Church Records

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WHAT CHURCH RECORDS ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE?

On this site:
1. Transcripts of the baptism and marriage records of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kerry to c. 1900 - this diocese includes parishes in western and north-western areas of Co. Cork.
2. Transcripts with record-images for all surviving nineteenth-century Church of Ireland marriage, baptism and burial records in Co. Kerry.
3. All Roman Catholic baptism, marriage and burial registers for Dublin City, some parishes in transcript only (to c. 1900), some transcripts with record-image (to c. 1880). The records of St. Paul's, Arran Quay, are not included. A transcript of its records can be found at http://dublinnorth.rootsireland.ie.
4. All surviving Church of Ireland baptism, marriage and burial registers for Dublin City, most of them transcripts with record-images to c. 1900. 
5. All surviving Church of Ireland baptism, marriage and burial registers for Co. Carlow, transcripts with record-images to c. 1900. 
6. All Roman Catholic baptism, marriage and burial registers (transcripts with record-images to c.1880) for the diocese of Cork and Ross, which covers the south and west of the county and Cork city. Some of the records of Cork city (for the parishes of St. Mary & St. Anne, St, Patrick's and Blackrock) are not online.
7. A small number of Presbyterian records relating to a congregation in Lucan, Co. Dublin (transcript only).

Elsewhere:
1. www.rootsireland.ie: This paying site has transcripts (without record-images) of most of the Roman Catholic records on the island of Ireland for areas other than those listed above. The major exceptions, where only small proportions of the records are transcribed, are counties Donegal, Monaghan and Wexford. None of the transcribed records for Clare are online. Each geographical area on the site has a "sources list" and it is essential to consult this in order to ascertain precisely what records are being searched. The site also includes transcripts of Church of Ireland, Methodist and Presbyterian registers, complete for some counties, completely absent for others.
2. www.familysearch.org: This free site run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) has transcripts, without record-images, of approximately thirty Roman Catholic parishes, mostly in counties Kerry, Cork and Roscommon.
3. www.ancestry.co.uk: This subscription site has transcripts, without record-images, of the registers of the diocese of Meath up to 1880, approximately forty parishes, as well as a copy of the LDS transcripts.
4. Others: a significant number of local historical and family history societies have made transcripts of their church records available online. A guide to the Roman Catholic records is at www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/browse/counties/rcmaps/.
5. A large collection of Jewish records are online at the paying site www.irishjewishroots.com. More information on Judaism in Ireland is at www.jewishireland.org.

WHAT CHURCH RECORDS ARE AVAILABLE FOR RESEARCH OFFLINE?

1. The National Library of Ireland has microfilm copies of almost all pre-1880 Roman Catholic parish registers on the island of Ireland. Access is free and print-outs of the records are allowed. See www.nli.ie.
2. The LDS Family History Library has microfilm copies of c. 40% of Irish Roman Catholic parish registers, some copies of National Library of Ireland films, others filmed by the LDS themselves. See https://familysearch.org/catalog-search. These films can be ordered via the Family History Centers attached to most Mormon temples.
3. Most local Roman Catholic parishes do not permit research on their original records. Callers will normally be referred to the heritage centres whose records are now almost all on www.rootsireland.ie. If necessary, contact details for local parishes can be found via www.catholicireland.net.
4. The Representative Church Body Library is the official archive of record for Church of Ireland records that survived the burning of the Public Record Office in 1922. A full list of its holdings is at http://ireland.anglican.org. All are freely searchable if they are not too fragile to be handled.
5. The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (www.proni.gov.uk) has freely available microfilm copies of almost all surviving records of all denominations for areas now in Northern Ireland, as well as a good number for areas in the border counties of Donegal, Cavan, Leitrim, Monaghan and Louth. A full list is at http://www.proni.gov.uk/index/search_the_archives/online_indexes/church_of_ireland_index.htm.
6. Quaker records are very comprehensive back to the 17th century, with microfilm copies in NLI and PRONI. See www.quakers-in-ireland.ie.
7. Some Presbyterian records are only available locally or in the Presbytrerian Historical Society. See www.presbyterianhistoryireland.com.