Public Records Office of Northern Ireland

While in Belfast, it is a must to visit the Public Records Office of Northern Ireland, (or PRONI for short), if you are going any sort of research that involves records from Northern Ireland. PRONI is the official archive for Northern Ireland.

When you first walk into PRONI, you will find that it has an open concept that allows you to see some of the second floor. The stairs are about the middle of the room with security at the front, and a place to get your reader’s card, or fill out the application for it if there is a problem with the computer system.

Before heading upstairs to the Reading Room, you need to realize that there are certain restrictions that must be observed. On the first floor, there are lockers provided for all those things that you brought but cannot take into the Reading Room. There is also a cafeteria available for something to eat at lunchtime.

On your first visit to PRONI, you will go through an orientation. They will show you how to determine what you need, which includes going through databases, using computers to access the internet, and more. You can also ask to talk with a professional genealogist who will not be doing the work for you, but will guide you about what direction you should take.

There are actually two rooms on the second floor that you will be working in. The first room will be the room that you go through the looking at the databases, going through the books, and accessing the internet. This room also holds a number of microfilm readers for use by patrons.

The second room on the second floor is the Reading Room. It is in this room that you will order any book or document or box that you want to look through for the information that you are looking floor. Once the order is placed, it usually take only a couple of hours or less for it to be delivered to the Reading Room. There are plenty of tables for use in there.

PRONI also has a website: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/proni

If you are planning a visit to PRONI, you really should go to their website. It will give you all the information that you need to know before going, such as the address, the hours that it is open, what type of preparation that you can do before going, and so on. Another thing to be aware of is that you can use your digital camera, but you must ask permission at least three weeks in advance. The documents are not online, but the pamphlets are there to let you know how to access the records in the archives during your visit.

I was disappointed to find that there are no records that are on the website. There may be some available through Find My Past or Ancestry. I don’t know for sure. Maybe some day, PRONI will follow the example of Library and Archives Canada, The National Archives of Ireland, and The National Archives at Kew and have access to at least some of the more popular records or even just the databases through its website.

The Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland

If you plan to do any family history research in Northern Ireland and you have ancestors that emigrated to Northern Ireland from Scotland, this is a good place to do some research. Before we left for Ireland, I planned on visiting their facilities. However, when I was at PRONI, I decided to spend my time there rather than go to a facility that may not have anything that I am interested in as some of my Irish ancestors were Methodists and the records that I needed to access if I had enough time would be in PRONI. Afterwards, I was assured that there may have been some records that may have helped me in my search.

Most of the information that I present here was gleaned from the website. Their website looks like it’s fairly easy to use. They seem to have it well organized and they have a slide show explaining some of the history of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.

If you are working on your family history, they do state that they do not have a comprehensive collection, but they will do the best that they can in order to help you. If you are interested in hiring a researcher, they direct you to go to the PRONI website and choose from the list of researchers there.

The website lists what is held in their library, in their archives, and how donations and indefinite loans can be made.

There are a number of documents that have been digitized and can be accessed online. The only problem is that you need to have a paid subscription or membership in order to access the information available. It currently costs £16 per year. When you look at the cost and compare it to some of the fees for other websites, £16 really is not very much money. Unless you are going to Ireland to visit other places as well, you may just find what you are looking for on your computer in the comfort of your own home.

If I find that the Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland is one of the places where I can find records of my ancestors, yes, I would use the website and pay the fee so that I can access the information. You never know just where you may find something about that elusive ancestor who doesn’t seem to want to be found.

The Titanic Quarter

One of the first places that our tour visited in Belfast was the Titanic Quarter. In particular, we visited the museum that focuses totally on the Titanic. We arrived after having a bus tour with a tour guide from the city on our first day in Belfast.

Once we went into the museum, one of the first things that is usually done is the watching of a video regarding the building of the Titanic. There were displays that were interesting, but the one that I enjoyed the most was the ride through the “dockyard”. It was like a roller coaster ride that takes you through various parts of the “dockyard” in which there were displays that described the building of the Titanic and the conditions that the dockyard workers functioned in.

On the ground floor of the museum is a gift shop. I was interested in seeing what they had. I was looking for souvenir spoons in particular, but I found that the prices in the gift shop were steep. I did find souvenir spoons, but it was going to cost me in the neighbourhood of £25. I was not that impressed with them that I was going to pay that much. After all, I don’t have a lot of money and I look for things that are not that expensive. I left the gift shop after that.

The Titanic Quarter actually consists of more than just the museum. The museum is only one venue that resides there. Just up the street from the museum is the Public Records Office for Northern Ireland, otherwise known as PRONI. If you need to do any sort of research involving Northern Ireland, that is the place to start with. After that, there are other places that I will talk about in the future.

Across the street from PRONI is the hotel that we would have preferred to stay in. It is the other Premier Inn that is in Belfast and has much more room for buses and groups. However, there was a concert that week and the hotel was booked when the error had been pointed out to the tour company. There aren’t many trees in the area, so shade is at a premium.

There are other businesses within walking distance of the hotel. Many North American companies are locating the European headquarters of their companies in Ireland, both in Dublin and in Belfast. We drove down one of the streets and there is still a lot of development that has to happen before it will look like the plans that they have made for the area.

There are also plans to have some residential areas as well. Hopefully, Belfast can continue with the development of this area as it does have potential. Some of the pictures included with this blog were downloaded using Google to find them.

Day 8 – Field Trip, April 2016

Last night, the group that stayed for the late hours at PRONI were back about 8:30 – 9:00 and had their supper at that time. I’m glad that I didn’t stay as I would not have been able to go so long without food.

This morning, we left the hotel shortly after 9:00 am and headed towards the Ulster Historical Foundation. Fenton, Gillian, and Michael each did a presentation for us and provided a small snack at mid morning. One of their board members also spoke for a couple minutes and thanked us for going to their facility. They then spent some time one on one for anyone who wanted to ask about researching in Ireland.

As I am not at the point where I could do anything, a thought came into my mind. I then asked about the origin of two of the surnames that I am researching. I was taken upstairs into their office and Fenton provided me with two books regarding surnames. I found some interesting information on one of the surnames, but not much on the other. While looking them up, I realized that this was a good chance to look up two other Irish names. I will write about the information that I learned at a later date.

About noon, we loaded onto the bus and travelled to the North of Ireland Family History Society’s library. We had access to their books and the expertise of two of their members. Because of the status of my research right now, I worked on a computer to see if I could find a list of their library holdings. I found their publications and ended up making a purchase of five of their booklets. I know that these will help me after getting home.

My brother was not interested in going to these places, so he stayed in the vicinity of the hotel and wandered around with the company of two other members of the group.

After we arrived back at the hotel, my brother and I decided to go look for a pub to have supper. The first one was not to the liking of either of us. We then wandered over to The Bridge House which is a Wetherspoons restaurant. They had a special on fish and chips and our meals were both under £10 each. It was good. I couldn’t finish my meal because it was too much for me.

After dinner, I wanted to wander around to get some pictures. My brother took me around some of the areas that he explored over the past couple of days and I took some good pictures. I will have to download them from my phone as I was expecting to go back to the hotel before going for the wander. In some respects, I was glad that he was with me. There were one or two areas that I probably would have avoided if I had been alone.

I’m hoping to be in bed early tonight as we have an early start in the morning and it will be a long day. We will be visiting Giant’s Causeway and Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge, followed by a trip to Ballymoney. Tomorrow evening, we will be having dinner at the Crumlin Road Gaol.