A Great Irish Mapping Tool

Normally I post my Tuesday tips on Tuesday.  But I've been so busy researching in the FamilyHistoryLibrary I'm a day late.  Hope you don't mind...  I think this one's worth the wait..

I recently discovered a new-to-me Irish resource.  I have Irish Catholic ancestors on both my side and my husband, Mark’s side.  I’ve spent the last several days in the Family History Library in Salt Lake City trying to get a handle on the geography of where some of them lived and I found a wonderful website that is helping me do that.

The site is www.swilson.info  I’ve spent some time trying to figure out who SWilson is.  I don’t even know if S is male or female but I do know that I love love love him or her!

One of my favorite things on the site is a “Church and Catholic Parish Search.”  According to the website, “This option searches for the closest Catholic Chapel to a selected location based on Chapel locations as they were in the late 1830s and early 1840s.”

I have been able to determine the place of origin for some of Mark’s ancestors from records in the US and tracing back to Ireland to discover where four known children were baptized. I believe I’ve also found a marriage record for the parents, not in the same church, but in a different, nearby parish. I’ve also used Griffith’s Valuation and some Tithe Applotment Books to ascertain a townland. 

But using www.swilson.info, I can establish exactly where the parish church for the baptism is, and find the nearby churches.   Here’s how I did it.
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Look at http://www.swilson.info/gmapsetcoords.php.  You will see a yellow search marker.  Drag the marker and drop it on the map close to where your person of interest lived.  You can zoom in on the map to refine the location using the +/- buttons in the lower right corner of the map.  

SWilson.info - http://www.swilson.info/gmapsetcoords.php

Once you’re narrowed in to the approximate location of where your ancestors lived, click on the “Start Search” button in the lower right corner.   Colored pointers will pop up all over the map showing all the Catholic churches.  On the right side of the map is a key naming the parish and the church.  If you click on the “Show Parish Details” icon between the columns you’re taken to a new screen, full of information, including the Roman Catholic Diocese, the linked Civil Parishes, a list of nearby parishes with notations of how far away they are and in what direction. 
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SWilson.info - Roman Catholic Parish Coordinates Search showing nearby parishes - http://www.swilson.info/rcparishcoordsrch.php

​My favorite part, however, is smack dab in the middle of the screen where there is a link to the NLI (National Library of Ireland) Film Details and Website.  Once there, you can select the relevant register for baptisms, marriages (or death in some cases) and then filter by selecting the year and month if you know it.

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SWilson.info Catholic and Civil Parish Links

My favorite part, however, is smack dab in the middle of the screen where there is a link to the NLI (National Library of Ireland) Film Details and Website.  Once there, you can select the relevant register for baptisms, marriages (or death in some cases) and then filter by selecting the year and month if you know it.
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SWilson.info is gem of a site, allowing the researcher to point to a location in Ireland, and drill down to the relevant available parish registers.  Thank you SWilson, whoever you are!  You’re my new fave.