Kildare archive adds more important records

GENEALOGISTS and history fanatics alike will be delighted to hear about the update made to Kildare’s historical archive.

Kildare County Council’s County Archives Service announced a significant expansion of its digital archives, now including newly digitised records from the Poor Law Union and Town Commissioners.

The digitisation of these volumes was made possible through funding from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media’s Commemorations Fund 2024.

This new material provides the public with enhanced access to valuable historical materials, enriching local history and genealogical research.

Among the newly digitised additions are records from the Athy Board of Guardians, featuring Minute Books from 1841-1862 and a Register of Interments for St Michael’s Cemetery in Athy from 1875-1900.

The Athy Town Commissioners’ Minute Book covering the years 1855-1891 and the Newbridge Town Commissioners’ Minute Books spanning from 1891-1984 have also been made available.

Additionally, two rent books from the Marquis of Drogheda detailing lands in Monasterevin in Kildare and Mountmellick in Laois, have been digitised.

The first volume documents arrears and rents due in 1874-1875 for the Manors of Fontstown and Monasterevin, while the second volume records arrears and rents collected for Monasterevin and Mountmellick estates from 3rd February 1879 to 1888.

These rent books serve as valuable census substitutes in the absence of Irish census records before 1901.

These latest additions complement the existing digitised collections available online and provide crucial insights into the historical development of towns such as Athy, Naas, and Newbridge.

All digitised materials are freely accessible through Kildare County Council’s Online Archives Service at: https://kildarecoco.ie/library/KildareCountyArchivesandLocalStudies/Archives/OnlineArchives/