Presbyterian Church

The Presbyterian Church is the third of the main Christian denominations in Ireland. The ancestors of most Presbyterians in Ireland arrived during the Plantation of Ulster from the lowlands of Scotland.

Subsequently there was settlement in Antrim and Down as well as the six confiscated counties of Armagh, Cavan, Derry, Donegal, Fermanagh and Tyrone .

The Presbyterian Historical Society Library in Belfast has deposited in its vaults the oldest parish registers dating from the seventeenth century. Many of these are now on microfilm; in the Public Records Office Belfast and in the library itself.

Most congregations have retained their registers in local custody. The library has an index covering the Presbyterian Church registers of the congregations in Ireland, which are 367 in number. The earliest records of some congregations have been published.

Presbyterian births and marriages will also be found in the parish registers of the Church of Ireland. In order to gain access to the registers in local custody, contact should be made with the Minister of the congregation.

With the information obtained from the Baptism, Burial and Marriage entries you may now have got back a further generation. The mode of inquiry should be as illustrated previously in the case of the civil records.

The Primary Valuation of Tenements and Tithe Applotment Composition Books will now add to the information already obtained and they should be considered next.

Links

Index to Presbyterian Churh Records

Return to Parish Registers

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