LDS Records for Irish emigrants can be accessed at either the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, or at one of roughly two thousand Family history centers located throughout the world. To locate the nearest family history center, write to the Family History Library or call a local LDS Church (LDS stands for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or "the Mormons"). Anyone is welcome to use the records at either location, all are open to the public.

THE FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY
The Family History Library in Salt Lake City is a genealogist's dream. There are literally millions of rolls of microfilm, tons of fiche, and a huge assortment of books, many rare and impossible to find elsewhere. I was totally overwhelmed the first time I visited this library. I didn't count them, but there are over one hundred microfilm readers in that one building. If you are fortunate enough to make a trip to this library for family research, take the time to sit through one of the library orientations they offer. It will make your research easier in that you'll have a better understanding of where records are located, and how to use some of them.

FAMILY HISTORY CENTERS
Family history centers are located at many LDS church locations throughout the United States, and many in foreign countries. If you can't make the trip to Utah for family research, these centers are the next-best-thing! At a family history center you can view a catalog of the entire collection of genealogical material kept at the Family History Library. This catalog is on CD-ROM as well as microfiche.

The catalog is divided into four sections: Locality, Subject, Surname, and Author/Title. If you're using the CD's, you can choose one of these four groups and have the computer do some searching for you! You can choose Locality, and enter "Ireland". You can also narrow your search down some by entering the county also: "Ireland, Down". The narrowest search will allow you to also enter the parish: "Ireland, Down, Annaclone". Because some places names have changed over the years, the catalog bases record locations for Ireland using localities that existed in 1871. This is done using the recorded 1871 "Alphabetical Index to the Townlands and Towns of Ireland".

IMMIGRATION/EMIGRATION RECORDS
For this topic, you probably want to choose "United States" if your ancestor came to the United States. There are so many more records in the country where your ancestors immigrated to rather than the country they emigrated from. Immigration=people coming to a country, Emigration=people leaving a country. Records were not required for free emigrants to the United States until 1773 (to Canada until 1865). Emigration from Ireland began as early as about 1600.

If you know the approximate date of arrival and port of arrival or even the name of the ship your ancestor's sailed on will help your search immensely. There are some published indexes concerning certain passenger groups to America, but not all ship passenger lists have been transcribed or indexed. If all you have is an approximate date and or port of arrival, you can begin searching the films of the ship passenger lists. This is tedious beyond words, but not impossible!

All the immigration records that are available are mostly listed in the Locality section of the library catalog under the following : (Country where the immirated to) - Emigration and Immigration. If you chose "United States" as the country your ancestors immigrated to, then proceed through the catalog under "United States", subcategory "Emigration/Immigration". A list of the complete holdings at the Family History Library concerning Immigration into the United States alone is such a huge one, that listing it here is darn near impossible. Visit your nearest family history center and use the catalog. Ask for help from one of the volunteers at the center.

Once you've browsed through the catalog, you'll usually find a film or microfiche you'd like to view. Have the attendant or volunteer at the center to help you fill our a "rental" slip. This form is used to "check-out" films from the Family History Library for a three week period. The cost is now $5.00 US dollars I believe. In approx a week or two your film will be delivered to the family history center and they will call and notify you as such. You can view the film in the center during their operating hours. The film or fiche doesn't leave the building. If the record you're interested in is a book you're out of luck using this method. You cannot borrow any of the books in their collection, but many have been placed on microfilm.

If you are fortunate enough to travel to Utah, the Family History Library has 4 main published lists from which to consult for Irish immigration records:

1. Filby, P. William with Mary K. Meyer, eds. Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 3 vols. Plus supplements. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1981-. (FHL book Ref 973 W32p 1988). This ongoing series indexes more than 1,000 published lists of Irish immigrants to the United States.

2. Filby, P. William with Mary K. Meyer, eds. Passenger and Immigration Lists Bibliography, 1538-1900. 2d Edition. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1988. (FHL book 973 W33p 1988). This bibliography references over 2,500 published lists of Irish immigrants to the United States that will eventually be included in Filby's Passenger and Immigration Lists Index.

3. Glazier, Ira A., ed. The Famine Emigrants: Lists of Irish Immigrants Arriving at the Port of New York, 1846-1851. 7vols. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1983-86. (FHL book Ref Q 974.71 W3f). These volumes contain many lists and indexes of Irish immigrants to the United States.

4. Harris, Ruth-Ann M., and Donald M. Jacobs, eds. The Search for Missing Friends: Irish Immigrant Advertisements Placed in the "Boston Pilot." 3 vols. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1989-93. (FHL book Ref 974.461 H29s). These volumes list more than ten thousand Irish immigrants to the United States and their places of origin. The information is based on advertisements run between 1831 and 1856.

Lists of passengers arriving at most United States ports after the year 1820 are available at the Family History Library (that's a ton of films!). A large portion of these passenger lists are indexed, but many are not.

You can use this method to do passenger list look-up at the LDS library.

Easy way to find Passenger List at the LDS FHL.

Using the Family History Library Catalog (on compact disc).

Getting started:

With the FamilySearch title screen displayed, press [enter]. The Family Search main menu will be displayed.

Next, press [down arrow] to move the bar to "Library Catalog", and press [enter]. A message on the screen will instruct you to insert the library catalog compact disc into the compact disc drive.

Insert the disc. The computer will display the catalog main menu and list the types of searches you can conduct.

Using the [down arrow]

Select: Film / Fiche Number Search

TYPE the film # from the appropriate listing below.

Then press [F12] to begin the search.

In a moment, the computer will display the complete list that is in that Series.

Then press [F8] to get a full display

Index to passenger lists of vessels arriving at miscellaneous ports in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina, 1890-1924.( T517)
FHLC Film # 1324938

A supplemental index to passenger lists of vessels arriving at Atlantic & Gulf Coast ports (excluding New York) 1820-1874.(M334)
FHLC Film # 0418161

Copies of lists of passengers arriving at miscellaneous ports on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and at ports on the Great Lakes, 1820-1873.( Microcopy 575)
FHLC Film # 0830231

Index (Soundex) to passenger lists of vessels arriving at Baltimore, 1897-1952.(T520)
FHLC Film # 1373824

Passenger lists of vessels arriving at Baltimore, 1820-1921 ; Quarterly abstracts of passenger lists of vessels arriving at Baltimore, 1820-1869. (Microcopy 255) ( Microcopy 596) ( T844)
FHLC Film # 0417383

Index to passenger lists of vessels arriving at Baltimore, 1833-1866 (city passenger lists).
FHLC Film # 0821565

Index to passenger lists of vessels arriving at Baltimore, 1820-1897 (Federal passengers lists). (Microcopy 327)
FHLC Film # 0417212

Passenger lists of vessels arriving at Boston, 1820-1891 : with index 1848-1891. (M265) ( M277)
FHLC Film # 0205656

Index to passenger lists of vessels arriving at Boston, Jan. 1, 1902-Dec.31, 1920; passenger lists of vessels arriving at Boston, Aug. 1, 1891-1935 ; book indexes to Boston passenger lists, 1899-1940.(T0521) (T843,T617,T790)
FHLC Film # 1724620

Detroit District manifest records of aliens arriving from foreign contiguous territory : arrivals at Detroit, Michigan, 1906-1954.( M1478)
FHLC Film # 1490449

Passenger and crew lists of vessels arriving at Galveston, Texas, 1896-1921; index, 1896-1951.( M1357 M1358 M1359 ) Includes indexes.
FHLC Film # 1402451

Crew lists of vessels arriving in New Bedford, Massachusetts, 1917-1932.
FHLC Film # 1578398

Index to passengers arriving at New Bedford, 1902-1954; Passenger lists of vessels arriving at New Bedford, 1902-1942. ( T944, T522)
FHLC Film # 1412572

Index to passenger lists of vessels arriving at New York, June 16, 1897-June 30, 1902 ; Index (soundex) to passenger lists of vessels arriving at New York, July 1,1902 -December 31, 1943 ; Passenger and crew lists of vessels arriving at New York, 1897-1924.( T0621) (T0715) (T0519)
FHLC Film # 0543449

Index (soundex) to passenger lists of vessels arriving at New York, July 1, 1902-December 31, 1943 (T0621)
FHLC Film # 1379501

Passenger and crew lists of vessels arriving at New York, 1897-1924. (T0715)
FHLC Film # 1403751

Register of vessels arriving at the Port of New York from foreign ports,1789-1919. (M1066)
FHLC Film # 1415143

Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, NY, 1820--1897. (M237)
FHLC Film # 0002246

Passenger and crew lists of vessels arriving at New York, 1897-1924.(T715)
FHLC Film # 1403751

Passenger lists of vessels arriving at New York, 1820-1897 ; index to passenger lists of vessels arriving in New York, 1820-1846.(Microcopy 237) ( Microcopy 261)
FHLC Film # 0350204

Book indexes to New York City passenger lists, April 1906-September 1920.(T612)
FHLC Film # 1463601

Passenger lists of vessels arriving at New Orleans, 1820-1921 ;Index to passenger lists of vessels arriving in New Orleans, 1853 -1952. Microcopy T527, T618, M259, and T905.
FHLC Film # 0543403

Quarterly abstracts of passenger lists of vessels arriving at New Orleans, 1820-1875. (Microcopy 272)
FHLC Film # 0200235

Index to lists of passengers arriving at Philadelphia, 1883-1948; book indexes, 1906-1926; passenger lists, 1883-1921. (T526, T791, 840)
FHLC Film # 1380256

Passenger lists of vessels arriving at Philadelphia, 1800-1882 with index 1800-1906. (Microcopy 360)
FHLC Film # 0419424

Passenger lists of vessels arriving at Portland, Maine, 1893-1943 ; Index,1893-1954. (T524)
FHLC Film # 1412619

Book indexes, Portland, Maine, passenger lists, 1907-1930. (T793)
FHLC Film # 1375989

Passenger lists, Providence, Rhode Island, 1911-1916 ; Book indexes, 1911-1934 ; Card indexes, 1911-1954. (T0518) (T0792)
FHLC Film # 1412620

Index to passenger lists of vessels arriving at San Francisco, California,1893-1934. ( M1389)
FHLC Film # 1430959

Passenger lists of vessels arriving in San Francisco from Honolulu, 1902-1907.(M1440)
FHLC Film # 1454998

Customs passenger lists of vessels arriving at San Francisco, California,1903-1918. ( M1412)
FHLC Film # 1463582

San Francisco, California, alien manifests : passenger lists of vessels arriving at San Francisco, California, 1893-1920.( M1410)
FHLC Film # 1465571

Registers of Chinese laborers arriving at San Francisco, 1882-1888. ( M1413)
FHLC Film # 1549566

Savannah passenger lists. (T943)
FHLC Film # 1375955

Lists of Chinese passengers arriving at Seattle and Port Townsend, 1882-1916. (M1364)
FHLC Film # 1549349

Passenger and crew lists of vessels arriving at Seattle, Washington, 1890-1921. (M1383)
FHLC Film #1454937

Customs records of passenger manifests inbound, 1894-1909 : Port Townsend, Tacoma, and Seattle.( M1484)
FHLC Film # 1445995

Passenger lists of vessels arriving at Seattle from U. S. insular possessions, 1908-1917 Port Townsend, Seattle, and Tacoma.( M1485)
Film # 1445996

St. Albans District manifest records of aliens arriving from foreign contiguous territory : arrivals at Canadian border ports from January 1895 to June 30, 1954 : Indexes (Soundex), 1895-1924.
FHLC ( M1461) ( M1463) (M1464) ( M1465)
Film # 1472801

St. Albans District manifest records of aliens arriving from foreign contiguous territory : records of arrivals through small ports in Vermont, 1895-1924. ( M1462)
FHLC Film # 1430987