Chris Paton
DISCOVERING THE RECORDS OF VITAL EVENTS
The registers for St Bride’s, Dublin, dated back to 1633. The building itself can be located, noted as number 25, on this map from 1610
If your ancestors were Irish, you may believe that they adhered to one religion or another, but the truth is often quite different. As with many Irish people, I have a mix of denominations within my ancestry, requiring research into various resources for different relevant stories.
Here I will show you the range of records and how to use them for tracing your family history.
Church of Ireland records
The Anglican-based Church of Ireland was the main State church on the island from the 16th century until its eventual disestablishment in January 1871 (following the passing of the Irish Church Act of 1869).
Despite never being the majority church of the Irish it nevertheless had a disproportionate influence as part of the establishment.
Anglican parishes were coterminous with the civil parishes, and the Church effectively acted as a wing of Government in the civilian administration of the land.