County Offaly, Ireland Genealogy
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Guide to County Offaly ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, parish registers, and military records.
History[edit | edit source]
County Offaly, in Ireland was formerly known as King’s County. It is located in the Irish Midlands in the province of Leinster and consists of 771 square miles with its greatest length being 52 miles from the River Ollatrim near Moneygall to the boundary near Edenderry.
Anciently, it was part of the Kingdom of Ui Failghe from which it gets its present name. The British began occupation in the thirteen century, but did not gain control until the sixteen century when it was named King’s County in 1547 in honour of King Philip II of Spain. Its name was changed to Offaly in 1920 and it became part of the Republic of Ireland on its formation in 1921.
In 1821, the population was 131,088. It increased to 146,857 in 1841, but then began to decrease to 52,592 in 1926. In 2006, the population was 70,868. In 1871, 88.8% of the population were Roman Catholic with 9.9% of the Church of Ireland, 0.4% Presbyterians and 0.5% Methodists. In 1926, 92.6% were Roman Catholic with 6.5% Church of Ireland.
General County Research Information[edit | edit source]
Further information about County Offaly is available at the GenUKI site.
Census[edit | edit source]
- 1901 Ireland Census, 1901 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
- 1911 Ireland Census, 1911 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
Church Records[edit | edit source]
- 1623-1866 Ireland, Diocesan and Prerogative Marriage License Bonds Indexes, 1623-1866 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
- 1701-1845 Ireland, Catholic Qualification & Convert Rolls, 1701-1845 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Civil Jurisdictions and Parish Research Information[edit | edit source]
- List of County Offaly Civil Parishes
- List of County Offaly Catholic Parishes
Civil Registration[edit | edit source]
- 1845-1913 Ireland Civil Registration, 1845-1913 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1845-1958 Ireland Civil Registration Indexes, 1845-1958 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Directories[edit | edit source]
- 1880 Ireland, Thom's Irish Almanac, 1880 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index, images available on Findmypast
- 1884 Ireland, Thom's Irish Almanac & Official Directory 1884 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Land and Property[edit | edit source]
- 1810-1926 Ireland, Dog Licence Registrations, 1810-1926 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
- 1831 - 1856 Ireland, Valuation Office Books, 1831-1856 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1847-1864 Ireland, Griffith's Valuations, 1847-1864 at MyHeritage — index & images, ($)
Maps[edit | edit source]
- 1885 County Map: Courtesy of London Ancestor | Note that during this time period it was known as King's County
Military[edit | edit source]
- 1914-1918 Ireland, Memorial Record: World War I, 1914-1918 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
- 1595-1858 Ireland, Diocesan and Prerogative Wills & Administrations Indexes, 1595-1858 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
