In June 1922 the Public Record Office of Ireland was destroyed in the battle of the Four Courts, the opening engagement of the Civil War. In a single afternoon seven centuries of Irish history went up in flames.

The Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland is an all-island and international research programme working to digitally reconstruct, as far as possible, these lost archives.

By tracking down copies and transcripts in libraries and archives around Ireland and overseas the Virtual Record Treasury have recovered tens of thousands of documents relating to every corner of Ireland, making them available online free of charge.

On Saturday 13th April 2024, the National Museum of Ireland - Country Life will host the Virtual Treasury Roadshow - exploring the history of Mayo and its people through the lens of this exciting online resource.

Time: 11.00am - 3.00pm

Speakers:

• Dympna Joyce - Member, Mayo Genealogy Group - Local resources and recent Mayo Genealogy Group projects
• Ciarán Wallace - Deputy Director, Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland - Ireland’s Public Records: Destruction and Recovery
• Lynn Kilgallon - Virtual Record Treasury Research Fellow - Medieval Mayo records in the Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland
• Brian Gurrin - Virtual Record Treasury Research Fellow - Mayo Census Records in the Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland

This is a free event, suitable for adults and children aged 14 years plus. Booking is required. Email: BookingsCountryLife@museum.ie or telephone the bookings office on (094) 90 31751 to secure your place. THIS EVENT IS NOW FULLY BOOKED.

The Virtual Record Treasury of Ireland research programme is supported by the Irish Government through funding from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media under Project Ireland 2040.

For more details, please see here