In the last year or so, many of the civil registration records are coming online. Most of these are available for free via www.irishgenealogy.ie and digital images of the original record can be downloaded. Civil registration started in 1864 for most records. Prior to this, one has to rely on church records for tracing further back and these can be very helpful indeed or not at all – coverage is patchy and most records peter out around 1800-1830. However, all of Ireland is covered by two websites and most of this research can be done from the comfort of your own home.