Thursday, May 9, will be date for the next program of the Southern Ohio Genealogical Society. The guest speaker will be Debbie Large. The title of her presentation is “Searching for Elizabeth: Discovering Northern Ireland.”
Researching for Irish records can be overwhelming and frustrating. Like all immigrant research, the search starts with mining all the clues in U.S. records first to help determine where to begin a search in Ireland before “jumping the pond” for records. More Irish records are becoming available online each day.
Northern Ireland holds distinct and separate repositories from those in the Republic of Ireland. These archives are often overlooked when searching for Irish roots, particularly for records of Northern Ireland ancestors. Learn more about this beautiful part of the island with recent scenes of the Northern Ireland countryside and Belfast. Review some important Northern Ireland libraries and archives as well as British/UK websites you should consider exploring in your search for your Irish roots. Audience level: All
Large’s passion for family history began with an undated photograph of her great-grandparents and a simple question: Who were these people? That question led her into the puzzle-piece world of family history. She’s been exploring and documenting her family roots ever since through lineage society applications and memberships including First Families of Stark County, Ohio, OGS First Families of Ohio, Sons of the American Revolution and Daughters of the American Revolution. She is an adjunct instructor for Sinclair Community College, serves as co-chair for the Warren County Genealogical Society lineage societies, and is an active genealogy instructor and consultant. She’s been fortunate to have visited Ireland twice in the last six years and has researched in several of the repositories to be discussed above.
Genealogy is a lot like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, but without the photo on the box and with some pieces missing. Whatever your reason for an interest in genealogy, you will want to join the group for this very interesting program which will begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 9. The program, which is open to the public at no charge, will be held in Hillsboro at the Highland County Service Center Conference Room, 1487 N. High St. (next to Jerry Haag Motors).
Upcoming meetings for the remainder of 2019 will include: Thursday, June 13 – First & Second Family Banquet/Annual Meeting, reservations required; Thursday, Oct. 10 – If You Don’t Find Grandma on the Internet; Thursday, Nov. 14 – Finding Answers in Naturalization Records; Thursday, Dec. 12 – Christmas Gathering and Dinner, reservations required.
Submitted by Dwight Crum, vice president, Southern Ohio Genealogical Society.
