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Discover 150,000 new records from Ireland to India and beyond

Discover 150,000 new records from Ireland to India and beyond

Picture of Jessie O'Hara - Brand Marketing Assistant
Jessie O'Hara
24 June 2022

This week sees thousands of new records released across six different collections.

We're taking Findmypast international this week, with a whole host of new records and newspapers from across the globe. Whether your ancestor was a Merchant Navy seaman or perhaps had ties to the Caribbean, this is a release you don't want to miss.

A collection renowned for its rich biographical detail and physical descriptions, we've updated it with nearly 5,000 new records.

A record from the British Merchant Seamen collection.

A record from the British Merchant Seamen collection. View this record here.

As well as physical descriptions, such as tattoos and distinguishable marks, some records include photos. This can be incredibly valuable for forming a deeper connection with your ancestors.

A photo from the British Merchant Seamen records.

A photo from the British Merchant Seamen records. View this record here.

These records don't just come from British land - they hold information for British merchant seamen stationed all across the globe, including Italy, Romania, West Africa, and more. As well as this, you could also discover crucial details such as rank, rating, discharge number, and voyage dates.

There are over a million records in this collection, and it will only ever grow from here, so make sure to keep checking what's new every week to see if your ancestor is hiding in these pages.

If diving into the entirety of our newspaper archive seems like a daunting task, fret not. We have streamlined these Irish birth notices into one, fully searchable collection.

A snippet from our Irish birth notices

A snippet from our Irish birth notices. View this record here.

Most of these records won't include a name for the child, but by searching the family name you can discover both parents, birth date, and sometimes a place of residence. This helps give you a broader picture to flesh out your family tree.

Once you've discovered the birth of your ancestor, take a step forward in time and see if you can find their marriage.

A snippet from our Irish marriage notices

A snippet from our Irish marriage notices. View this record here.

As well as discovering the marriage date, you could also discover parents' names, the reverend who officiated the marriage, and even the exact church of union. If you fancy a trip away, visiting the local area of your ancestor could be a poignant way to connect with them.

Close out your ancestor's journey by searching for their death notice in this collection.

A snippet from our Irish death notices

A snippet from our Irish death notices. View this record here.

While these records will give you the name and age of the deceased, you could also find extra information about their address and their occupation, making these notices a valuable resource for enriching the picture you have of your ancestor's life.

In fact, all three of the Irish newspaper notices collections may come in handy if you've struggled with tracing your heritage. Irish genealogy is notoriously difficult, but you're in the right place - we have the largest online collection of Irish records available, and as this week proves, we just keep adding to them. Once you've scoured these records, make sure to check back every week to see what else we've added (and, of course, make sure to let us know what you find).

From Ireland to British India now, we've added records to both our British India Office Births and Baptisms collection and our British India Office Marriages collection.

A snippet from our British India Office Births and Baptisms

A snippet from our British India Office Births and Baptisms. View this record here.

Both of these collections cover those living and working in India while it was under British rule, and the surrounding territories such as Burma, St. Helena and Sumatra.

As well as the standard information you can gather from birth, baptism and marriage records, you may find a variety of other information including occupation, names of witnesses or officiators, and parents' names.

We hope you're not jet-lagged from all of this global travel, because it's time for a trip to the Caribbean. As well as two brand new Irish newspaper titles, we've expanded our international newspapers this week with five new titles from over the South Eastern Americas. Discover shipping intelligence in the Voice of St. Lucia, the stringent detailing of local life in The Dominica Chronicle, or the events of local police courts in the Colonial Standard and Jamaica Dispatch.

A title page from the Voice of St Lucia, 1893.

A title page from the Voice of St Lucia, 1893.

The full list of new and updated titles is below.

New titles:

Updated titles:

Have you found an ancestor over the shores? Perhaps they were working in British India, or you found their photo in the British Merchant Seamen collection? We want to hear about it. Email discoveries@findmypast.com for a chance to be featured on our social media.