PRONI Getting Started Workshop - Dungiven Library

What to Expect

This one-hour workshop at Dungiven Library introduces attendees to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, PRONI, for anyone thinking of starting family history or local history research. Run by the DfC Engaged Communities Group as part of the PRONI on Tour outreach programme, the session walks through PRONI’s online services and record collections, from church and civil records to valuation and estate papers, and gives participants a chance to put questions directly to PRONI staff who travel out from Belfast for the event. It is aimed at complete beginners rather than experienced researchers, making it a practical starting point for anyone hoping to trace ancestors, research a family townland, or dig into the wider history of the Dungiven and Roe Valley area. Staff typically demonstrate how to search PRONI’s eCatalogue and digitised record sets from a home computer or library terminal, so attendees can continue their research after the session ends. The workshop runs alongside a related folklore and reminiscence session, Now We’re Talking, held at the same library later the same afternoon, letting visitors combine practical record-searching skills with a look at the area’s oral history and folklore traditions in a single trip to the library.

Good to Know

• Tuesday 18 August 2026, 12.00pm to 1.00pm
• Booking via Eventbrite
• Aimed at beginners starting family or local history research, no prior experience needed
• PRONI staff attend in person to answer questions and demonstrate online search tools
• Held at Dungiven Library on Main Street
• Part of the wider PRONI on Tour outreach programme, which brings genealogy support to libraries across Northern Ireland
• Pairs naturally with the Now We’re Talking folklore screening at the same venue that afternoon

Getting There

Dungiven Library is on Main Street in the centre of Dungiven, within walking distance of the town’s bus stops and on-street parking. Dungiven sits on the main Derry to Belfast road through the Sperrins, making the library easy to reach from surrounding towns and villages.