Page 25 – Family History is my passion and my goal is to help others find and share that same passion.

Why Blogging Your Family History Works

While handing out blogging beads at the OGS Conference last year a few people asked me what the beads meant. Some didn’t know what a blog was and after I explained it the next question was why write a blog.

When I started writing the Passionate Genealogist blog in 2010 I jumped into an unknown entity and just started writing. It was scary at first but it soon became engaging and fun. During the last six years I have written several stories relating to my own family and some local history research. When you write stories about your family history this can be called “cousin bait” by genealogy bloggers. It is a bit like the movie “Field of Dreams” when they say “if you built it they will come” well if you write your family story they will come.

One such story was on my Great Grand Uncle Richard Fenton Toomey. His father moved to Australia in the 1880s and the family joined him in the 1890s. Mrs. Toomey didn’t like it so the children went back but the eldest son Mark stayed. Eventually the other two sons, Walter and Richard, returned to Australia.

Lucky for me a friend of mine lives near where Richard Fenton Toomey had his home in Australia. When we first started writing (we were/are still penpals) she told me that there was a place near her called Toomey Lookout and there was a Toomey Road and Toomey Walk. You can read more about this story here.

“Richard Fenton Toomey – Lest We Forget” was written to remember his service as an ANZAC. Soon I got a few comments on the blog. One from a person who is not related but who knows the area very well. He went on a search to find the house. Another person contacted me and she had a photo of Richard Fenton Toomey in Heliopolis on the morning of 26 April 1916.

This story was first posted in November 2011 and the last comment with new information was posted last fall.

I have written some local history stories about people from my town. The first was an all-consuming part of my life for nearly 10 years, Lady Diana Taylour. I wrote about her and my research to find out more about her life. The other was Richard Shaw Wood who lived in Oakville in the late 1860s early 1870s. Both of these posts have had comments from people connected to them.

This is why family history blogging is a good idea and sometimes called “cousin bait.” It may be that the people who end up helping you are not related but just as interested in the story as you. So expand your horizon and start blogging about your family history.

Planning a Genealogy Research Trip to Ireland – Dublin Repositories – Part 2

Leave a Comment / By Ruth Blair

When I was in Dublin visiting family in October 2015 there was of course time set aside for research. There were six repositories I wanted to visit in Dublin but I wasn’t sure I would get to them all. You can read more about my plan here. The first two posts of my Irish trip here and here.

The next repository I visited was the General Register Office. This is where you can pay €20 and search the indexes all day. You can only order five certificates in one day and either come back or arrange to have them mailed on to you.

My research plan for the GRO wasn’t very big. I was trying to find out more about a particular branch of my Toomey family as I heard a few of their sons were WWI soldiers and I wanted to know more. This was my chance to get the birth, marriage and death information on this family.

Chester Beatty Library Dublin Castle Ireland

The GRO Research room is tucked away in a nondescript corner of Dublin and it can be hard to find. I walked passed it twice. It was a long walk from St. Stephen’s Green to the GRO but I took a detour through the Castle trying to decide which window my collateral ancestor may have looked out of and then wandered through the Chester Beatty Library on my way past. The GRO is not the prettiest place and the office is very neutral. You have a table and chair and access to the indexes. The people are very friendly and helpful.

General Register Office Research Room - Dublin Ireland — General Register Office Research Room – Dublin Ireland

When you find your entry you fill in an order form and leave it at the enquiry window then wait for your name to be called. Once you receive your document then you pay for it. It is €4 per certificate which is not bad considering how much it costs to get some certificates at home and abroad. I only ordered one certificate that didn’t seem to fit.

I then had to revisit the National Archives to check on the wills I ordered and get copies.

The last repository I visited in Dublin was the Land Valuation Office on Lower Abbey Street. The Land Valuation Office is located in a regular office tower and is rather nondescript. There were some tables and chairs and you went to a main reception area with your question. You chose a chair and they brought the valuation books to you so you could search them. Here I wanted to find out more about the property my Great Grandparent’s owned called Roebuck Lodge which was in Taney Parish in Dundrum. Found out there were two properties in this area called Roebuck Lodge. Another property of interest was the Toppin land in Buffanagh and the Kelly property Calverstown House in Kildare. I wanted to know if they owned it and how long did they own it. This is the first part of the research. The next step will be the Registry of Deeds but that will have to wait for another trip.

The one repository I didn’t make it to was the Representative Church Body Library of the Church of Ireland. I was close by but didn’t get in the doors. There were lots of family events and visits to make and that was just as important to me. What was I going to say no to – having coffee with my 102 year old Grand Aunt! Yes I did that and she is as spry and quick as ever. She loves her cappuccino.

During my trip I found all these wonderful records and they are still waiting to be transcribed and entered into my family tree. When I got home there were a few lectures that I presented and client work. The next thing you know it is Christmas and things need to be done for that. Next month I am looking forward to sitting down and revisiting these documents and am hoping that I will find some new information in them which will lead me to my next adventure.

Planning a Genealogy Research Trip to Ireland – Dublin Repositories – Part 1

Leave a Comment / By Ruth Blair

My first day in Dublin wasn’t at a repository it was the Back to Our Past show at the Royal Dublin Society (RDS). I am very familiar with the RDS as I spent many happy times there at the various shows that are held in the spring and August. They would involve equestrian activities as well as antiques, and the RDS Crafts Awards. When my Grandfather passed away there was a prize given in his name for one of the winners. The RDS Crafts Awards supports Irish crafts, artisans and design.

It was a long trek in from Dundrum where I was staying. It included a Luas ride, a walk from Stephen’s Green to Merrion Square and then a bus to the RDS. The Luas and bus were full so it was standing room only. I was standing next to a very nice lady on the bus and she had a two for one free entry ticket and offered me one so I got in for free. This show is put on in conjunction with the Over 50s show. It was in a separate section off on the side.

I was just in time to hear Maurice Gleason’s talk on DNA. I had met Maurice at the OGS Conference in Barrie and so we had a quick chat before his lecture. It was so nice to see such a full lecture hall for the event. There was an issue with extraneous noise from the other lecture and the exhibit hall in general. They had to move it to a smaller area on short notice so that could be the reason. There were not that many people in what we would call the marketplace. I had a chance to talk to several societies of which I am a member. One question I had for them was why they don’t start putting their meeting lectures online, either live or on video. This is something they are doing on this side of the Atlantic and I think it would help bolster the membership in the Irish societies. In my newsletters and journals I hear about these great lectures that my societies are presenting but I only usually get a few paragraphs of a synopsis which isn’t quite the same. A video could be put in the members only section on the society website and this would allow distance members a chance to see the presentation. Another lecture I attended was a panel discussion with Nicola Morris and John Grenham. It was very interesting.

John Grenham and Nicola Morris at Back to Our Past in Dublin Ireland

There was one book I was looking for from the North of Ireland Family History Society and I did get that. It was “Researching Your Ancestors in the North of Ireland – County Tyrone.” I didn’t find the one on the Irish ANZACS that I wanted.

The Back to Our Past show is a three day event but I only made it on the first day because of family commitments. Still I was glad I got to see part of it.

The first repository I visited in Dublin was the National Library of Ireland. Newspaper research was my plan for the National Library. In particular I wanted to learn more about my Grandfather’s Liffey Swim win in 1928. I had to go through the Irish Newspaper Archives online and then I could go to the microfilmed newspapers to print a copy or download it from the website. I found the information about the Liffey Swim and some obituaries that I wanted but when it came to finding them in the newspapers it was nearly impossible. It was a very frustrating process for me that day. I have usually had such good luck researching in the National Library but it was not to be this time. I went to the Genealogical Office but they were so busy no one could help me. So I decided to try the Dublin City Library & Archives and see if they could provide me with the copies I needed. This proved a much more positive process and the librarian was extremely helpful.

Dublin City Library and Archives - Ireland — Dublin City Library & Archives – Ireland

Then there were a few more family events and the next stop was the National Archives of Ireland. Unfortunately they do not have an online catalogue to search and find out what may be helpful in my research. I was very spoiled by PRONI’s online catalogue. At the National Archives I was looking for modern wills and probate records, found several, had to order some and then come back to view them because they were held off site.

When I was at the Back to Our Past show I met Nicola Morris. We started talking and I mentioned some research on my Toppin family in Tipperary. Almost at the same time we said the word ‘murder.’ A member of my Toppin family was murdered in Buffanagh Tipperary. She had heard about it and knew that the Chief Secretary’s Office Papers had some more information on it. She sent me an email with the reference information and I ordered this when I was at the National Archives. This was a wealth of information. They even had a map of the crime scene. It will be a blog post later this year.