This mail began life as a reply to someone on one newsgroup, but it became something else as some of my posts do. I have removed the original mail to the newsgroup and I am sending this out to every list I am subscribed to. I have a request to make of people in the newsgroups and that is in the following paragraph. I made a commitment before Christmas and I know that it will be easier to keep if those of you who search help me. My reasons for asking this are in the body of the reply. I would very much appreciate it if anybody who has ever viewed any LDS parish record films for any county would let me know (if they remember) the number of the film, the parish they looked at, the Diocese the parish was in, whether the record was in Latin or English, the condition of the film re ink fading, writing, the information in that parish record....only the names of parents, bride, groom, baby - whatever...and whether or not any addresses were put in.....all these vary from one record to the next, depending on the Priest/Vicar who kept the record. Thanks Jane My reply to the newsgroup: - ------------------------------------- Helen & all, I think this has been dealt with by someone else - the fact that the registers do exist. I can't right now even remember which registers were being discussed and I think that I made a post on whicever ones they were. Very 'thoughtful' today I am :-) If I remember correctly, when I checked it, one type of record existed from 1770 and another began in 1828, and it may have been that the heritage centre only has the type that exists from 1828. I do know that I have seen instances where this is the case...for other parishes - records of one type in existance and held by the National Library but not copied by the heritage centre who have the later records. The reason I am replying to this post now - is that anyone who knows me and my posts through various lists, knows that parish records are a particular bee in my bonnet and I generally tend to 'react' when I see any post being made re parish records and people 'giving out' so to speak about how the Irish hold on to their records and anyone searching for information has a right to access those records. That is not the case in your post here - but I am saying this for the benefit of any who may be new on this list and may never have seen a post of mine or anyone elses on this topic. I 'react' and strongly, because quite often I see references to records which I know are in existance, I react because I know that records 'turn up' so to speak in the strangest of places, because while many parish records were destroyed during the Civil War in 1922 not all were. I also react because I know that so many people never were registered in the first place in any church. Anyway.....over the years, I have tried on various lists asking people if they would let me know what records they had viewed, the condition of those records and the LDS numbers. There are many publications which list records in existance, not all agree with what is there and no publication ever mentions the condition of these records - how battered they may be. how poor the script, the ink fading - whatever. Whether they are in Latin or English. I put my foot in it before Christmas in a post to the Ireland-L when I asked something along the lines of "Do ye know how long it would take, or have any idea of the amount of work I would have to put in to try and bring it all together - to show you that most records are there - somewhere - accessible to people without them having to trot off to the local church in Ireland" and then I decided I would take a shot at it. A putting together of known (currently) parish records - what the LDS have, what is held in the PRONI in Belfast, what is held in the Nat Lib in Dublin, the Nat Archives in Dublin, the Representative Church Library in Dublin, and published in whatever journals that I know of. No such compilation will ever be complete. It can only ever be thought of as current - today, because things change so often. I have this morning received a post from someone I know through another list - on which I once asked people to let me know about parish records when they see them. I had also made a post to that list re some records I know of in Ireland and this person was replying to both posts saying pretty much Jane some of the records you mentioned are not held by the LDS and here are the numbers of these other records and what I found re their condition. I believe that if people worked together, then some sense can be made of the Irish Parish record situation. I may end up eating some of my words when I am finished because I do see that for a lot of the northern Ireland records they are held locally - but in the main records which are post 1890 and probably are not considered worth filming. Personally, I only ever view records in which I have an interest, and while the counties I am interested in are well spread out, there are a good few. being interested only in particular parishes does not stop me noticing what is also there for other parishes, not necessarily the condition but just that it's there. It does not stop me wondering what other parishes may be hiding in the records for Parish A......because I know that there was also another parish in that locality and the people could walk to either church and that Parish A just happened to be the head of a Union in that area. This is long - my apologies......I just take off on this topic. I am not interested in every parish in ireland, I am not even interested in every county in ireland. Parish records were never my research focus....phonetics and surname distribution are. However, I happen to be one of the most vocal Parish record/Priest/Vicar defenders in this country or on any newsgroup pertaining to Irish genealogical research to which I am subscribed. I have made a commitment re trying to sort this out a bit. I have begun. The look up offers I made to various lists before Christmas did put a halt to my gallop because there was so much else I had intended working on over Christmas. I can do so much by myself - bring what I have in literature sources together. Make my own comments on any records I have looked at.......but as I say I'm not interested in everywhere. The Rootsweb catalogue of data held by the LDS centres changed its format before Christmas. It had been such that if one went in then one could simply by keying in the name of a county check out what was held for that county on all topics. I had coverered a few counties. I have seen county pages which list LDS references for parish records but I feel that some of these lists may be old, there may be more information there than the county page says. I don't kow for sure. When I connect to the Internet - I pay telephone charges per 5 minutes during the day and 15 outside work hours. Right now, I find myself connecting to try and track down references for records which I have no need for and will never access, and even if I needed them - then I can do it here in Dublin if they exist. I'm not whinging about that fact, just stating it. I said I would try to do something and I will. I just thought that if I once again asked people if they would let me know what records they have looked at, the LDS numbers and their comments on the condition of those records - I might, this time get more than one or two responses. This would, in effect, help me produce some results quicker, what i come up with will me more thorough. It may help some of you find out about records and their existance much quicker than in the past. It may be that what goes round comes round - those of you who respond to this mail may find that you want to know something about another county in the future, and may find that someone else gave me the same kind of information on the parish you now want to look at. I don't know - an appeal to the newsgroups seems to be worth a shot. I don't honestly expect an overwhelming response, being a cynic, and having tried this in the past....... but - you never know - the new Millennium is almost upon us. Jane :-)