Records in the pipe
The half million or so Waterford baptism records recently uploaded to RootsIreland.ie are the first batch of that county's church register collection on the site. Coming along shortly will be a collection of some 250,000 marriages. These will be followed by more records for county Mongahan, adding to the 32,000 RC baptisms already available, a first collection from Wexford, and some memorial inscriptions from Ulster.
Calendars at the ready
Archives, libraries and heritage centres in the Republic will be closed on Monday 31st October (a public holiday). In Northern Ireland, where there is no October Holiday, such venues should be open. Looking further ahead, the Reading Room of the National Archives of Ireland in Dublin will be closed on Wednesday 7th, Thursday 8th and Friday 9th December for the annual press preview of state documents that will become open (after the expiry of the 30-year closure rules) for public scrutiny in the new year.
Worth bookmarking
I came across a site today that I haven't visited for some years: www.irelandoldnews.com. To be honest, I'd forgotten about it, but I've now bookmarked it because, while it doesn't have any newspaper transcriptions for some counties and some years, it's got plenty enough to entice me back for a good regular rummage around.
Halloween's a-coming
Glasnevin Cemetery is gearing up for a busy Samhain. Until 7th November, the Ghastly Glasnevin exhibition will be available in the Prospect Gallery of the Museum, with pictures and stories about death and burial in 19th-century Dublin. From 26th to 31st October, the Glasnevin Gravedigger Cemetery Tour, which I'm told is suitable for all ages, will be held at 11am and 5pm. And for the truly fearless, there's a Samhain Supper & Storytelling evening on Friday 28th and Saturday 29th at a cost of 45Euros pp, which includes a meal, ghost stories from Jack Lynch, traditional harp entertainment and a torch-lit tour with Glasnevin Trust's resident historian Shane MacThomas. Bookings 01 882 6550 or email booking@glasnevintrust.ie.
Find out more about the origin of Halloween.
Back To Our Past
Just a reminder that Ireland's very own family history show, Back To Our Past, takes place this coming weekend in Dublin. Held at the RDS, it starts on Friday (Midday to 7pm) and continues over Saturday and Sunday (both days 11am to 7pm). Don't forget to download and print a discount voucher to save yourself 50% of the entrance charge.
