On Thursday 19th November 2009, Cork City and County experienced major flooding. Several key buildings in Cork City were badly affected. Flooding in Cork City was also a feature of the past. I quote a book entitled “Of Timber, Iron and Stone” by Antoin O’Callaghan (published in 1991 in Cork), in which he discusses the history of the waterways of Cork City. 200 years ago, the description of the flooding seems eerily close to the recent breach of the quay wall at Bachelor’s Quay, near the Mercy Hospital!

“On the 17th January 1789, a flood such as had not been seen in the city in living memory swept through the valley, submerging everything in its path in a matter of hours. The entire city from the Mayor’s residence (the present Mercy Hospital), to the lower reaches of the harbour were completely covered, forming an inland lake. Only the vigilence of the citizens prevented a major catastrophe….”

Bachelor's Quay after floods Nov. 2009

As a genealogist, I am concerned that the new Cork County Library… purpose-built, which opened to the public on the 19th October 2009, having transferred from the Model Farm Road location, is now “closed until further notice”.  The library which had been housed in County Council premises on the Model Farm Road, closed its doors there on the 9th October 2009 and re-opened on the 19th October 2009 in a custom build annexe of the County Hall on the Carrigrohane Road (Straight Road). Its availablity to the public lasted a month before it closed again, seemingly due to flooding in the basement, where, it is reported “collections” were stored. As I write it is the 4th December and the notice on the Cork County Council website has a notice posted on the 27th November stating that the library is closed until further notice.

The Cork Examiner, 24th January 2006, describes the proposed library as follows:

For the first time in its 80 year history, the Cork County Library is to have its own purpose-built headquarters.

It will be housed in a six-storey state-of-the-art building to be constructed beside the County Hall (skyscraper) on the Carrigrohane Road. The County Library building is next door to it!

The library, currently located adjacent to the old Liebert property on the Model Farm Road – will take up an estimated 32,000 square feet in the new building.

The lower ground floor will be used for cataloguing and book storage, with natural light and ventilation from landscaped courtyards….”

The Southern Star newspaper on the 4th December 2009, quotes the Mayor of County Cork, as saying:

“NOBODY could have predicted the “deluge” that swept through towns and villages in the county over the weekend, causing extensive damage to homes and businesses, devastating County Hall and the newly-opened County Library headquarters, the Mayor of County Cork Derry Canty said this week.”

I fear the worst for the collections housed in the basement of the new library!

Below, a YouTube video of the Carrigrohane Floods, showing the Cork County Hall (skyscraper) on the top right hand side. The Cork County Library is next door to it!

See more videos of the Cork Floods on Donnacha O’Caoimh’s blog.

Does anyone remember the flooding of the 5th August 1986?

Here is a Cork Examiner image from that newspaper on the 7th August 1986, taken from the top of County Hall. Note the old Outdoor Baths to the bottom right:

View from Cork Co. Hall, Cork Examiner 7th Aug. 1986

The launch of www.irishgenealogy.ie with a welcome message from the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism and an emphasis on “making the trip” signals a new approach by the authorities to Genealogy and the Irish Diaspora. Those of us involved in genealogy know that when someone finds their roots, they want to visit the area, get to know the people who are still here and enjoy the feeling of belonging.

The website in question so far deals with Kerry Catholic records and some Dublin records. The presence of searchable and FREE Catholic records for Co. Kerry helps to bring to an end the impasse for many people.

I read in the Irish Times newspaper on Friday 6th November 2009, about the Rebellion Manuscripts go Digital Project which is going on at Trinity College, Dublin: 1641 Depositions Project

“The main objectives are to transcribe and digitise the ‘1641 Depositions’, and to create a comprehensive electronic resource. This material will be published on the web, providing a unique research tool, of interest to both the academic community and the general public. There will be a major international conference, held in Dublin during Year 3, with an edited volume of the proceedings appearing after the project has been completed. It is also planned to hold an exhibition in Year 3 (with a published catalogue) in the TCD Library, which attracts over 30,000 visitors each month. The project will also deliver a working methodology for the transcription and digitisation of manuscript collections, which can be applied to other unique historical collections.”

It is encouraging to see more and more digitzing of archive material in Ireland and the efforts being made to make it available on the web. Libraries will have to keep up with the digital age!

I felt I should highlight the genealogical research tools which I find very useful:

The 1911 Census which is online FREE (for all 32 counties of Ireland) is at: 1911 Census

Note, the 1911 Census lists how long a woman has been married (unless she is a widow) and how many children she had and just how many of them were still living in 1911. This kind of information can be useful when using civil records to identify when marriages took place etc.

The 1901 Census is not online but is available on microfilm. The Cork County Library has the 1901 Census for County Cork, on microfilm and when you have identified where your family was at in the 1911 Census, it may be possible to find them in the 1901 Census as well. However, the 1901 Census should be online FREE in a few months.

The Civil Records Index is also online at:
Civil Records Index
You can search and then order photocopies of certificates for €4 from the General Register Office in Roscommon (General Register Office, Government Offices, Convent Road, Roscommon). This index goes up to 1958.

Griffith’s Valuation, a survey of all Ireland done in the mid 1800s is FREE at:
Griffith’s Valuation

The other resource which comes to mind for Cork City is the North Cathedral (North Parish) Catholic records. A hard copy index (up to 1900) for these is available in the Cork County Library. The index lists baptisms by family group which is useful. These records go back to the 1700s. Note the library is closed till the 29th October 2009 as it is moving premises.

There is an exhibition of Cork’s History and Heritage on in the Millenium Hall, City Hall, Cork City on Tuesday 20th October 2009, from 11am to7pm. It is FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

Exhibition in Cork City 20th October 2009

There will be many local history societies, historical groups and genealogical groups exhibiting at the event. I will be there at the  O’Shea Family Surname Project stand.

Link to Cork City Council’s advertisement for exhibition.
Link to Cork Archives News. The Cork’s Past Exhibition is listed here.

It is interesting to note that a UK website: The Workhouse has information on Irish Workhouses as well. It is important to realize that there are records for Irish Workhouses. For example, the Cork Workhouse records are in the Cork City and County Archives. I found valuable information in a death register…the date the person arrived in the workhouse, the date of leaving (or more likely death).

O’Kief, Coshe, Mang comprises 16 volumes of genealogical data. In volume 15, the following two photos (in two posts) from the book, list of some of what is contained in these volumes (I-XIV).

O'Kief, Coshe, Mang Church Records (part 1)

List of Church Records in O'Kief, Coshe, MAng (Part 2)

Just noticed that the National Archives of Ireland have announced that all 32 counties of Ireland are online for the 1911 Census….1901 to follow.

The value of estate papers in Irish genealogy is in finding information about the estate and the tenants on the estate. Often there is very little personal information available in church or state records for tenant farmers. However, estate papers may mention them in deeds, leases, rent books etc. and provide a backdrop to life in that area and may even throw light on local emigration patterns.

I have come across references to the Kenmare Estate papers, Lansdowne Estate Papers, Bantry Estate Papers and will add to my list as time goes on. The landlord in Griffith’s Valuation sometimes gives a clue as to which estate the land belonged at that time. The name associated with the Lansdowne Estate is Fitmaurice while the name associated with the Kenmare Estate is Browne. White is the name assoiated with the Bantry Estate Papers which are in the Boole Library, UCC, Cork.

There is a useful online pdf catalogue: Bantry Estate Papers Catalogue

Gerard J Lyne wrote a book entitled “The Lansdowne Estate in Kerry under W.S. Trench 1849-72″. This book or rather tome is extensive. The author uses many many sources to outline the history of the estate under the land agent W.S. Trench and gives very useful notes and references. The tv program on the Lansdowne Estate:Hidden History – Land is Gold was shown on RTE

I found an interesting article on the Lansdowne Estate here while I was trying to discover where the Lansdowne papers might be found: From Famine to Five Points Lord Lansdowne’s Irish Tenants Encounter, North America’s Most Notorious Slum. It was written by TYLER ANBINDER in the American Historical Review, Vol. 102, No. 2. April 2002

One of the footnotes in the above article states:
“Although most of the Lansdowne Papers were recently sold to the British Library, the papers relating to his Irish estate are still in the possession of his descendants, who now charge £100 per day to anyone wishing to examine them. Before these fees were put in place, Irish historian Gerard Lyne was given free access to these papers, and I decided to rely on his very thorough analysis of those records in this and subsequent paragraphs.” [added October 2009]

Here is a link to a pdf file on the PRONI website. It describes the content and location of the Kenmare Papers: Kenmare Papers.

The following link gives some general  information on estates:Estate Records

Lismore Estate Papers [added 12th October 2009]

I came across the following:Lismore Papers pdf file on the National Library of Ireland website. Another useful link:Some postings on the Lismore Papers with references to some excerpts in volumes of O’Kief, Coshe, Mang.