Tuesday 14 August 2012

Archives update

The Summer Newsletter of the Archives & Records Association (ARA) has been published today and includes insights into several archives collections, some of which may be of interest to family historians.

You can download the Newsletter here, so I'll just give you a taster of some of the collections highlighted in it.

The Historica Calendars Project at James Hardiman Library, NUI Galway. Following digitisation, the historic calendars 1851-1934 are now online. As well as tracking the development of the University from its foundation, and providing a rich account of the courses it held (including examination papers) the collection includes details of alumni and the strict rules and regulations for student behaviour.

Thompson Engineering, Hanover Works, Carlow: If you have family links to Carlow Town, this collection may well hold detail for your genealogy research. One of the major employers in the town, the company was founded in 1877 by Thomas Thompson, a Quaker. See also Carlow Historical and Archaeological Society's three-talk lecture evening on 22 August mentioned in yesterday's events list.

Staples Family of Lissan House, Co Tyrone: This private estate collection is held by PRONI and relates to the family that settled in the Moneymore region of Ulster and built Lissan House. The house opened to the public in April, at the same time as a new addition joined PRONI's line up of Staples family records. This contains deeds, testamentary documents, a genealogical pedigree and other miscellaneous estate records.

The ARA will be launching its annual Archive Awareness Campaign on Thursday. It runs for one week and aims to promote awareness and increase use of the island's archives. This year's campaign theme is Sport, Games and the Cultural Olympiad.