Tracing Irish ancestry can be rewarding and fascinating. However, it can also be frustrating and disappointing.

This article will show you how to access and utilize online Irish genealogy records like a pro without traveling to Ireland yourself. The resources include birth, marriage, and death records, cemeteries, newspapers, censuses, histories, and military records.

Birth Records

With millions of Americans claiming Irish descent, it is not surprising that so many genealogy resources have been made available online. There are free websites, subscription genealogy services, and new ways to trace family roots using home DNA kits.

The National Archives of Ireland and its predecessor institutions have a vast collection of genealogical records. Their archives mainly relate to the Republic of Ireland. They also have an Ask About Ireland website that contains Catholic Church parish registers.

Ancestry, one of the largest subscription genealogy sites, has a vast collection of Irish records. Their collection includes Irish census collections, Petty Sessions, Prison Registers, and more. It also has an extensive collection of UK, United States, and Irish newspaper transcripts to help you find your ancestors.

Marriage Records

With approximately 33 million people with Irish ancestry in the United States, genealogy researchers have more access to historical records than ever. For instance, those new Irish genealogy records can help you pinpoint the location of your ancestor’s birth, marriage, and death. They can also reveal much about their lives before emigrating to America.

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (GRONI) holds civil birth, death, and marriage records and other valuable archives for those with Northern Irish ancestry. Its public search room can provide computerized indexes by name, date, and place of the event.

Another excellent resource is Findmypast, a subscription website with an impressive Irish record collection. However, it does not contain every Irish record, so using it with other sites is best.

Death Records

A search of death records will help you find missing family members and fill in the gaps in your genealogy research. The internet’s most popular subscription genealogy website has a vast collection of Irish genealogy resources, including Griffith’s Valuation, passenger lists for those who immigrated to the United States from Ireland, and Catholic marriage and death records.

When searching for these types of records, knowing the mother’s maiden name and the date of death is essential. The site allows you to use the power of “Starts With” searches to search for a last name or first name with only one or two letters at the beginning. This can be particularly helpful when searching for ancestors who may have been named differently or misspelled in the records.

Burial Records

Birth, marriage, and death records are basic genealogy staples no matter where you are researching. Finding the final resting place of an ancestor can help fill in the gaps in family history research and provide a poignant last connection to your ancestors.

The Green-Wood burial database contains detailed burial records that go beyond simple information such as name and interment date. The database also includes interment locations and a range of other demographic data.

This free site is a great starting point for Irish genealogy as it provides access to church and civil birth, marriage, and death records from 34 county genealogical centers in Ireland. It also hosts a collection of transcribed memorial inscriptions from around the world sourced from the UKIndexer project, encouraging volunteers to photograph and transcribe headstones.

Census Records

Many people with Irish ancestry have been fortunate to discover that their families kept many valuable family history records. While many irreplaceable historical documents were blown up in 1922, many have survived to help you find your Irish roots.

Historic census records provide valuable snapshots of your ancestors as they lived at a particular time. They often include unique schedules that provide additional information, such as how many bushels of apples your farming ancestor’s orchard produced.

In addition to decennial federal censuses, you can also find state and territorial ones. These often contain details on marriages and deaths that predated town or county vital records and agricultural schedules that may reveal how many barrels of cider your ancestor made.

Military Records

Various online resources are helpful for Irish genealogy research, including a range of subscription services, the church-run Mormon site Findmypast and eVetRecs. These resources can provide valuable information about a person’s military service and help researchers understand what happened to their loved ones in wartime.

While many irreplaceable archives were blown up in 1922, the glass is also half full: Many military records have survived.

Veterans and next of kin can request information from their records at the NPRC for a copying fee. The rules vary depending on the date a service member separated from the military. The NPRC provides an online form that allows researchers to customize their orders for older records.

Newspapers

Those seeking Irish genealogy online will find numerous websites and subscription databases to use. These include indexes of various historical documents. These may consist of church records, cemetery records, obituaries, probate records, and more. Some of these websites offer free searches. Others require a subscription or pay-per-view fee. Many libraries have access to these sites and are also a good resource.

The National Archives of Ireland offers a searchable database of civil records for births, marriages, and deaths. Using this database, you can pore over transcripts and even download images of original documents. This is an excellent tool for those who want to learn as much about their ancestors as possible. It also allows you to search for specific information, like the village name where an ancestor was born or died.