Last time I wrote about the great collections at the Limerick City Library and the great tweets by the Local Studies Team. Next I would like to take a look at another member of the Limerick City Council Family – the Limerick City Archives.

Of its extensive digital collection, the City Archives website says:

Limerick City Council is the first local authority in Ireland to make archive collections available online. The digitised collections are freely available to the public to promote research into the history of Limerick City via a virtual archive.

The Digital Archive Collection is divided into two categories: the Limerick City Council and Local Government Collection and the Private Papers and Business Collection.  

The City Council and Local Government Collection contains:

• Limerick Corporation (Pre-Reform), 1719-1917
• Limerick City Council Minute Books, 1841-1972
• Commissioners for the Improvement of St. Michael’s Parish, 1810-1851
• Limerick Union Board of Guardians Minute Books, 1842-1922
• Rate Valuation Books, 1893-1971
• Registration of Motor Vehicles, 1904-1982
• Register of Cases of Successful Vaccination, 1864 – 1912
• Turf Production Scheme: Limerick City Council Planning and Development, 1940-1958
• Franchise and Elections, 1869-1954
• Limerick Police Force, 1922
• Financial Management Post 1934 (1940-1983)
• Allotment Schemes, Limerick City Council, 1938 – 1949
• Public Health Services Pre- 1960: Limerick City Council
• Property Management, 1774-1956

Want to know who registered the first car in Limerick City? Look no further than the Registration of Motor Vehicles 1904-1982. You will also find out the type of vehicle, how much it weighed, what it used for, and the address of the registrant. Maybe public health is more up your alley? Well, take a look at the Public Health Services Pre-1960: Limerick City Council. Clicking on any item in the list above will bring you directly to that section of the City Archives website.

I was excited to look at the Limerick Union Board of Guardian Minute Books, 1842-1922. A few months ago I featured the Board of Guardians Minute Books from the Killarney Union workhouse, so I was interested to see how these books compared.

The Killarney books represented just four years of meetings, while the Limerick collection spans nearly eighty years and the entire life of the Limerick Workhouse. The minutes from Killarney are transcribed which makes them easier to “browse” through, but if you have some time, the Limerick books are fascinating. The main page of this section includes extensive description as to what the various years contain which is very helpful in guiding researchers.

The Private Papers and Business Collection contains these items:

• Limerick Chamber of Commerce 1807-1946
• Maurice Lenihan Papers, 1759-1875
• Bedford Row Lying-In Hospital, 1868-1971
• Rentals and Particulars of Sale, 1808-1923
• Great Munster Fair Commissioners, 1852-1912 (from microfilm)
• Devon Estate Rentals, 1774-1893 (from microfilm)
• Fair Rent Tribunal, 1881-1916 (from microfilm)
• Coote Family Papers
• Christian Brothers Schools Limerick, 1856-1925
• Lloyd Papers, 1682-1913
• Pery Square Tontine, 1848-1906
• Croker Papers, 1798-1858
• Limerick County Infirmary, 1835-1958
• Limerick Bakers Society, 1871-1923
• Limerick Waterworks Company, 1833-1883Limerick Harbour Commissioners, 1823-1980

This is a lot to take in, I know. When I stop and think of the hours it took to complete this digitization project, it boggles my mind! I browsed in the Christian Brothers school records, the Lloyd Family Papers, and the Limerick Bakers Society. Great stuff for anyone tracing their roots to Limerick City or with general interest in Irish history. All of these historic documents are literally right at your fingertips! Just click on any item in the list above to get started. You will need to download special software to view this virtual archive, but it only takes a minute – just follow the directions.

Thanks to the folks at the Limerick City Archive for their dedication and hard work! You might also like to check out the Limerick City Museum.

Before we leave Limerick, I wanted to introduce you to a fun event happening this July 4th…in Ireland.  Visit the 4th of July Limerick website for more information on the festivities planned to mark America’s big day. Here’s what they have to say:

The 4th of July is all about celebrating America and everything the dream of America’s founders stands for. Summed up best in the second sentence of the US “Declaration of Independence”.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

So celebrating the 4th of July is about casting off the shackles of everyday life and for at least one day a year using the freedoms you have to pursue happiness to the fullest.

This year we want to celebrate Ireland’s connections with the US and our nations shared heritage by celebrating America’s Independence day on the 4th of July in a way never done before in Ireland. Not only that but we want to do it in true American style and that means doing it BIG.

I love it!  If you are on Twitter, check out their tweets by following @4thjulylimerick – click here!