Free genealogy advisory service at the National Archives of Ireland

The NLI's free Genealogy Advisory Service is an ideal starting point for those beginning family history research

Fiona Fitzsimons advises visitors to bring whatever research they have gathered so far about their family history in order to get the best results from a meeting with genealogist.

“Each family history is unique and every search is unique. Some people start from scratch, while others inherit research from their father, uncle or a relative,” she says.

TheJournal.ie reports, that even a certain name can spark a line of inquiry. When researching the family history of Bram Stoker earlier this year ahead of his 165th birthday celebrations, the name ‘Manus’ caught the attention of Fitzsimons’ team. “Manus O’Donnell was a gigantic name in 16th century,” says Fitzsimons. “We then discovered that the Stoker family are direct lineal descendants from the Lord of Tyrconnell. We traced them all the way back to 561 AD – which is almost unheard of.”

She explains that any Irish family in general can be traced back to the 1830’s when records of the population became more widespread as a result of Catholic emancipation.

However, “it can be a very addictive” habit she warns as “people dip their toes in water then become drawn in because they start finding stories. Relatives start to become fully fleshed human beings rather than figures in dusty old photographs.”

She notes that people begin to have an interest in genealogy when their children or grandchildren are born. 

“They start seeing themselves as links in the chain rather than the ‘alpha generation’, and they want to pass on their own experience to their descendants”.

No booking is required for this free service, but access to the genealogist on-duty is on a first come, first served basis.  Read more at http://www.nationalarchives.ie/genealogy1/genealogy-service/.

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Nster.com