Online access to family history records at museum

The public can access ancestry at the Manx National Heritage library and archive

Access to an online family history resource has been made available at the Isle of Man national museum.

Manx National Heritage (MNH) has signed an agreement with Ancestry to allow public access to the tool within the library and archives section of the Manx Museum.

Ancestry holds more than 60 billion searchable records from 88 countries around the world, including census records, civil birth, marriage and death records.

The platform is also set to add the Isle of Man Parish registers to its platform next year.

Migration and military records along with directories and photos are already available on the website.

'Add colour'

The resource will be available between 10:00 and 16:30 GMT from Wednesday to Saturday each week.

MNH library and archives assistant Sarah Christian said the team enjoyed "welcoming homecomers from all over the world" as they looked for their "Manx roots and the places their ancestors lived, worked and died".

She said members of the public can drop in to the facility and receive assistance in getting set up for the online resources and collections including on Ancestry and iMuseum.

Those looking to use Ancestry would be given a code by staff with access to the tool only provided within the library and archive facility.

Chairwoman of the Isle of Man Family History Society Maggie Mulhern said having access to documents like the 1921 census, "helps add colour to our family stories".