MORE historic Irish birth, marriage and death records have been made publicly available this week via the irishgenealogy.ie website.
An additional year of documents have been posted online by Ireland’s Civil Registration Service – which feature historical records relating to some of Ireland’s most famous faces.
Former president of Ireland Erskine Childers' death certificate is among the newly released recordsAs of this week the records now available online include birth records from 1864 to 1924, marriage records from 1845 to 1949 and death records from 1864 to 1974.
“This release of an additional year of register data by the Civil Registration Service is part of the ongoing partnership between my Department and the Department of Social Protection,” Ireland’s Culture Minister Patrick O’Donovan said this week.
“The aim of this continuing project is to make all these historic records freely and easily accessible to all members of the public and broader diaspora via the irishgenealogy.ie website."
He added: “I’m sure both new and returning visitors to the site, will welcome the addition of these records for continued research.
“I know that this annual update is eagerly anticipated and will be of great benefit to anyone carrying out research on their Irish ancestry.”
Tom Clancy's birth certificate has also been releasedA string of notable Irish people feature among the records now publicly available online.
They include the birth certificate for the professional Irish golfer Christy O'Connor Snr, who was born in 1924.
Widely regarded as one of the leading figures in British and Irish golf from the mid-1950s, O’Connor won more than 20 tournaments on the British PGA and was a consistent top performer in the Open Championship.
He also achieved significant success in senior golf, winning the World Senior Championship twice, and played in 10 consecutive Ryder Cup matches, contributing to Ireland's victory in the 1958 Canada Cup alongside Harry Bradshaw.
Born in Knocknacarra, Co. Galway, O'Connor developed an early passion for golf, initially caddying at local clubs before turning professional in 1951 with support from Tuam Golf Club.
Elsewhere the records feature the birth certificate of one Tom Clancy.
One of eleven children born to Johanna McGrath and Bob Clancy in Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary, Thomas Clancy would go on to become a key member of the Irish folk group The Clancy Brothers.
He joined the Royal Air Force during World War II after which he moved to the United States, where he joined his brothers Paddy and Liam in New York.
The birth certificate of professional Irish golfer Christy O'Connor SnrIn 1956, Tom and his brothers, along with Tommy Makem, formed The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem.
Tom was a lead vocalist in many of the group's famous songs, including The Rising of the Moon and Carrickfergus.
He continued to perform with the band until his death in 1990.
The newly released records also feature former Irish president Erskine Hamilton Childers’ death certificate.
Born in London in 1905 to an Irish republican father, Robert Erskine Childers, and an American mother, Childers grew up in Ireland after World War I.
He was educated at Gresham's School and Trinity College, Cambridge, and worked for Éamon de Valera’s newspaper before entering politics in 1938.
The Fianna Fáil politician served as the fourth president of Ireland from 1973 until his death in 1974.
He is the only Irish president to die while in office.
Ireland’s Minister for Social Protection, Dara Calleary claims the additional records now publicly available offer a very “rich source of information” for Irish people everywhere.
“I am delighted to make these additional records available to the Department of Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport so that members of the public and the Irish diaspora can access records to support family history research,” he said,
“These records of civil registration in the State are a very rich source of information,” he added.
“At this time of year we are particularly reminded of our predecessors who have emigrated and established lives across the globe.
"These valuable records enable that connection to remain strong.”
For further information or to access the records visit www.irishgenealogy.ie.
