Whenever I discover a new likely ancestor who was born, married, or died in a townland or parish I’ve not heard of before, I have to call my mum to ask whether it’s likely we had family living there. 9 times out of 10, she can tell in an instant that there’s no way we’d have people there, or that I’m on to a sure thing. And sometimes a place name that hasn’t come up before will bring out some forgotten family connections or names and relationships, opening up a treasure trove of research opportunity.
My mum knows the lie of the land like the back of her hand; I haven’t a clue, and just can’t seem to retain the information she patiently imparts, over and over and over again.
So, recently I decided to try Google before plaguing her once more on where such-and-such-a-place was in relation to such-another-place, where we definitely had family, and I came upon this wonderful resource: an interactive map of Irish counties, baronies, civil parishes and townlands!
For each area you select, and depending on the area type, you get the following info:
- Latitude and longitude (all area types)
- A highlighted map (all area types)
- Info on the size of the area (all area types)
- A list of townlands within (baronies and parishes only)
- A list of bordering townlands (townlands only)
- Links to search for 1901/1911 Irish census records for the area (townlands only)
- A link to the area on OpenStreetMap (all area types)
It’s a work in progress, and not all counties are represented yet, but they say they’re updating daily.
A gem of a site, and one I’ll be revisiting with some regularity!
[Updated to point at new site URL, 13 November, 2014 – thanks to @lalonde for letting me know!]
ETA: The Irish Family History Centre also have a useful guide to understanding Irish placenames and townlands, which might aid folks not already familiar with the naming conventions!
