Finding the lost history and records of the West of Ireland
with Dr Liam Alex Heffron, Ph.D.
Several million people all over the world can trace their ancestry to the West of Ireland, but only some know how…
and even less know why….
Whether Irish blood runs in your veins or not, my mission is to connect curious minds to the hidden history and lost communities of one the most exceptional places in the world — the wild western region of Ireland.
Through unearthing folk memories, discovering new heritage records and reinterpreting “official” history, together we can trace family ancestors and bring lost, forgotten or deliberately suppressed stories into the light.
Why does it matter?
I’m not connected to the West of Ireland by blood or otherwise - why should I care?
You shouldn’t. At least not because I told you too. But if you care about many of the geopolitical forces which are threatening to engulf the world right now, you may want to see back to where it began.
What we are witnessing in the Middle East and Ukraine are the legacies of the collapse of the Ottoman, British, and Russian empires while British imperialism in particular has also left its lasting legacy in the social, political and economic frameworks underpinning the India subcontinent, North America, Africa and the Far East.
And it started in Ireland. Britain’s first colony on its way to becoming the largest empire the world has ever seen. Here British officials, technocrats and politicians learned through complex processes that spanned centuries, how to use their experiences in Ireland to retool and refine imperial adventures overseas.
The west of Ireland, under British imperialism, stood apart from the rest of the country due to its unique cultural, economic, and social conditions. Being largely rural, with a population that depended heavily on small-scale agriculture and fishing, the area experienced extreme poverty and suffered devastating economic distress, especially during the Great Famine of the 1840s, sparking continuing mass emigration.
The rugged landscape and relative isolation preserved much of the traditional Gaelic culture, including the Irish language, preserving a cultural resilience and distinct way of life which became a symbol of Irish identity and resistance against British rule. The real history of that struggle, became the stories, memories and records of the people of the West of Ireland.
I believe that to understand many of the powerful forces dominating our lives today, we should go back to where they started - in the West of Ireland
I have family history connected to the West of Ireland, what can your collections tell me that I can’t get elsewhere?
Since the arrival of the first Neolithic farmers 6,000 years ago, the West of Ireland has experienced generational trauma of wars, famines, emigration, poverty and oppression, in a wild landscape of painful beauty, with intermingled hope and loss.
Yet much of that deep history is missing from the official record and even today, the resources which should be available to preserve what remains are absent. Genealogists, family history researchers and amateur historians know the frustration of dead-ends and blackholes even in their mundane investigations, with Irish heritage in general - but with West of Ireland records in particular.
But this not a museum display. So while we can’t resurrect destroyed documents or go back in time to record events for posterity, we can seek out untapped and hidden resources which hold vital family history or local heritage information. Our stories can also illuminate the current published history and provide clarity and context to existing record sets.
We are showcasing two online collections of historical records of great importance for those seeking genealogical or local history resources in the West of Ireland. Most have not been publicly accessible before. Visit them here.