family history who want to find out what happened to the siblings of their ancestors and locate long lost cousins who are alive today.  In some cases joining up with other branches of your family tree and sharing information can shed new light on your own research.  A collection of letters held by your fifth cousin in New Zealand may hold t ... More

While it is true that more and more resources for family history research are coming online, before you step out onto the busy information highway you need to identify the websites that are going to help rather than confuse and misdirect you. Over the course of this year I will identify the really useful websites, what you should expect to find on them and the pitfalls of online research. The first step for anyone tracing their ancestors is asking family members for information about earlier g ... More