County Galway, Ireland Genealogy

Ireland County Galway

General County Research Information
Further information about County Galway is available at the GenUKI site.

Archives and Libraries

 * The National Library of Ireland
 * National Archives of Ireland
 * Galway local archives and libraries

Cemeteries
A nation-wide compilation of headstones was created some years ago. Visit the Family History Library Catalog (online) under "Ireland" and Cemetery records - Indexes" for availability.

Church of Ireland
The Representative Church Body Library has just about all surviving Church of Ireland registers. Some transcript copies are available at:


 * rootsireland - online transcriptions may be forthcoming
 * the local parish (contact for details in availability)
 * Family History Library (FamilySearch.org) - see the Catalog for Galway county/parish records availability

Presbyterians
The vast majority of Presbyterian chapel registers have never been centrally archived, and thus are found in various locations. [Regretably, preservation of these precious records and the rich Presbyterian heritage of local Presbyterians as well as descendants of same at large with roots originating from Ireland, are at risk unless and until such time when all of these registers are centralized or, at least copied into microform or, better--digitised and preserved.]

You must conduct exhaustive, thorough studies to determine to which Presbyterian denomination your ancestor belonged; and to then, determine the whereabouts of surviving registers--if any. The following most likely places to find and search Presbyterian registers starts with checking the following locations:


 * the local Presbyterian congregation/church (if still in use)
 * distant Presbyterian chapels (if the local chapel closed)
 * town libraries
 * county archives/libraries
 * PRONI (Public Record Office of Northern Ireland)
 * The National Archives, Dublin
 * The National Library of Ireland

Other:


 * 1) The excellent rootsireland web site for County Galway currently has one Presbyterian chapel register with data now available online from 1833.
 * 2) The FHL (Family History Library) has but few transcription copies of Presbyterian chapels

Methodist
The rootsireland web sitefor County Galway has some Methodist data now available online for about 4 different chapels in the county from as early as 1836.

Roman Catholic
The FHL (Family History Library) has copies of some of the original Roman Catholic parish registers of County Galway parishes in its collection. You can identify these listed online at FamilySearch.org. If you know the name of the civil parish in which your Catholic ancestor resided, or was from, click "Catalog" and type in the name of the parish and then highlight/click on "Church Records". The National Library, Kildare Street, Dublin, is the custodian of all available Roman Catholic parish registers from throughout the country--including County Galway.

The rootsireland.ie web sitehas data from numerous Roman Catholic parishes now online for searching. There are fees attached (about $7 for each entry).

Useful Church Records Web Sites

 * 1) Galway East Heritage Centre - online
 * 2) Galway West Heritage Centre - online
 * 3) GenWeb Ireland - has numerous online links to data-rich lists of Galway County families
 * 4) John Grenham's web site has several helpful links for Galway names
 * 5) Galway County Surname Query board is here
 * 6) CMCRP Project (Galway) - has a few records for the county
 * 7) Civil Registration of births marriages and deaths for County Galway, online, 1864, on

Civil Jurisdictions and Parish Research Information
A map of the Civil Parishes of County Galway is available at Irish Times site.

Civil Registration of Births, Marriages &amp; Deaths
Government-sponsored registration of births, marriages and deaths began in 1845 (Protestant marriages only) and 1864 (whole population). To find information on the vital events of your irish ancestor, here are some helpful websites for obtaining critical information:

1.FamilySearch.org- has online indexes for births, marriages and deaths; click "All Records Collections", then scroll down to and click "Ireland Civil Registration Indexes, 1845 to 1959".

2. To obtain certificates of birth, marriage or death for your ancestor[s], write to or contact the following record office; the cost is €10 (about $13) per certificate:

General Register Office, Government Offices,  Convent Road Roscommon. Tel: +353 (0) 90 6632900  LoCall: 1890 252076   Fax: +353 (0) 90 6632999   Fax: +353 (0) 90 6632988

There are fees for performing particular searches; see their website for further information.

Estate Records
Estate records may provide names of households in such records as leases, rents, and mortgages. These ought to be consulted and used when extant, especially when church registers do not exist for the time period being researched. Here are some web sites which hold estate records and some transcriptions of same:


 * FindMyPast
 * Connacht Province Landed Estate Database (online)
 * Freeholders in Galway County

Genealogy

 * Jane Lyons' website for Galway records online
 * Morris' website for Galway genealogy ($)
 * John Grenham's Galway webpage

Place-Names
Here are two important place-name aids/tools for locating your Irish place and its parish jurisdiction[s]:


 * 1) List of All Townlands, Towns and Townships in County Galway. - click county "Galway"; then click "Submit" to view a complete alphabetical listing of all townlands, towns and townships and the parishes in which they reside
 * 2) Topographical Dictionary of Ireland by Samuel A. Lewis; at LibraryIreland.com - provides a rich 1837 historical perspective of each Ireland parish and large township; great for determining which churches existed in each parish--Church of Ireland or Nonconformist

Probates

 * Abstracts From Some Skerrett Wills covering 1670-1820 in Co. Galway. The Irish Ancestor vo.V.no.2.1973, pages 100-104. Family History Library Ref. 941.5 B2i v.5-6
 * Diocese of Clonfert Probate (wills index only) 1663-1857 ($)
 * Diocese of Killala and Kilfenora (wills index onlin) 1653-1800 ($)

Societies
Family history societies often publish helpful journals, transcripts, compiled genealogies and host helpful websites. They may have ongoing projects to transcribe records and create indexes. Most societies publish queries in their journals and maintain lists of members’ research interests that may be helpful to you. You may want to join one of these societies, reap the benefits of their expertise and resources or support its efforts.

Web Sites
Here are some gateway websites with some excellent Galway County family data and resources for researchers:


 * Irish Times, also lists all county Heritage Centres' addresses
 * County Galway online resources
 * FHLFavorites.info Family History Library's "Favorites" listinga