Genealogy Centres in Cork

County Cork is divided into three areas for the purposes of genealogical research:

  • North and East Cork which is catered for by the Mallow Heritage Centre
  • Cork City for which the Cork Ancestral Project will provide a service in the future
  • West Cork area for which no service is currently available.

    Cork City Ancestral Project
    c/o County Library
    Farranlea Road
    Cork City
    Ireland

Mallow Heritage Centre

27/28 Bank Place
Mallow
Co Cork
Ireland

Some common Cork Surnames

The chief surnames in rural County Cork include: McCarthy, Callaghan, McAuliffe, Fitzgerald, Sullivan, Murphy, Walsh, Connor and Connell. U.S. Congress Speaker Tip O'Neill has roots in this area as had the famous Irish Member of Parliament John Philpot Curran, William O'Brien M.P., John Curtin, Prime Minister of Australia and Nano Nagle, founder of the Presentation order of nuns. Sliabh Luachra, with its renouned history of music and culture is in this area. There are also various museums and heritage centres throughout the county.  

The main records include:

  • Roman Catholic records, the earliest of which date from 1757
  • Church of Ireland records (Anglician/Episcopalian) commence in 1780 A variety of Main sources are currently being computerised.

Emigration from County Cork

The major period of emigration from this area was after the Great Famine of 1847. Emigrants went chiefly to the USA, Canada and Australia with large numbers settling in the US State of Oregon. Rural County Cork was heavily populated at the time of the Great Famine. A large portion of the population lived almost exclusively on potatoes. Mortality was high after the potato crop failed, due to fever and starvation.