One hundred years ago, the Irish Civil War commenced in Dublin, Ireland. On 30 June 1922, the Public Records Office of Ireland was destroyed by fire due to shelling at the onset of the conflict. While almost all of the records were destroyed, an initiative was started in 2016 to create a virtual treasury of documents, known as Beyond 2022.
This initiative brought together Core Partners:
- the National Archives of Ireland (PROI)
- the National Archives UK (TNA)
- Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI)
- Trinity College Dublin and their library
- the Science Foundation Ireland ADAPT Centre for digital technologies
- Irish Manuscripts Commission.
By 2022, 70 other institutions (from Ireland, Britain, Europe, Australia and the USA) joined together, officially launching the Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland on 27 June 2022.
This online repository is an open-access resource, freely and permanently available online; quite the achievement as it was entirely funded the past five years by the Government of Ireland, as part of the Project 2040 initiative. Researchers at Trinity College Dublin led the effort to reimagine and recreate records lost 30 June 1922, by reuniting these digitized records found all over the world to be stored in one place.
The Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland gives the user a virtual tour of the reconstructed (online) building, the ability to browse record collections, pictures and information about the conflict and the Four Courts blaze (which destroyed seven centuries of documents) as well as news on upcoming events.
Spend a weekend (or more!) exploring the vast information compiled into one treasured resource and discover more about your Irish ancestry. Contact me if you need assistance or have questions, as I’m happy to lend advice on where to look. Enjoy!