The North of Ireland Family History Society

As you read the title of this post, you may read it as Northern Ireland Family History Society. If so, you have read it wrong. It is actually the North of Ireland Family History Society. There is a reason why it is so called that. It is because, as I said in my post about the Ulster Historical Foundation, the Province of Ulster is not just in Northern Ireland. Only six counties from Ulster make up Northern Ireland. The other three counties are in the Republic of Ireland. That being said, this family history society do have books, documents, databases, etc., from south of the border in their holdings.

The North of Ireland Family History Society are more than happy to open their research center at a time that they are normally closed in order to accommodate visitors from outside of their country, especially when they arrive in a bus and everyone wants to see the records. Their research centre in Newtownabbey, Antrim, is not very big. When I say not very big, it probably can handle about eight to ten researchers at a time, but not much more. To have more than fifteen researchers there will tax the room available if everyone is looking for the same type of information. I walked into the Randal Gill Library and found that there was really not enough room for me to go looking if I am not focused enough with others there. So, I left the room to those who knew what they were looking for and ended up in the computer room where I did some online research. Unfortunately, I couldn’t print out what I found.

The Society has a web page that seems to be well organized. Their home page is well laid out, showing where all eleven branches are located and give some general information about the Society itself. Surfing the website is easy and seems to be quite clear. Clicking on the buttons will take you where you want to go and are pretty much self-explanatory. Each button on the home page will take you to a different aspect of the Society. You can also go to the sub-pages for each of the buttons from the home page.

The Society’s holdings pertain primarily with the north of Ireland. They cover all of Ulster as well as some of the counties that border on Ulster. They have some holdings pertaining to England and the United States. A number of their databases are online, however, some of them are only accessible to members only.

There are eleven branches of the Society. They are: Ballymena, Belfast, Coleraine, Foyle, Killyleagh, Larne, Lisburn, Newtownabbey, North Armagh, North Down & Ards, and Omagh. The branches tend not to have research centres, but instead arrange day trips, monthly meetings, and other activities that enhance family history.

There are two types of membership in the Society. You can either belong to a branch where you pay your yearly dues which are in the neighbourhood of £22 a year. This would be a good idea if you lived in Northern Ireland. You would just need to find out which branch is closest to you. The other type of membership is an associated membership which will cost approximately £18 a year. This is primarily used by members who live a great distance from the locations of the Society. There are benefits to being a member, such as being able to access all of the online databases, and, of course, their newsletters. When I am at the point that I feel that they have information that I need for my research, I will be getting a membership. It really is a very small cost for the benefits that I will receive from it.

All in all, the North of Ireland Family History Society is much more than what I originally thought while visiting there. I can say, that it is actually a lot more than I saw and that it can prove to be a benefit to the family history world.

The Ulster Historic Foundation

There is an organization that is devoted to the preservation of the documents for the Province of Ulster in Ireland. Many people outside of Ireland have a misconception of Ulster. The Province of Ulster has nine counties, six of which are in Northern Ireland. The other three are part of the Republic of Ireland. The six counties that are part of Northern Ireland are: County Antrim, County Armagh, County Cavan, County Down, County Fermanagh, County Londonderry, and County Tyrone. Counties Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan are in the Republic. Even though the headquarters for the Ulster Historic Foundation is in Belfast, they do search out the records for the three counties that are in the south.

When an appointment for a tour group is booked, it usually begins with a slide presentation explaining the history of some of the history of Ulster. The presentation that I was at included information on the Ulster Plantations. This was information that I had never heard before. I do have an understanding of European history but I do admit that I have never really taken the opportunity to study Irish history. This would be an interesting topic to study.

After the presentation, a break for refreshments will take place. During this time, you will have a chance to look at some of their literature that will give you an idea whether or not you will need to look at their holdings, browse through their bookstore, and just chat, asking questions about their organization.

Some of the members of our group were able to have some time to discuss their brick walls and how to solve them with members of the Foundation. At this time, the only thing that I could do any research on was the origins of the surnames that I am researching. I found that three out of my major four Irish surnames that I am researching have roots in England.

We spent about three to four hours at their facilities and, I believe that each one of us walked out of there with a bit more information than before we went in.

The Foundation has a website at:

http://www.ancestryireland.com/

They have a number of categories that you can look at, and under each category there are a number of pages that have different topics. Most of these pages you can see without being a member, but if you want to look at any of their databases, you need to be a member. Membership costs in the neighbourhood of £38 a year, £99 for five years, or £230 for a lifetime membership. They also have a Family Research Starter Kit for £47.99 which includes a year’s membership, 24 credits, Researching Scots-Irish Ancestors, and more. There is also a pay-as-you-go option but it won’t get you into their databases.

If you are planning a trip to Ireland and you have research to do in Northern Ireland, you might be best to take out a membership and have a good look at their databases. I have looked at the list of databases and have seen that there is at least one of them that I would like to look at. By looking at their databases, you should be able to find something to help you along your way.

Currently, I am not a member of the Guild but I am not ruling out the possibility that, in the future, I may find that their holdings may help my search.

The Foundation does send some of their members on tour in North America, and, (now this is according to me), Europe or other places where Irish ancestors migrated to when they had to leave the Emerald Isle. Part of the reason why the Foundation does this is to make people aware that they exist and that they do have these holdings. Another reason why this is done is for fundraising. This organization does not receive any money from government sources and depends on sales, research fees, memberships, and donations.

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.