"Midnight Feasts" - Hunting for Irish Burials
Connemara Peasant Funeral (Wikimedia Commons)
Disposing of a body following death had both spiritual and financial implications, so think about both of these aspects when considering where to hunt for evidence. For the vast majority of people in Ireland, even right up to the modern era, this meant a burial in a church graveyard or a faith-related or municipal cemetery. Cremation was not really available as an option until right up to around 50 years ago and remains a relatively unpopular choice.
For non-Church of Ireland ancestors, the local parish church graveyard may have been their only option to be buried in nearby consecrated ground, so check these parish registers for a burial too. Children may not be named in registers but simply recorded as "a child of ...".
Other specific faith cemeteries were established later and are still a major feature in Ireland today. This may have been as a result of there being very little land available around places of worship, so be sure to scour maps for burying grounds located close to a church.
Financially, the business of death costs money, so try to imagine what the financial circumstances of your ancestors' family might have been like at the time of any death. Could they afford to engage a funeral director and pay for newspaper announcements for example? One significant expense would have been a headstone, so don't always expect there to have been one. For my best advice on headstones, see my Monumental Inscriptions page.
When searching specifically for a burial, hunt forward from any known date of death as bodies were generally buried quite quickly. Alternatively, you may be hunting back from the probate of a will or the issuing of letters of administration. However, be prepared to hunt back from this date over several years as probate could be a very protracted process. I have one ancestor with a 32 year gap between his death and notice of probate of his will being granted!
For non-Church of Ireland ancestors, the local parish church graveyard may have been their only option to be buried in nearby consecrated ground, so check these parish registers for a burial too. Children may not be named in registers but simply recorded as "a child of ...".
Other specific faith cemeteries were established later and are still a major feature in Ireland today. This may have been as a result of there being very little land available around places of worship, so be sure to scour maps for burying grounds located close to a church.
Financially, the business of death costs money, so try to imagine what the financial circumstances of your ancestors' family might have been like at the time of any death. Could they afford to engage a funeral director and pay for newspaper announcements for example? One significant expense would have been a headstone, so don't always expect there to have been one. For my best advice on headstones, see my Monumental Inscriptions page.
When searching specifically for a burial, hunt forward from any known date of death as bodies were generally buried quite quickly. Alternatively, you may be hunting back from the probate of a will or the issuing of letters of administration. However, be prepared to hunt back from this date over several years as probate could be a very protracted process. I have one ancestor with a 32 year gap between his death and notice of probate of his will being granted!
Church of Ireland
See Church of Ireland Parishes & Registers for more information. If you know the parish(es) you are interested in, start by educating yourself as to what has survived by using my own finding aid Church of Ireland Parish Records Finder by County (scroll down on linked page.)
Reference Pages & Sites
Church of Ireland Parish Finder (Shane Wilson)
"Church of Ireland Parish Registers on Microfilm" (NAI) Source used to compile my county finding aid
Church of Ireland - Table of All Parish Registers throughout Ireland (RCBL) Source used to compile my county finding aid
Records
Anglican Record Project (CoI) Selected parishes listed on this project page
Irish Genealogy (Church Records) (DCHG) Check extent of CoI records here.
Ireland, Church of Ireland Search Forms for Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1731-1870 (Anc=£) Very selective (under 14k records)
Irish Parish Register Burials, Ffolliott Collection (FMP=£) Good for Co. Cork - check source notes
The Register of Derry Cathedral, 1642-1703 (FMP=£) Burials for the parish of Templemore in Derry city, c11k records.
Fermanagh Parish Registers Burials (FMP=£) c.7k records dated between 1662-1912.
See Church of Ireland Parishes & Registers for more information. If you know the parish(es) you are interested in, start by educating yourself as to what has survived by using my own finding aid Church of Ireland Parish Records Finder by County (scroll down on linked page.)
Reference Pages & Sites
Church of Ireland Parish Finder (Shane Wilson)
"Church of Ireland Parish Registers on Microfilm" (NAI) Source used to compile my county finding aid
Church of Ireland - Table of All Parish Registers throughout Ireland (RCBL) Source used to compile my county finding aid
Records
Anglican Record Project (CoI) Selected parishes listed on this project page
Irish Genealogy (Church Records) (DCHG) Check extent of CoI records here.
Ireland, Church of Ireland Search Forms for Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1731-1870 (Anc=£) Very selective (under 14k records)
Irish Parish Register Burials, Ffolliott Collection (FMP=£) Good for Co. Cork - check source notes
The Register of Derry Cathedral, 1642-1703 (FMP=£) Burials for the parish of Templemore in Derry city, c11k records.
Fermanagh Parish Registers Burials (FMP=£) c.7k records dated between 1662-1912.
Roman Catholic Church
See Roman Catholic Parishes & Registers for more information.
Reference Pages & Sites
Catholic Parish and Church Search by Location (Shane Wilson)
Catholic Directory of 1848 (Shane Wilson)
Roman Catholic Parish Maps & Record References by County (John Grenham)
Roman Catholic Parish Registers (NLI) Browse register images
Roman Catholic Parish Finder (Shane Wilson)
Records
Irish Genealogy (Church Records) (DCHG) Check the extent of RC records here first.
Ireland, Select Catholic Death and Burial Registers, 1767-1992 (Anc=£) Limited collection (c.29K) and mostly Co. Meath.
Ireland, Selections of Catholic Parish Deaths, 1756-1881 (Anc=£) Actually burials and very limited - read source notes carefully.
Shared indexing and linked to NLI images.
See Roman Catholic Parishes & Registers for more information.
Reference Pages & Sites
Catholic Parish and Church Search by Location (Shane Wilson)
Catholic Directory of 1848 (Shane Wilson)
Roman Catholic Parish Maps & Record References by County (John Grenham)
Roman Catholic Parish Registers (NLI) Browse register images
Roman Catholic Parish Finder (Shane Wilson)
Records
Irish Genealogy (Church Records) (DCHG) Check the extent of RC records here first.
Ireland, Select Catholic Death and Burial Registers, 1767-1992 (Anc=£) Limited collection (c.29K) and mostly Co. Meath.
Ireland, Selections of Catholic Parish Deaths, 1756-1881 (Anc=£) Actually burials and very limited - read source notes carefully.
Shared indexing and linked to NLI images.
Multi-denominational & Municipal Cemeteries
Large private and municipal cemeteries came into being when pressure on overcrowded church and faith-based graveyards increased in larger towns and cities, particularly in the Victorian period. Some remain in private hands today and may charge fees for querying burial registers for you. Equally, some do not seem to have invested in making their burial registers accessible online via their own websites, like Mount Jerome in Dublin (but see below for alternative.)
Local Authority and Council websites are also a good hunting ground for finding out if the burial registers are with them because they are now responsible for running and maintaining the sites. Alternatively, they may have found their way into local archives - check county archive catalogues if they are online.
The follow miscellaneous sources may have the records of multi-denominational burials or perhaps just a single faith, it isn't always obvious from the descriptions.
Dublin Graveyards Directory (DH) Great free finding aid for graveyards and cemeteries in the city.
Dublin Cemeteries Trust (Pay-per-view) Searchable database for 5 major cemeteries. Very expensive!
Ireland, Dublin City Cemetery Burials, 1805-2006 (FMP=£) c.7k records, but only 3 locations (check source notes.)
Cemetery records for Mount Jerome Cemetery, Dublin, 1836-1972 (FamilySearch) Digitised microfilms to browse but only at affiliate libraries.
Belfast City Council Burial Records (Pay-per-view) Searchable database with transcripts for free and register images to buy.
FINDMYPAST Irish Burial collections (FMP=£) These are the collections that they claim contain Irish burials, some of which are very specific.
Roots Ireland (IFHF) (Subscription required) Check coverage very carefully with link below.
Roots Ireland - Sources by County (IFHF)
Large private and municipal cemeteries came into being when pressure on overcrowded church and faith-based graveyards increased in larger towns and cities, particularly in the Victorian period. Some remain in private hands today and may charge fees for querying burial registers for you. Equally, some do not seem to have invested in making their burial registers accessible online via their own websites, like Mount Jerome in Dublin (but see below for alternative.)
Local Authority and Council websites are also a good hunting ground for finding out if the burial registers are with them because they are now responsible for running and maintaining the sites. Alternatively, they may have found their way into local archives - check county archive catalogues if they are online.
The follow miscellaneous sources may have the records of multi-denominational burials or perhaps just a single faith, it isn't always obvious from the descriptions.
Dublin Graveyards Directory (DH) Great free finding aid for graveyards and cemeteries in the city.
Dublin Cemeteries Trust (Pay-per-view) Searchable database for 5 major cemeteries. Very expensive!
Ireland, Dublin City Cemetery Burials, 1805-2006 (FMP=£) c.7k records, but only 3 locations (check source notes.)
Cemetery records for Mount Jerome Cemetery, Dublin, 1836-1972 (FamilySearch) Digitised microfilms to browse but only at affiliate libraries.
Belfast City Council Burial Records (Pay-per-view) Searchable database with transcripts for free and register images to buy.
FINDMYPAST Irish Burial collections (FMP=£) These are the collections that they claim contain Irish burials, some of which are very specific.
Roots Ireland (IFHF) (Subscription required) Check coverage very carefully with link below.
Roots Ireland - Sources by County (IFHF)
Newspapers
Newspapers are a great source for tracking down burials in the form of funeral announcements or reports. Think about including keywords like "funeral", "interment" and "cemetery" when searching and you might be more likely to find funeral reports and information relating specifically to the burial rather than just a death announcement. Having said that, the latter often contained brief details of burial locations too.
Irish Times (Subscription required) This title does appear on other sites like the BNA, but it also has its own dedicated archive site.
Irish Newspaper Archives (Subscription required) Check for titles included.
Irish Newspapers on the British Newspaper Archive (Subscription required) May be accessible for free in British libraries.
Belfast Newsletter Births, Marriages & Deaths Notices, 1738-1925 (Anc=£) Death notices may include details of interments.
Ireland Newspapers, 1763-1890 (Anc=£) Unindexed collection which you can browse.
Irish Newspapers (FMP=£) Check filters for titles included.
The Irish Newspaper Transcript Archive, ffoliott Collection, 1756-1850 (FMP=£) Limited in scope but useful for Cork.
Newspapers are a great source for tracking down burials in the form of funeral announcements or reports. Think about including keywords like "funeral", "interment" and "cemetery" when searching and you might be more likely to find funeral reports and information relating specifically to the burial rather than just a death announcement. Having said that, the latter often contained brief details of burial locations too.
Irish Times (Subscription required) This title does appear on other sites like the BNA, but it also has its own dedicated archive site.
Irish Newspaper Archives (Subscription required) Check for titles included.
Irish Newspapers on the British Newspaper Archive (Subscription required) May be accessible for free in British libraries.
Belfast Newsletter Births, Marriages & Deaths Notices, 1738-1925 (Anc=£) Death notices may include details of interments.
Ireland Newspapers, 1763-1890 (Anc=£) Unindexed collection which you can browse.
Irish Newspapers (FMP=£) Check filters for titles included.
The Irish Newspaper Transcript Archive, ffoliott Collection, 1756-1850 (FMP=£) Limited in scope but useful for Cork.
Overseas Burials
If you are not finding what you seek in Ireland, then embrace the possibility that the family may have emigrated and you might find the burial reported in foreign newspapers. Remember that advice about keywords in the section above.
British Newspaper Archive (Subscription required) May be accessible for free in British libraries.
British Newspapers (FMP=£) Check filters for titles included.
Irish Marriage Notices in American Newspapers (FMP=£) Niche collection but you might get lucky
Papers Past (New Zealand newspapers)
Trove Digitised Newspapers (Australian newspapers)
New York Times Archive (Subscription required)
Newspapers.com (Subscription required) Generally North American titles but some other countries too.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission Always consider the possibility that men may have fallen in conflict and are buried or remembered overseas.
The following sources are just good places to start as there are 1000's of collections out there in the ether or tucked away in archives that could contain burials. Local family history societies are often a good place to turn to for advice if you know the general locale of where you believe your ancestor was buried.
India
Did your ancestor join the armies of the East India Company, or later, the British Army? Or the Civil Service? See also my page "Fighting in a Foreign Field - India".
Scotland
Whilst ScotlandsPeople is the official government site, FindMyPast have been very industrious at collaborating with local family history societies to create their own large collections of indexes for what appear to be the same records, pre and post 1855.
England & Wales
Burials are included in church parish registers for many of the counties of England and Wales and these are available via a number of different channels. Also, don't forget Bishop's Transcripts as these were contemporary copies of the registers.
United States of America
Canada
Australia & New Zealand
If you are not finding what you seek in Ireland, then embrace the possibility that the family may have emigrated and you might find the burial reported in foreign newspapers. Remember that advice about keywords in the section above.
British Newspaper Archive (Subscription required) May be accessible for free in British libraries.
British Newspapers (FMP=£) Check filters for titles included.
Irish Marriage Notices in American Newspapers (FMP=£) Niche collection but you might get lucky
Papers Past (New Zealand newspapers)
Trove Digitised Newspapers (Australian newspapers)
New York Times Archive (Subscription required)
Newspapers.com (Subscription required) Generally North American titles but some other countries too.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission Always consider the possibility that men may have fallen in conflict and are buried or remembered overseas.
The following sources are just good places to start as there are 1000's of collections out there in the ether or tucked away in archives that could contain burials. Local family history societies are often a good place to turn to for advice if you know the general locale of where you believe your ancestor was buried.
India
Did your ancestor join the armies of the East India Company, or later, the British Army? Or the Civil Service? See also my page "Fighting in a Foreign Field - India".
- British India Office Deaths and Burials (FMP=£) Sourced from the British Library (inc. images), FIBIS and Kabristan Archives (transcripts).
- India, Deaths and Burials, 1719-1948 (FamilySearch) No original source stated? However all original records are held by the British Library.
Scotland
Whilst ScotlandsPeople is the official government site, FindMyPast have been very industrious at collaborating with local family history societies to create their own large collections of indexes for what appear to be the same records, pre and post 1855.
- Scottish Old Parish Registers, 1553-1854 (ScotlandsPeople=£) Burials by faith, inc. RC. However, very sparsely recorded in general.
- Scotland, Parish Deaths & Burials, 1564-2017 (FMP=£) Sourced from OPRs, via local family history societies.
- Scottish Statutory Deaths, 1855+ (ScotlandsPeople=£) Deaths registered in 1855 also stated burial locations, but only for this first year.
- Scotland, Modern and Civil Deaths & Burials, 1855-2021 (FMP=£) Vague source notes, but probably mostly overlap with statutory records.
- Scotland, Roman Catholic Parish Burials (FMP=£) c.343k records. Likely to find Irish in here for Glasgow RC diocese. No dates though...
England & Wales
Burials are included in church parish registers for many of the counties of England and Wales and these are available via a number of different channels. Also, don't forget Bishop's Transcripts as these were contemporary copies of the registers.
- ANCESTRY English Parish Registers (Anc=£) Mostly Church of England but some non-conformist too.
- FINDMYPAST English Burials (FMP=£) County burials helpfully listed separately. Also c.17m records from the National Burial Index.
- ANCESTRY Welsh Parish Registers (Anc=£) Virtually all Anglican.
- FINDMYPAST Welsh Burials (FMP=£) Some overlap with English collections and since when was Norfolk in Wales? But plenty for Wales.
- England Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991 (FamilySearch) These will mostly be church register entries like those above, but sadly no sources.
United States of America
- FamilySearch American BMD Collections Some burials in here - narrow your search by using state or county as first word in title.
Canada
- FamilySearch Canadian BMD Collections A few cemetery collections.
Australia & New Zealand
- FamilySearch Australian & New Zealand BMD Collections Several cemetery collections listed.
(c) Irish Geneaography - 2022
