In May this year I went to Ireland to walk in my paternal ancestors’ footsteps. This was something I had wanted to do for years. With only four nights in Dublin and three nights in Belfast, it was a whirlwind trip. I am hoping to do it again but that depends on health and mobility issues.

The Irish famine memorial in Dublin. Authors image.

You do need to do a bit of planning before making a big trip. I used the Ireland Reaching Out website and managed to contact someone who was prepared to meet me in Rathdrum in Wicklow. Getting the train from Dublin to Rathdrum was easy although the walk up the hill to the town was quite a challenge for someone with a walking stick.

The volunteer offered to drive me to the Roman Catholic church where my ancestors married and to show me around the town of Rathdrum. We met for coffee in town first and got to know each other before we set off to explore. It was amazing how much we had in common.

The visit was interesting because the church is a huge Roman Catholic Church, and it is open to the public. You can just walk in and have a look around. There’s no apparent worry about graffiti or vandalism which surprised me. It was an emotional experience to stand there at the altar and think that this was where my great, great grandparents John Finn and Sarah Fagan married before coming out to Queensland.

We then explored the nearby Rathdrum Famine Memorial which was a tribute to those who died in the Rathdrum workhouse between 1844 and 1944. There were over 8000 graves with no headstones which was a sobering experience.

The Rathdrum workhouse records are digitised and online through the local council, so it’s possible to probably identify some of the people who were buried in that cemetery. It was a cold, damp day and I was surprised at how hilly Rathdrum was. Having someone like my guide was good because I could never have done it without her, and her local knowledge was excellent.

The altar at the Rathdrum Roman Catholic Church. Authors image.

So, if you are planning to go, reach out to people in Ireland and see if you can find a local guide who will show you around and help you to find churches and cemeteries.

After Dublin I relocated to Belfast going by bus this time. In Belfast I was met by two members of the North of Ireland Family History Society and they were going to take me out to Islandmagee where my father’s family was from. I am part of the Islandmagee DNA project and through my brothers Big Y DNA I have made connections to our biological relatives on the island.

We drove to Islandmagee Visitor Centre about 30 minutes from Belfast. A person who was researching the Heddles family and a person who is married to one of my Heddles cousins met us there. We chatted and got to know each other before we got into the same car. Everyone wanted to hear the same conversation, so it was a bit of a tight fit with five adults but manageable. They first took me to the cemetery where my great, great, great grandparents Stewart and Agnes Templeton were buried.

A few weeks before I arrived there was a big storm, and they said that there’s a big tree down in the cemetery beside the church and its covered and crushed a lot of the graves. We weren’t hopeful that the grave I was interested in was still accessible. But we were fortunate, and the family history gods were looking out for me. As you can see in the photograph, the tree is just touching the Heddles headstone. It is by some miracle that I was able to still go and see the grave of my great-great-great grandparents because that tree missed it by half an inch.

The tree just touching the Heddles headstone. Authors image.

It was interesting going round Islandmagee with the two local ladies as they knew all the people, they knew the houses, they knew where people lived. That personal interaction, I couldn’t have got from any other source. So, I was grateful to them for spending quite a few hours with me.

The author visiting the North of Ireland Family History Society library. Authors image.

After we left Islandmagee to return to Belfast, my two North of Ireland family history friends took me back to their library and I met some other members. They discovered that I was DNA connected to one of the library volunteers on duty. That was surprising and a bit of serendipity.

I had a look around their library and all the resources and it was a really, interesting experience. I still thought it was afternoon, but it was dinner time because the sun doesn’t set until much later. They suggested we have dinner together, and we went to this lovely Italian place where I had Northern Ireland Carbonara, not sure how that differed from any other carbonara, but it was Northern Ireland on the menu.

We had a wide-ranging discussion about family history, and I didn’t get back to my hotel until about 10:30 that night so it was a huge day. But again, it was so good to be able to walk in my ancestors’ footsteps and to chat to people who knew the family and the history of the area. Things that you just don’t pick up without local input.

Now in my usual fashion I managed to find a couple of history books on Islandmagee, so I purchased those but I’m still to read them. The books give me an idea of the background to Islandmagee and why so many of my father’s families emigrated out to New South Wales and Queensland from there.

It takes planning to get to your ancestor’s places in Ireland, not least of which is a 24-hour flight with a stopover somewhere and it costs money. But you cannot know the emotions that you will experience until you’re standing there. This is where they shopped or went to church every Sunday. It’s an experience that you cannot just duplicate or even imagine until you’re there.

Some of the unique records created by members of the Society relating to churches and cemeteries as well as member interests. Authors image.

So, I really recommend it, if you can do it. Don’t leave it too late. I found the week I spent in Ireland racing around a bit exhausting. And it was cold, even though it was supposed to be late spring. My advice is if you can, then plan it and just do it. I hope you enjoy these photos of my time in Ireland.

And of course, it was also my annual trip to Sweden where I visit my little grandson who has just turned three years old, and I spent two weeks with the family. And as usual, I enjoyed the Swedish forest with its abundant bird life. A little bit of op-shopping and buying Swedish fashions at a bargain price was also a highlight. Time out at restaurants and visits to local berry farms and cider making places were all special trips with my family.

I was away for four weeks doing the family visit and family history tripping. It was great and I did not get sick until I got home when I had my usual cough following 24 hours on a plane with various other people. But as I said, it was worth it, and I am grateful that I managed to get there at last.

Trying to keep up with the grandson on a visit to Ystad near Lund in Sweden. Authors image.