Looking for Irish Records

I'm not at a point where I'm ready to start researching my Irish roots. My Carlisle ancestors are believed to have come from Ireland in the 1720's but some records indicate that they may have actually been from Scotland. My Kelly ancestors most likely came through Ontario, Canada in the early 1850's but I have no idea where in Ireland. I still have not learned the first name of my great-great-grandfather Graham who was most likely born between 1820 & 1825 in Michigan. Again, it is believed that the family roots will be found in Ireland but I don't have any idea who the immigrant ancestors are yet.

At some point in the future I will hopefully have the information that I need to start looking into Irish records so where will I start? Back in July, Stephen Danko was kind enough to write some tips on how to research my husband's Italian ancestors through the Family History Library. Steve's article can be found here. All of the excellent advice he gave me should help me get started on my Irish ancestors.

Kimberly Powell as a good article on getting started and why it is important to know where in Ireland your ancestors came from before you can search effectively.

Another tried and true place to start is GenWeb. Their site for Ireland has County links arranged by provinces. Northern Ireland has it's own site. As with all GenWeb sites, records are submitted by volunteers and vary by location. There are also links to other sites that I can check out.

Cyndi's List has more links for Ireland than I could check out in a week.

The Fianna Guide to Irish Genealogy has some more good links and tips.

These links will give me a good number of places to start that will undoubtedly lead to more knowledge and/or other links.


This was written for the second edition of the Carnival of Irish Heritage and Culture hosted by Lisa at Small-leaved Shamrock.