Tag: Birr Workhouse

• Workhouse orphan emigration, particularly those from Parsonstown (Birr). By Perry McIntyre. Blog No 172, 25 Jan 2020

  Perry McIntyre is the Chair of the Great Irish Famine Commemoration Committee (Email: contact@irishfaminememorial.org. Website: www.irishfaminememorial.org). 

  On 4 May 2017 Offaly Historical and Archaeological Society archivist, Lisa Shortall, brought up the Parsonstown Union Letter Book [Reference OHS 71] for me to consult at Bury Quay. (This item is now available to consult at Offaly Archives). My interest was to see what clues may have been recorded about any of the 136 young women who left King’s County for Australia during 1848-1850 as part of the Famine emigration to Australia, now often referred to as ‘Earl Grey’s workhouse orphan scheme’. During these three years 4114 young women aged between 13 and 18 were selected as healthy, suitable domestic servants and potential marriage partners and they were given a free passage from Ireland to one of three Australian colonies: two in New South Wales (Sydney and Port Phillip) and Adelaide in South Australia. (more…)

  January 25, 2020

  Birr Workhouse, Parsonstown Poor Law Union

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• Burial Grounds of Birr, by Stephen Callaghan. Blog No 33, 09 June 2017.

  Birr is well known for its Georgian streetscape, mighty telescope and castle, however it might be a surprise to learn of the number of burial grounds to be found in and around the town. A total of nine burial grounds can be found within a short distance of the town.

  While this blog post does not claim to contain the definitive history of each burial ground, as such a work would be several volumes of books, it does however hope to make the reader aware of the number of burial grounds in the town and give some interesting information about each. (more…)

  June 9, 2017

  Birr, Birr Military Cemetery, Birr Workhouse, Bully’s Acre, Cemeteries, Clonoghill, Crotty’s Church, Graveyards

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