Press Releases

Findmypast.ie add another 2.5 million court registers

Findmypastie

Another 2.5 million court registers added to findmypast.ie

Records dating from 1851 to 1913

For immediate release

Leading Irish family history website, findmypast.ie has made a further 2.5 million court records available to search online in its Irish Petty Sessions Court Registers 1828-1912 record set, which exposes the petty crimes Ireland’s residents committed and how they were punished.

This new batch features 52 new courts in fifteen counties around Ireland. A further seven courts have been supplemented with records from additional years. This brings the total Petty Sessions Court Registers on findmypast.ie to over 15 million and the overall Irish family history records on the site to over 70 million.

Notable additions this time include a significant expansion to the records available for Galway, Roscommon, Westmeath and Limerick. Donegal also benefits from the addition of four new courts dating from as early as 1851, which should prove a real boon to family historians with ancestors from that county.

The variety of cases heard gives a real flavour for life in Ireland at the time. Runaway servants, shebeens and trespassing livestock are just a taste of the misdemeanors that can be found amongst the millions of registers.

Cliona Weldon, General Manager of findmypast.ie, said “The records of the Petty Session courts are endlessly fascinating and that is why we continue to top up this resource with more great family history records. It is always interesting to find out what your forefathers did to find themselves in front of a magistrate!”

New courts have been added to the following counties: Galway (9), Roscommon (8), Westmeath (7), Limerick (7), Donegal (4), Waterford (4), Tipperary (2), Cork (2), Carlow (2), Kilkenny (2), Mayo (1), Meath (1), Sligo (1), Wexford (1) and Wicklow (1).

This collection is also accessible on all findmypast international sites through a World subscription.

To find out if you have ancestors who had their day in court visit www.findmypast.ie

Findmypast.ie releases Ireland’s National Roll of Honour 1914-1921

Findmypastie

FINDMYPAST.IE RELEASES IRELAND’S NATIONAL ROLL OF HONOUR 1914-1921

RECORDS REVEAL DETAILS OF IRISHMEN WHO DIED DURING WORLD WAR I AND BEYOND

 

Leading Irish family history website, findmypast.ie has published online for the first time in its entirety Ireland’s National Roll of Honour 1914-1921.

These records give details of Irishmen, who died whilst serving in the British Army during the First World War. Also included are those soldiers who died in the three years after the end of the war.

The database of transcripts has been created from all known available resources for Irish casualties published before 1922, including publications like Soldiers Died in the Great War and Ireland’s Memorial Records, as well as organisations like The Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Newspaper articles, periodicals and other books were also used to collate the information. Furthermore, the material has been cross-referenced with the 1901 and 1911 Irish censuses to provide a more precise list of Irish war victims for the period than has ever been previously available to family historians.

Cliona Weldon, General Manager at findmypast.ie said “These records are a great addition to our collections, especially for anyone researching their military ancestors. The vivid details in the transcripts really bring home what the war heroes in our family trees went through in the field of battle”.

Supplementary information contained in the transcripts, including newspaper obituaries and letters home from the soldiers, bring these military records to life. One such harrowing letter home from the Front Line reads:

“Dear Sally-I am sorry to inform you of the death of poor Jackie. He was killed on the evening of the 27th February, and Goggin wounded. He was speaking to me about an hour before that. I am not in the better of it since. We were after coming out of the trenches, and back in billets when Jackie was killed. There was a big heavy shell came through the house and killed six and wounded twelve. Poor Jackie was made bits of-his legs and hands and head were blown away. His body was in an awful state. The shell also killed a Frenchman and his family”

With over 15,000 detailed entries searchable on findmypast.ie now and more to come, the National Roll of Honour 1914-1921 is a rich resource for those with Irish ancestors, who served in the British Army during the Great War and the years that followed.

This record set is also currently available on findmypast.com and findmypast.com.au as part of a World subscription and will be added to findmypast.co.uk soon.

Over 2.5 million court registers added to findmypast.ie

For immediate release

Over 2.5 million court registers added to findmypast.ie

Records dating back as far as 1842

Leading Irish family history website findmypast.ie has made an additional 2.5 million court records available to search online in its Irish Petty Sessions Court Registers 1828-1912 record set, which exposes the petty crimes Ireland’s residents committed and how they were punished.

The additions feature forty-four new courts in nineteen counties around Ireland. A further fifty-five courts have been supplemented with records from additional years. This brings the total Petty Sessions Court Registers on findmypast.ie to over 12 million records.

Notable new courts that have been added are the Limerick City Children’s Court and two courts with pre-famine records – Moynalty, Co. Meath and Nenagh, Co. Tipperary. As well as that, for the first time, seven new courts from Co. Longford have been added, bringing online over a quarter of a million new records for the county. Also well represented with totally new courts are Laois (five) and Cork (four).

Being drunk in a public place, being drunk in charge of a cart, failure to pay rent and allowing livestock to wander on the road are among some of the most common misdemeanors that our ancestors found themselves in court for. Although most defendants got away with a fine, the variety of cases heard gives a real flavour for life in Ireland at the time.

Cliona Weldon, General Manager of findmypast.ie, said “We are really excited about this add-on to our Petty Sessions court records. As usual, the stories you can find in them really paint a picture of what life was like in towns and villages in Ireland at the time. From harrowing stories in the Limerick City Children’s Court to amusing ones in Longford’s seven new courts, there is something for everyone in there”.

New courts have been added to the following counties: Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Laois, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford and Westmeath.

To find out if you have ancestors who had their day in court visit www.findmypast.ie