Irish Civil records are intact and these include Births, Marriages and Deaths from 1864. In addition, non-Catholic and Registry Office marriages were included in the records from 1845.(Note some births, particularly during the first years of registration missed being recorded)

An index to Civil BMD records is available on the IrishGenealogy website and also online on FamilySearch - see list of links at the end of this page. Research Certs can be ordered from GRO by Post using the references details provided on the index. Notes on the details included on civil certs (including sample images), plus information on how to order research certs from the GRO are included on this page.

The online version of the BMD Index on the IrishGenealogy website is from GRO Ireland and covers births up to 100 years ago, marriages up to 75 years ago, and deaths up to 50 years ago. More recent index books are available to search in person in the GRO reading room (currently at Werburg St., Dublin).  The online version of the BMD Index on FamilySearch covers all of Ireland up to the end of 1921, and records for the Republic of Ireland between 1922 and 1958.

Many Irish civil birth, marriage and death records and some church records (mostly Catholic and Church of Ireland) have been extracted from registers and are included in the FamilySearch website. The civil records included cover between the start of civil registration (1864 for births, marriages & deaths, 1845 non for non-catholic marriages) up to about 1881, but do not cover all areas.

The 1911 and 1901 Irish census returns are available online (free) on the National Archives website. No earlier complete Irish census returns have survived and only fragments of earlier census returns for a few places survive.  The National Archives website includes transcripts and images for the surviving earlier census returns along with the details from the search results of the 1841 and 1851 cenus used for pension appications.

For research prior to the start of civil registration church records will be required, and to start researching this you usually need to know at least two vital details : religious denomination and location i.e. the name of the parish, town or townland. Church records for parts of Ireland are available on several free, subscription and pay-per-view websites.

Location of Church records for research depends mainly on the denomination involved. Microfilms of most historic records for Catholic parishes are available in the National Library in Kildare St, in Dublin, and most historic Church of Ireland records are available in the Representative Church Body Library in Rathfarnham in Co. Dublin.


For further details see The Irish Geneaology Toolkit website, and Tracing Irish Ancestors Online (Timeline Research / Nicola Morris)

Selection of Online Sources (free to access)

1901 and 1911 Irish Census Returns also Census fragments and substitutes, 1821-51 (National Archives)

Irish BMD Index (GRO Ireland)

Irish BMD Index (FamilySearch)

Extracted Births (FamilySearch - 1864 to c1880)

Extracted Marriages (FamilySearch - 1845 to c1880)

Extracted Deaths (FamilySearch - 1864 to c1880)

Calendars of Wills and Administrations (National Archives 1858 - 1920)

Griffith's Primary Valuation of Ireland (AskAboutIreland.Com 1847-1864)

Tithe Applotment Books (NationalArchvies 1823-1837)

Irish Genealogy Website (inc. Parish records for Kerry, parts of Dublin, Cork and Carlow)

 

Archives, Libraries etc.

National Library of Ireland 

National Archives of Ireland 

General Registration Office/Dept. of Social Protection (G.R.O., for ordering Civil BMD Research Certs)

Representative Church Body Library 

Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) 

Online Civil records from GRONI (pay-website)

Irish Family History Foundation / RootsIreland (pay-website)

Find My Past - Ireland (pay-website)