Here is a collection of some of my favourite and most used free genealogy websites. There are many valuable genealogy records on pay sites, such as Ancestry or Findmypast, but there also great free genealogy websites, which also contain important genealogical databases. Most of the websites below are related to Irish genealogy research as most of my ancestors hailed from the Emerald Isle. Many of the records I mention below are also available on other websites, a lot of these being pay sites.
1.Family Search (www.familysearch.org) Family Search contains a variety of records from many different countries around the world. The Family Search Wiki is also a valuable resource on this website as it explains what records are available in each country and where you can find them.
2. Irish Genealogy (www.irishgenealogy.ie)
Irish genealogy contains church records (Roman Catholic records for County Kerry, County Cork (except most of Cork city), and Dublin City, Church of Ireland records for Dublin City, County Kerry and County Carlow) and civil records (births 1864-1919, non-Roman Catholic marriages 1845-1944, Roman Catholic marriages 1864-1944, deaths index 1864-1969, deaths images 1878-1969)
3. Nli.ie (registers.nli.ie)
This is the official website of the National Library of Ireland. There are many resources on this website that are of historical and genealogical importance, one of which I use frequently is the Roman Catholic Parish Registers. Most of the Roman Catholic parishes on the island of Ireland are represented in this database, with dates varying across individual parishes, some records starting in the 1700s, while others mightn’t start until the 1850s. Most records however stop around the 1890s. Very few of the parishes have indexes to their records on this website, however the records on nli.ie are indexed and are free to view on findmypast.ie
4. National Archives of Ireland (nationalarchives.ie)
The official website of the National Archives of Ireland contains many genealogical databases, such as the Irish Censuses of 1911, 1901, 1851,1841,1831 and 1821, Valuation Office Books, The Tithe Applotment Books, Will Registers 1858-1900, Calendar of Wills and Administrations 1858-1922, Soldiers Wills 1914-1917, and the census search forms 1841-1851.
5. Ask About Ireland (www.askaboutireland.ie)
Ask About Ireland is a free website where there are many historical, cultural and genealogical resources and information available. One genealogy database that I frequently use is the Griffiths Valuation 1847-1864, which contains maps and images detailing property and land owners throughout the island of Ireland between 1847 and 1864.