Ireland, Legal Administration

All the records are presented as PDFs. This format allows you to search the entire text of the document. The detail found in each record will depend on the subject of the publication. There are currently four titles available in this set. Furthermore, these publications are an excellent source for supplemental information about your ancestor. For example, if you discovered that your ancestor was in prison, the report of 1862 will provide you with the prison’s living conditions, quality of food, and description of punishments.

Forty-First Report of the Inspector-General of the General State of the Prisons of Ireland, published in 1862, is a study of prisons in Ireland. The publication comprises statistical reports of the prisoners’ age, sex, and religion, as well as details on the quality of food, living conditions, and much more.

Tables Showing the Number of Persons Committed or Held to Bail for Trial at the Assizes and Sessions in Each County in the Year 1852, and the Results of the Proceedings, published in 1853, is a report about those who were tried at the assize courts and quarter sessions. These courts dealt with the most serious crimes such as manslaughter, infanticide, bigamy, sodomy, forgery, etc. The various tables are organised by county.

The Duties of Clerks of Petty Sessions in Ireland is Bram Stoker’s second non-fiction publication, printed in 1879. Stoker is best known as the author of Dracula. He wrote this document during his time working as the inspector of the petty session in Ireland, a high ranking civil service job. The publication provides a guide for those working as clerks and contains details about salary, general duties, preparation of forms, and other aspects of clerical work.

The Judges in Ireland 1221-1921, by F Elrington Ball, was published in 1926. It stretches from the reign of Henry III to the establishment of the Irish Free State. The first judicial appointment in Ireland by an English sovereign was in 1221, and 700 years later the last appointment was made in 1921. The judges are listed chronologically, and chapters are separated by year ranges related to the reigns of monarchs. The entry for each judge provides a brief biography including previous titles and roles.