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heritage · Saturday 15 August 2026 · 10:30am 
Genealogy Talk/Workshop: Heritage At Risk - The Stories of Your Ancestors
At Thomas MacDonagh Museum · Cloughjourdan, Co. Tipperary
At Thomas MacDonagh Museum · Cloughjourdan, Co. Tipperary
If you have ever wondered where your family came from, or worried that the documents and oral histories connecting you to a place might disappear, this free morning at the Thomas MacDonagh Museum in Cloughjordan is worth making the trip for. The talk and workshop centres on heritage at risk - the records, buildings, and family stories that are slipping away - and gives attendees practical grounding in genealogical research. It suits anyone at the start of a family history search, as well as those who already have a few names and dates and want to go further.
The session is run by the Thomas MacDonagh Museum, a Heritage Council-accredited museum housed in the former MacDonagh family home on Lower Main Street, Cloughjordan. The museum has a dedicated research facility and its collections span local Tipperary heritage from roughly 1840 to 1940 - exactly the period that matters most for tracing Irish ancestors. Expect a guided talk covering how to identify and access genealogical records, what “heritage at risk” means in the Irish context, and how family stories connect to larger historical events. The workshop format means there will be space for questions and discussion, not just a lecture. Bring along any family names, townlands, or dates you already have - that kind of prior knowledge gives the facilitators something to work with and makes the session more useful for you personally.
Cloughjordan is in north Tipperary, roughly equidistant from Nenagh (about 20km west) and Roscrea (about 15km east). By road, the quickest route from Dublin is the M7 motorway to Junction 23 at Moneygall, then the R490 north to Cloughjordan - around 1 hour 45 minutes in normal traffic. From Limerick, allow about an hour via the N7 and R490. The village is also served by rail on the Limerick-Ballybrophy line, and by Bus Eireann Route 854 connecting Roscrea and Nenagh. Free on-street parking is available throughout the village.
Cloughjordan is a quiet north Tipperary village with a good reputation for craft and community projects, including one of Ireland’s better-known eco-villages. A half-day here pairs well with a stop in Nenagh or a drive through the Lough Derg shoreline. There is more to see in Tipperary and across Co. Tipperary.
Heading to Thomas MacDonagh Museum in Tipperary? Tipperary has plenty more to see. Read the Tipperary area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.