P R E S E N T E D B Y

E L A I N E J O N E S H AY E S

L A R A M I E C O U N T Y L I B R A RY S Y S T E M

Genealogy: Finding Your Irish

Ancestors

Irish Immigration History

American Colonial and Revolutionary Irish

Immigration:

According to the Dictionary of American History,“approximately 50,000 to 100,000 Irishmen came to

America in the 1600s, while 150,000 more Irish

arrived in the 1700s.”

A large group arrived between 1715-1775, many

were Presbyterians from Northern Ireland

(Ulster).

Irish or Scots-Irish?

These early Ulster immigrants came to be known in

America as the "Scots-Irish". Many were descendants of

Scots who had been settled in Ireland by the British

government during the 17th-century.

They at first referred to themselves simply as "Irish,"

without the qualifier "Scots." It was not until more than a

century later, following the surge in Irish immigration

after the Potato Famine of the 1840s, that the descendants

of the earlier Irish immigrants began to refer to

themselves as "Scots-Irish" to distinguish them from the

predominantly Catholic, new wave of immigrants from

Ireland.

Nineteenth Century Irish

Immigration

Irish immigration greatly increased in the

1820s.

From 1820 to 1860; 2 million Irish arrived in

the U.S. or Canada, 75% of these during the

Great Irish Potato Famine of 1845–1852.

Of the total Irish immigrants to the U.S. in

this time period, many died crossing the

ocean due to disease and dismal conditions

of what became known as coffin ships.

The Irish Potato Famine (1845 – 1852)

Caused by “blight”

Fungus from Mexico

Destroyed the entire

potato crop

Irish grew potatoes

because it was more

economical

You could grow three

times more potatoes

than grain on the same

land

Effects of the Famine on the Irish

Population

One and a half million died of starvation or disease.

Two million emigrated to the U.S. and Canada.

The population of Ireland decreased by half between 1845 and 1855.

In 1910, there were more people in New York City of Irish heritage than Dublin’s whole population.

A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The life of Irish famine immigrants in

America:

Most Irish immigrants were unskilled laborers and worked

at jobs many Americans felt were fit only for servants or

slaves.

Because of the economic downturn of the 1850s their

presence was resented by Americans who felt they were

competition for scarce jobs and a burden on the

government/charities.

Review of Beginning/General

Genealogy

Record What You Already Know. Start with yourself and work backwards.

Begin Your Research at Home and Talk to Relatives.

Look for Compiled (published) Information in Books and Databases.

Research Collateral Ancestors (the FAN club).

Look for Original Records in the US and Canada: Census Records

Vital Records

Obituaries

Social Security Death Index

Land and Probate Records

Military Records

Church Records

Best Places to Start Your Ancestor

Search

Ancestry.com or Ancestry Library Edition

Heritage Quest (access through

laramiecountylibrary.org)

FamilySearch familysearch.org

FindaGrave www.findagrave.com

RootsWeb www.rootsweb.ancestry.com

USGenWeb usgenweb.org

Cyndi’s List www.cyndislist.com/uk/irl

U.S. National Archives www.archives.gov

Google.com www.google.com

What’s in a name?

Surnames:

– O’ and Mc’ could be dropped from or added to your

ancestor’s surname. Example: Connor, Connors and

O’Connor.

– As long as it is phonetically the same, it is probably your

surname. Example: Maher and Meagher.

Given Names:

Use a Google search for variants of given names.

Example: Delia and Biddy both nicknames for Bridget.

www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irlmayo2/name_variations

.html

Place Name Spelling Variations

Place Name: Use www.seanruad.com to find spelling

variations of places.

– Fill in the county. Leave everything else empty.

– Then look for a place that phonetically matches yours

– If you still can’t find your place-name, try to find it using

Google.

Maps: Use Google and the words “Parish map County

……”

Examples:

Ballynocker or Ballynogher

Queens County also Laois, Leix, Laoghis

Finding Your Irish Immigrant Ancestor's

Place of Birth in Ireland

Ask Relatives and search through Diaries, Letters, Family Papers

Vital Records - Especially Death Certificates and Probate Records.

Obituaries and Tombstone Inscriptions

Naturalization Records and Immigration Passenger Records

Biographies in County Histories

Church Records & Biographies in Church Histories

Military Records (including WWI Draft Cards)

Social Security SS-5 Application Forms

Irish Census Records

Census from 1821-1851 were largely destroyed by

fire.

Census from 1861-1891 were pulped by the

British government to save space during World

War I.

Those from 1901 and 1911 have survived and can

be searched on websites such as The National

Archives of Ireland

www.census.nationalarchives.ie.

Their was no Irish census in 1921, and later

Other Ways of Finding Your

Ancestor’s Birthplace in Ireland

Boston Pilot Missing Friends Database

infowanted.bc.edu and Ancestry.com/Ancestry

L.E.

Griffith's Valuation of Ireland

www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation

Surname Distribution

www.irishtimes.com/ancestor

Tithe Applotments

www.familysearch.org

Finding Records in Ireland

You need to do all your U.S. research first to find what county, parish or townland your ancestors were from.

You’ll need to know at least the county of origin and at least two surnames. Names of other family members will help narrow the search and give you collateral ancestors to research.

Some knowledge of Irish history will help narrow your search. You will likely need to search both British and Irish Archives for records especially pre-1922 records. Check the national archives/public records offices in Dublin and Belfast along with local county and/or church archives.

Irish Research Websites

Irish Genealogy www.irishgenealogy.ie

Irish Heritage Centres www.irish-roots.net

National Archives of Ireland http://www.nationalarchives.ie

UK National Archives www.nra.nationalarchives.gov.uk/nra

Cemeteries in Ireland www.historyfromheadstones.com

Public Records Office of the Republic of Ireland http://www.proni.gov.uk

General Registers Office Ireland http://www.groireland.ie

Free Websites for Finding Irish

Ancestors

Irish Genealogy Toolkit www.irish-genealogy-toolkit.com

Ellis Island www.ellisisland.org

Castle Garden www.castlegarden.org

Immigrant Ship Transcribers Guild www.immigrantships.net

GENUKI www.genuki.org.uk

Townlands Database www.seanruad.com

Failte Romhat www.failteromhat.com

Ireland & UK GenWeb www.iukgenweb.org

Republic of Ireland BMD Exchange vicki.thauvin.net/chance/ireland/bmd

Not Free Irish Ancestry Websites

FindMyPast (available in the LCLS library)

Irish Origins www.irishorigins.com

Irish Times www.irishtimes/ancestor

RootsIreland www.rootsireland.ie

Ancestry (available in the LCLS building)

Irish Townland Maps www.pasthomes.com

Irish Newspaper Archives www.irishnewsarchive.com

Books Available in the

LCLS Genealogy Collection

The Famine immigrants : lists of Irish immigrants arriving at the port of

New York, 1846-1851. GEN 929.3415 FAMI V.1-7

Ireland : 1841/1851 census abstracts. GEN 929.3417 MAST CENSUS 1841-

1851

Irish emigrants in North America. Author: Dobson, David. GEN 929.3415

DOBS PT.1-3

Irish passenger lists, 1841-1871: lists of passengers sailing from Londonderry

to American on ships of the J & J. Cooke Line and the McCorkell Line. GEN

325.24160973 MITC

Irish pedigrees : or, The origin and stem of the Irish nation GEN 929.3'415

OHAR V.1 -2

Ships from Ireland to early America, 1623-1850 GEN 929.3'415 DOBS V. 1 -3

Ulster sails west: the story of the great emigration from Ulster to North

America in the 18th century… GEN 939.3416097 MARS

Search the WYLD catalog at wyld.state.wy.us/larm and refer to my Irish

.

Consider Visiting the Places

Your Ancestors Lived

Thanks for Attending

Consider:

Researching in the LCLS Genealogy Collection

In books, microforms and Ancestry Library Edition

Ask a Genealogy Volunteer or LCLS Reference

Staff for assistance

Checking out a Genealogy How-To Book

Dewey Decimal Call Number 929

Searching Heritage Quest online through the LCLS

website at laramiecountylibrary.org.