IrishFamilyResearch.co.uk
Essential Resource No. 3
19th Century Census Substitutes - Landlord/Tenant Records
Whilst Census Returns are an extremely useful research tool for the Irish Family Researcher, their availability pre-1900 is severely limited as a result of the cumulative affects of the Dublin Four Courts Fire and the Pulping Initiative during WWII.
The Irish Family Researcher must therefore look for other Resources which may be relied upon as Census Substitutes. Fortunately there is a wealth of materials available - its just a question of knowing where to look. This Article looks at the availability of 19th Century Landlord/Tenant Records; where they may be found; and the information you are likely to derive from them.
GRIFFITHS VALUATIONS, 1848-64
Probably the best known Census Substitute is Griffiths Valuations for the whole of Ireland 1848-64. Compiled by Sir Richard Griffiths and his Team pursuant to the Tenement Act, 1842, Griffiths Primary Valuation of Ireland recorded all Landlords, Tenants, details of Property Holdings, Acreage, and Valuation of property during the above dates. Some of Griffiths Valuations is available on-line on our Irish Family Research Website, with more to follow in the near future. If there is a particular area that you would like to see on-line, then please email us with details of your area of interest. Alternatively, Copies of Griffiths Valuations are available at local Studies Libraries throughout Ireland, and Copyright Libraries in the UK.
VALUATION OFFICE RECORDS, 1848/1864-present day
The Valuation Office in Dublin, where Sir Richard Griffith worked in the 1800s, is still in existence today, and not surprisingly, the Office holds originals of all books of survey, maps and original rating records relating to Griffiths Primary Valuation, together with Revision Lists from the 1850s onwards which chart Land Ownership from the Original Survey right up to the Present Day.
This can be an extremely useful resource as you will be able to obtain details of dates of revision of Property Holding. Thus providing you with details of who owned your Ancestors land through the ages from the 1850s right up to the present time. The Valuation Office Team are also very adept at dealing with Archival Queries, and are happy to deal with queries by e-mail. Should you require any further information, you should visit their Website (please note that the Valuation Office may charge a small fee for extracting and photocopying information).
RETURN OF LANDOWNERS, 1876
Another useful Census Substitute is the Return of Land Owners of One Acre or more in Ireland in 1876. However, it is important to bear in mind that in 1876 only a small proportion of the Irish population owned their land outright - most were forced to remain tenants until the introduction of the Land Purchase Act 1891 which empowered Tenants to purchase their farms in "Fee Simple" (in other words, purchasing the freehold, without any incumbrances over the land). The Return of Landowners 1876 is available in part to our Full Members, and is available on the Look-Up Service for our Premium & Professional Members.
RETURN OF LANDOWNERS, 1878
A second edition of the Return of Landowners 1876 was published in 1878. It details not only names of landowners, but also provides interesting genealogical information regarding the owners education, and occupation. The 1878 Edition is available to our Premium & Professional Members on the Look-up Service.
TITHE APPLOTMENT BOOKS, 1824-38
The Tithe Applotment Books were compiled from 1824-38 as a result of the introduction of the Tithes Composition Act of 1823. Generally Tithes were paid to Clergy of the Established Church by all Parishioners, irrespective of their religious denomination. In rural areas, Tithes were paid in kind, however the introduction of The Tithes Composition Act meant that Tithes had to be paid in Cash. To this effect, Valuations were carried out on a County by County, Parish by Parish basis to determine how much each landholder had to pay in Tithes. These Valuations are contained in the Tithe Applotment Books, and they provide basic information regarding the Name of the Townland, Landlord's name, the Name of the Occupier/Tenant, the size of land held by the Occupier, and the amount of Tithes payable.
However, a word of caution. The Tithes Applotment Books are not comprehensive, and did not include those Tenants who were exempt from paying Tithes (exemptions will be dealt with in a future Article on the Tithes System).
Bearing in mind the dire straits that most Irish People found themselves in during the early part of the 19th Century, the Tithes System was extremely unpopular, with resentment on all sides. In some cases, there were so many non-payers of Tithes, that local Clergymen had to draw up lists of Tithe Defaulters. Microfilms of Tithe Books are available at the National Archives and National Library in Dublin, and Lists of Tithe Defaulters are also available at the National Archives .
ESTATE RECORDS
Most of Ireland in the 18th and 19th Centuries was divided into large Estates, and many of our Ancestors would have spent their lives as Tenants on these Estates. Unfortunately, the deposit of Estate Records at Public Repositories and the type of materails deposited depended very much on the Owner of these Estates.
However, many Estate Records are held at the National Archives and National Library in Dublin, and at the Public Records Office (PRONI) in Belfast (Brief details of Estate Records available can be found on their respective Websites). A word of caution - most of these Records are not Indexed and will require a manual trawl through the records in the hope of finding something relevant to your Research. However, that said, it is worth the effort when you can find an Original Lease signed by your Ancestor (often with a thumb print and the words "his mark"), or a record of your Ancestors in a Rent Roll, (Rent Rolls often detailed not only the larger tenants, but those holding the smallest tenements too).
ENCUMBERED ESTATE RECORDS
The Potato Famine of the 1840s left not only Tenants destitute, but also left many Irish Landlords unable to pay their rent. The Encumbered Estates Act 1849 was introduced as a means to resolve this situation, and provided for the Compulsory Sale of Debt-Encumbered Estates on the Petition of either a Creditor, or the Landlord.
Encumbered Estate Records are of particular interest to Irish Family Researchers because not only do they provide details of the Estate to be sold, they usually provide details of rents (sometimes in the form of lists of tenants on the Estate). PRONI holds copies of the Records of Encumbered Estates from 1849-58. The National Archives holds a set of Encumbered Estate Court and Landed Estates Court Rentals from 1850-58.
If you have any queries regarding this Article, please feel free to e-mail us at: