Ireland Church Records: Difference between revisions

</center> <center><span style="color: #cc9999">'''''Catholics'''''</span></center> <br>

</center> <center><span style="color: #cc9999">'''''Non-Conformists''''</span></center>

</center> <center><span style="color: #cc9999">'''''Quakers'''''</span></center> <br>

Church records&nbsp;are an excellent source of names, dates, relationships, and places. In fact, church records are the primary source for pre-civil registration (pre-1864) Irish research.&nbsp; Church records include records of&nbsp;christenings, marriages, and&nbsp;burials, sometimes giving birth and death dates. These records were kept in bound registers, usually called parish registers. Church records may include other types of records such as religious census returns, emigration lists, and session or vestry minutes. The major religions of Ireland are the Catholic Church and Church of Ireland (Anglican).&nbsp; The Presbyterian Church is also prominent, especially in Northern Ireland.&nbsp; [Note:&nbsp; ''78% of the population were Catholic in 1861, and 12% Church of Ireland, based on statistics extracted from the census of that year.'']

=== Church of Ireland Records  ===

The Church of Ireland was the state church or Established Church in Ireland from&nbsp;1536.&nbsp; Each parish in Ireland kept its own records of christenings, marriages, and burials. '''[[Church of Ireland Records|Read more...]]'''

In addition to Presbyterian settlers who came from Scotland to Northern Ireland, some Plantation settlers came also from England (i.e. from London to the Londonderry region) and from Wales.<br>

=== Catholic Church Records  ===

{{Tip| 390,000 digital images Catholic parish registers are now available for free online at the [http://registers.nli.ie/ National Library of Ireland website]. 10 million of the entries have been indexed on [https://findmypast.co.uk/ findmypast.co.uk] where they are available free of charge indefinitely}}

Roman Catholic parish registers for most rural areas were not kept until the 1820s or much later. However, records for urban areas often start earlier; sometimes much earlier and as far back as the mid-eighteenth century or occasionally before. Registers in the City of Limerick for example begin in 1745, those for Cork Cathedral in 1766. '''[[Ireland Catholic Church Records|Read more...]]'''

 

Most parishes (a church unit with geographical boundaries) kept their own records. Some parish buildings were erected and used merely for baptising and worshiping chapels and kept no parish registers and the registers of same were kept at the main parish.

 

Catholic parish registers mainly include christening and marriage records. Few registers contain death or burial records. Occasionally a register will contain a parish census. Read more...  

In 1605 Scottish Presbyterians began a massive migration into Northern Ireland. Congregations were organized at that time, but only a few congregations, mostly in County Antrim, kept early records. Most congregations started keeping records in the early 1800s.&nbsp; '''[[Ireland Presbyterian Church Records|Read more...]]'''

Methodist records consist mainly of baptism and marriage records. Baptism records show the child’s name, parents, and birth date and place. Marriage records show the names of the bride and groom, and the marriage date and place. Occasionally a circuit minute book or vestry book was kept. Since there were few Methodist cemeteries, death or burial records are rare. Methodists were usually buried in Church of Ireland cemeteries, and their burial records kept in Church of Ireland registers. '''[[Ireland Methodist Church Records|Read more...]]'''

The Quaker faith kept its records separate and apart from those collected by the Church of Ireland or the State. As a result, many of its original records exist and are located in the repositories.&nbsp; '''[[Ireland Quaker Records|Read more...]]'''&nbsp;

== Marriage Licenses, Bonds, and Allegations ==

Research use: Valuable for pedigree linkage because of additional information given on bonds and allegations. The records also may include information on marriages not recorded in parish registers,  especially when the registers are missing.  May indicate actual marriage place, which otherwise could not be found without extensive searching.

Time period:  1629-1864.

*Date, name of prospective groom and bride

*Date,

*Alleged age of groom and bride

*Places of residence

*Names of parents

*Name of Bride and Groom and location of marriage. [Note: most have not survived as they were taken to the church by the couple getting married.]

*Dublin.

Percentage in Family History Library:  100% of known surviving material.

 

Reliability:  Usually very high because of the bond required.

 

Accessibility: Through correspondence, by searching in person, or by using a local agent<ref name="profile">The Family History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “Family History Record Profile: Ireland,” Word document, private files of the FamilySearch Content Strategy Team, 1986-2003.</ref>

*Irish Family History Society. ''Directory of Parish Registers Indexed in Ireland''. (Family History Library book Ref {{FHL|679317|title-id|disp=941.5 K23dp}}.)