*John Bradley. 

CLARE Roots Society has just released its 39th book with their publication, the Old Military Barracks; and it’s fair to say, what started as a genealogy group 15 years ago has become an incredibly prolific publishing group.

The Clare Roots Society was established in 2006 by local developer Larry Brennan. The Ennis man had been working on his family tree for a number of years when he had the idea to put an advert in The Clare Champion to find like-minded people. With a view to setting up a society, 16 people turned up for the first meeting at The Old Ground Hotel and the Clare Roots Society was formed.

Today the group has about 200 active members and 39 books have been published about local history, encompassing diverse subject such as the 1958 Carmody Hotel disaster, Drumcliff Graveyard, and many of the streets and residential areas of Ennis. The books introduce characters of County Clare’s past and tell their stories through story and photos. Currently, books on Hermitage and Parnell Street are being produced, which will tip the group’s repertoire to over 40.

They also host workshops on genealogy and a number of talks annually; one of which recently included a speaker who is the daughter of famed organist Ernest de Regge, who died in the Carmody Hotel incident.

While physical monthly meetings have in recent times become virtual events, John Bradley, PRO for the group, tells The Clare Echo that this has in fact expanded their reach worldwide. “We have about fifty overseas members. They’re very active particularly since we went on Zoom, they are very much with us so we want to continue with both the live meetings and also the zoom meetings.” He adds that the group works hand in hand with Clare Library, who he reserves great praise for.

John himself was born on the Clare Road in Ennis and says the group takes great pride in preserving history and helping people find out about their family history. The father of three, who once worked for the National Lottery, quips that he is so busy in the group that he hasn’t had any time to delve into his own family history, continuing “but it’s a great link in finding out your predecessors, their placing in the town or in the locality or what they worked at or what they lived on, where they lived and what were their circumstances and you know going back over the years, back over the generations you will find extraordinary things about your family, most of it good of course but some things that you wouldn’t have expected, something that wouldn’t want to be associated with.”

The Old Military Barracks book can be purchased at the Ennis bookshop, Mary Kelly’s, O’Connell’s Street or O’Connor’s Newsagents in the Market, selling at €15 each. To contact the Clare Roots Society, visit http://www.clareroots.org/ or find Clare Roots Society on Facebook.

Related News

le19 pat burke
'Sometimes I wonder do we have anything else to talk about' - traffic calming stuck on the agenda in East Clare
harvey's quay parnell street car park taxi rank 1
Moving taxi rank from Harvey's Quay can free up prime parking spaces in Ennis
shannon community network 1
Shannon Community Network aiming to become link between community & town's stakeholders
carrigaholt roundabout kilkee plinth 1
'Money won't be an issue' - Keating confident of Strand Line improvements in Kilkee

Advertisement

Latest News
harvey's quay parnell street car park taxi rank 1
Moving taxi rank from Harvey's Quay can free up prime parking spaces in Ennis
clare v tipperary 26-05-24 darragh lohan sean connellan 1
Clare's Munster tie with Tipp will be exclusive to streaming service GAA+
tommy hegarty corona ryan jp mcmanus seanie mcmahon 1
Hall of fame award for JP McManus from Limerick/Clare GOBA
clare v cork 20-04-25 david reidy 1
Clare beaten by Waterford in Munster championship for first time since 2016
east clare golf club clubhouse
High scoring in Easter competitions at East Clare Golf Club
Premium
harvey's quay parnell street car park taxi rank 1
Moving taxi rank from Harvey's Quay can free up prime parking spaces in Ennis
clare v cork 20-04-25 david reidy 1
Clare beaten by Waterford in Munster championship for first time since 2016
kilmaley v clooney quin 27-04-25 michael o'malley 1
Crusheen, Clonlara & Kilmaley occupy top spots in Clare Cup
tulla utd v bridge utd 26-04-25 simon kilker 1
Tulla inflict the Kilker blow on Bridge to seal historic Clare Cup final appearance
dr daly park tulla 1
Tulla GAA lodge plans for astro-turf, all weather pitch & indoor hurling wall

Subscribe for just €3 per month

If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.

Subscribe for just €3 per month

If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.

Advertisement