The entire collection of Catholic parish register microfilms held by the National Library of Ireland has been published online this week, allowing the public to trace their ancestry back almost 300 years.

Over 370,000 digital images of the microfilm reels, on which the parish registers are recorded, are accessible free of charge via www.register.nli.ie.

Among the items included on the site are the details on the baptism of Thomas MacDonagh, the executed Easter Rising rebel who lived and worked in Fermoy for a number of years prior to moving to Dublin.

Locally, baptismal and marriage records are now available for Fermoy between 1828 and 1881, while in Mitchelstown there are records of baptisms going back to 1782 and marriages from 1822.

Former Fermoy Town Mayor, John Murphy, welcomed the news that records have been made public, saying it would be of great help to people looking to learn more about their ancestry.

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