The Archives of New Brunswick have added The New Brunswick Irish Portal to their website. The portal opens with an essay by Dr. Stewart Donovan of St. Thomas University. You can read it online or download versions in PDF and Word. The portal has exhibits and databases.
The databases include Saint John Almshouse Records; Brenan Funeral Home Records: Traces of Ireland; Fitzwilliam Estate Emigration Books 1847-1856; RS555 Provincial Secretary: Immigration Administration Records; Immigrant Letters; Newspapers; Passenger Lists; Teachers Petition Database and Irish Immigrants in the New Brunswick Census of 1851 and 1861.
The Saint John Almshouse Records has a name index. There are PDF files about the records and social welfare in New Brunswick from 1784 to 1900. The records are from the St. John [sic] City Almshouse Admission Registers from 1843-1897 and the Saint John Almshouse Admission Registers, 1843-1884. These records are for people who were admitted to the Alms and Work House, the Emigrant Infirmary, and the St. John Emigrant Orphan Asylum.
When you click on Name Index you come to the list for the letter A and can choose another letter from the alphabetical listing above. When you click on a surname of interest you get a transcription listing of the people found. The information includes a surname, given name, date of admission, age, condition (health), nativity (county/country of origin), vessel, religion, departure and landed.
When you click on details you get a more complete transcription, microfilm number and a digital image of the record in question which you can download.
The Brenan Funeral Home Records has a complete transcription of records from 1901-1960. Brenan’s dealt mainly with Protestant clients. The information found on the transcriptions is some basic information that can be found in a death record with the added bonus of finding other pertinent information.
Fitzwilliam Estate Emigration Books 1847-1856 this database consists of the 383 people that travelled on the sailing vessel called “The Star” to St. Andrew’s New Brunswick. The results are listed alphabetically and include name, age, townland, townland official, civil parish, year, ship, departure, arrival, and notes.
RS555 Provincial Secretary: Immigration Administration Records does not have a searchable database. There is a finding aid for the records and an essay on “New Brunswick as a Home for Immigrants” by Koral Lavorgna.
Immigrant Letters consists of several indexes: subject, place and collection as well as a full text search.
Newspapers have a subject and newspaper index and a full text search.
Passengers Lists describe the act to “regulate Vessels arriving from the United Kingdom with Passengers and Emigrants” and passenger statistics from 1816 to 1865. You will also find a vessel and name index.
The Teachers Petition Database is a searchable database with information on 509 petitions requesting a teaching license or payment for the teaching services that were provided from 1816 to 1858. These records relate to those who said their place of birth was Ireland.
The last section is Irish Immigrants in the New Brunswick Census of 1851 and 1861. Here you will find statistics, a name index and other indexes where you can search by county, religion, where from and year landed.
There is an exhibit called “In the Wake of Dark Passage Irish Famine Migration to New Brunswick.” More exhibits are coming.
This website is a great resource for those who have New Brunswick Irish connections. It is also a valuable resource to learn about the Irish immigrants and how they contributed to their new homeland.
©2011 – Blair Archival Research
