Tracing Your Irish History on the Internet: A Guide for Family Historians

Ireland has experienced considerably more tragedy when it comes to the preservation of resources for family historians than its close neighbor Britain. Many of the nation’s primary records were lost during the civil war in 1922 and through other equally tragic means. But in this new book Chris Paton, the Northern-Irish-born author of the best-selling Tracing Your Family History on the Internet, shows that not only has a great deal of information survived, it is also increasingly being made available online.

Thanks to the pioneering efforts of the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, the National Archives of Ireland, organizations such as FindmyPast Ireland, Ancestry.co.uk and RootsIreland, and the massive volunteer genealogical community, more and more of Ireland’s historical resources are accessible from afar.

As well as exploring the various categories of records that the family historian can turn to, Chris Paton illustrates their use with fascinating case studies. He fully explores the online records available from both the north and the south from the earliest times to the present day. Many overseas collections are also included, and he looks at social networking in an Irish context where many exciting projects are currently underway.

His book is an essential introduction and source of reference for anyone who is keen to trace their Irish roots.

Chris Paton is a genealogist and writer based in Ayrshire. He runs the Scotland’s Greatest Story research service at www.scotlandsgreateststory.co.uk. He is a regular writer for several British and Irish genealogy magazines, runs the British GENES news and events blog at www.BritishGENES.blogspot.com, and gives regular talks to local family history societies and internationally.