A Genealogist's Guide to Discovering Your Irish Ancestors

April 1, 2001
In this expansion of their 1998 collaboration, Ireland: A Genealogical Guide, the authors begin with a recap of basic search strategies, such as understanding given names and surnames and options in research depending on whether or not an ancestor's place in Ireland is known. Several chapters are then devoted to resources for locating Irish immigrants in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and the British West Indies a vital approach, as many beginners want to "jump the pond" straight to Ireland while ignoring non-Irish sources that can provide valuable data. Coverage of Irish sources such as civil registrations, emigration lists, tax, estate and land records, military records, and cemetery, census, and church data includes the historical significance of the record types and what sort of information can be found within. Other topics covered are Irish place names and administrative divisions, heritage centers, Internet resources, inventories and catalogs, research guides, and society records. Each chapter refers the reader to numerous print sources, web sites, addresses of societies, and repositories and concludes with a suggested reading list. Copious icons and illustrations point out tips and techniques to make one's research more fruitful. An appendix of archives and libraries is also included. Where John Grenham's Tracing Your Irish Ancestors (LJ 5/15/00. 2d ed.) focuses more on identifying specific Irish records by location than general search strategies, this book puts more emphasis on introducing beginners to successful research methods as well as Irish and non-Irish sources. Highly recommended for public libraries; those with the means might purchase extra copies for circulation. The authors are the former publishers of the journal, The Irish at Home and Abroad. Elaine M. Kuhn, Allen Cty. P.L., Ft. Wayne, IN

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.