Saturday 27th September 10.00am to 4.00pm
Family History FairVenue: Downpatrick Library. Admission Free
Free advice and guidance on researching your ancestors, internet demos on family history websites and information sessions on Local Studies maps, newspapers and books.
Exhibitors include ...
The Foundation of Ulster Local Studies
The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland
The Somme Heritage Centre
The Ulster American Folk Park
The Ulster Historical Foundation
Other local and family history organisations.
There will also be a lunch-time musical performance featuring Eamon Hanlon and Tim Cobain, kindly sponsored by Down Arts Centre (Down District Council). Eamon, a bassist from Downpatrick, has performed in a variety of music styles with many different artists. Tim is a singer/songwriter from Belfast and his mainly acoustic style of music spans genres such as Blues, Folk and Soul.
Mary Bradley, Local Studies librarian for the SEELB, said
“This is a great opportunity for anyone who is curious about where they come from, as enthusiastic friendly people, who have a wealth of knowledge and experience, will be able to guide you in the right direction. We hope that this event will encourage lots of people to find out about their family roots, discover their local history, and celebrate their heritage”. A feature of the event will be the availability of Library staff at designated information sessions to show people the useful resources available in the SEELB Local Studies collection. Starting at 2.00 until 2.30 there will be an information session dealing with maps; from 2.45-3.15 an information session will deal with newspapers on microfilm and how to use a reader-printer; the final information session from 3.30-4.00 will cover local history book resources. Free Internet demos on family history websites will also be available at the library throughout the day. Places are limited for the information sessions and the internet demos so booking is advisable to secure a place. Information relating to this event has been included on the website news of the NIFHS (Northern Ireland Family History Society) and the FULS (Federation for Ulster Local Studies).
Family History Talk -Tuesday 30th September 2008 – 7.30pm in the Library Gallery.
If you've ever wondered about the history of your family but didn't know where to start, then this talk by Patrick Devlin, member of the Lecale Historical Society and Director of the Federation for Ulster Local Studies is not to be missed. Patrick’s talk is entitled; “Setting up a Family Website - Lessons learned from a personal journey of discovery" Patrick takes you along on his personal journey, offering interesting and useful advice on researching your own roots and demonstrating how he set up his own family website. The event is open to everyone but booking is advisable to secure a place.
Family History Reminiscence session – Wednesday 1st October 2008
Staff from Down Museum will meet with local school children and allow them to handle familiar and mystery objects from their collection, stimulating discussion on our past history. Closed event. Invited audience only.
Genealogy Workshop for BeginnersAn introduction to family history research, designed for those just starting out. –Thursday 2nd October 2008 – 10.30 am – 12.30 pm
A Local Studies representative will be available in Downpatrick library to advise you on how to begin your research and to help you discover how to use the internet when tracing your family tree. The event is open to everyone but places are limited, so booking is essential to secure a place.
www.ni-libraries.net/libraries/seelb-libraries/downpatrick-library