20th December 2007
General Register Office (Dublin)

CIGO is pleased to advise that the General Register Office (GRO) has re-introduced the policy of allowing direct public access to the area where the GRO Indexes are stored in the Public Searchroom. In practical terms this means that time will not be wasted queueing to wait while a member of staff obtains the required indexes on one’s behalf.

3rd December 2007
Irish 1911 Census

The National Archive’s new database of scanned images of the Irish 1901 & 1911 census returns (with associated names index) was launched today. The first county posted to the ‘Net was Co. Dublin, for which the 1911 census returns have been made available. The remaining counties for the 1911 returns and for the 1901 returns will be posted to the website over the next eighteen months. The database can be found on the National Archives’ website.

20th November 2007
General Register Office (Dublin)

The General Register Office (GRO) has re-located to new premises at the Irish Life Centre, Lower Abbey Street, Dublin 2. The new facilty is approximately five or six times larger than the former Public Searchroom in Lombard Street West. Further details can be found on the GRO website.

15th November 2007
Irish Roots magazine

Irish Roots magazine is to have a new editor and propietors. Maureen Phibbs (who represents Blessington Family History Society on CIGO) and her daughter Julie have bought the magazine out from its founder, Tony McCarthy. There will be no break in publication and Maureen & Julie intend to produce the next edition as usual in early 2008. They have also launched a new website for the magazine too.

7th November 2007
CIGO Annual General Meeting

There was a very good attendance for the Annual General Meeting of CIGO, which was held yesterday, 6th November. The usual reports by the Chairman, Hon. Secretary and Executive Liaison Officers were given. (That of the Executive Liaison Officers can be read here). The new chairman was installed, Randal Gill, representing the North of Ireland Family Society. Randal led the thanks given to the outgoing chairman, John Hueuston, who represented the Irish Family History Society. The remaining officers were re-elected unopposed for the coming year. They are Des Clarke, Hon. Secretary, John Dyer, Hon. Treasurer, and Rob Davison and Steven Smyrl as the two Executive Liaison Officers.

The meeting was followed by the Annual Lecture, which was give by Noelle Dowling, the archivist at the R.C. Dublin Diocesan Archives. Noelle, who took over as Archivist from David Sheehy, well known in genealogy circles before he and his wife moved overseas, spoke knowledgeably and with confidence about the Archives’ collections and their use for genealogy.

20th September 2007
Irish Genealogical Research Society – New Fellowships

At the July 2007 meeting of the Council of the Irish Genealogical Research Society, John Grenham and Steven ffeary-Smyrl were elected fellows of the Society.

John Grenham is known in genealogical circles worldwide because of his landmark publication Tracing your Irish Ancestors . He has been involved in genealogy since 1981, when he began work on the research panel of the Genealogical Office. He was a founder member of the Association of Professional Genealogists in Ireland, and he has been an IGRS member for years. Having worked as a professional researcher for a decade, he became a project manager with the Irish Genealogical Project in 1991, remaining in that position ’till 1995. The first edition of Tracing Your Irish Ancestors , was published in 1992. It has become the most widely used guidebook on Irish genealogy. A third edition appeared in 2006.

John’s other publications include Clans and Families of Ireland (1995), Generations (1996), the chapter “The Genealogical Office and its Records” in The Genealogical Office (1999) and Grenham’s Irish Surnames (CD-ROM, 2003), as well as numerous articles in the magazine Your Family Tree. He also developed his own genealogical software, Grenham’s Irish Recordfinder. Since 1998 he has run the ireland.com/Irish Ancestors website in conjunction with the Irish Times . Most recently he was Genealogist-in-Residence at Dublin City Library and developed its database of mid-twentieth century Dublin electoral lists.

Steven C. ffeary-Smyrl has had a life long interest in genealogy. As well as being one of the foremost Irish genealogists, he has been a tireless worker for the IGRS Ireland Branch and for the Council of Irish Genealogical Organizations (CIGO) for over a decade.

He has been a professional genealogical researcher since the late 1980s, and a member of the IGRS since 1989. He was admitted to membership of the Association of Professional Genealogists in Ireland in 1991. Since 1995 he has served on the IGRS Ireland Branch committee, being chairman 2002-2005. For much of that time he was the driving force on the committee, organizing most of the branch’s events. His work for CIGO, of which he was chairman 2000-2002, has been of incalculable benefit to all organizations involved in Irish genealogical research, particularly in relation to the reform of civil registration legislation in recent years.

Steven is the leading authority on the records of Irish Dissenting Protestants. He is author of Irish Methodists – Where Do I Start? (1999) and is soon to publish his major work on the history of Dublin ’s various Non-Conformist congregations. With Eileen Ó Dúill, he also wrote Irish Civil Registration – Where Do I Start? (2000). (taken from APGI News)

30th September 2007
Muirín O’Briain, M.Phil., M.A.P.G.I.

It was with great sadness that we learned of the death of our esteemed friend and colleague, Muirín O’Briain. Muirín was universally liked and respected in genealogical circles. She played a prominent part in the Irish Genealogical Congress committee over the years and served from 1997 to 2001 as secretary of the Ireland Branch of the Irish Genealogical Research Society. She joined APGI in 1995. Last December she became Vice-President of the organisation.

Muirín bore a long illness without complaint. She dwelt on the positive, and her sunny disposition was an inspiration. She was a very special person whose unassuming and gentle ways won her the admiration of all whose lives she touched. Muirín’s APGI colleagues will miss her immensely. (taken from APGI News)

4th January 2007
Irish Family History Society

The annual Journal of the Irish Family History Society was posted to all its members in December 2006. Copies of the Journal , Vol.22 (2006) along with earlier journals (Vols. 6-21) can be purchased from the Society. For details see website IFHS Website