PRONI

PRONI The official page of the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, the Official Archive for Northern Ireland, part of Communities NI.

Protecting and Providing Archives for All. PRONI is open to the public by prior appointment only. Visit www.nidirect.gov.uk/proni for further details.

Happy , folks!🗺️Today’s map is of Lisburn and shows the growth of the town between 1630 and 1940.The map was created by...
01/06/2026

Happy , folks!🗺️

Today’s map is of Lisburn and shows the growth of the town between 1630 and 1940.

The map was created by the Lisburn Urban District Town Planning Scheme in Co. Antrim and includes a key that highlights buildings, land, public spaces, roads, rivers, and the boundary of the urban district.

The map shows just how far Lisburn developed, with there being only a couple of buildings in 1630, including a school, church, and the castle. This expansion can be seen in comparison to the 1940s map, where we can see the development of many buildings, roads, and areas such as Wallace Park and the Lisburn golf course.✨

PRONI Ref – D2278/3

Did you know that we have our own dedicated YouTube Channel?🎬If you want to catch up on a talk that you were at, or view...
29/05/2026

Did you know that we have our own dedicated YouTube Channel?🎬

If you want to catch up on a talk that you were at, or view a talk that you missed, there is a possibility that you can find it on our channel.

There are hundreds of videos covering subjects such as family and local history, emigration and women in history.📖

So why not visit us at PRONIonline and give us a like and subscribe 😊👍

www.youtube.com/

Today’s is another photograph from the McAlpine collection whereby we ask you for your help in identifying the locatio...
27/05/2026

Today’s is another photograph from the McAlpine collection whereby we ask you for your help in identifying the location. 🔍

The information that we have so far is that this photograph was taken in April 1964 with the information “Photograph of unidentified road junction in East Belfast.”🏚️

Hopefully, some of you can remember this area. If you do, please put your info in the comments below. 👇

As always, we appreciate all your help in aiding us to put a detailed description to this archive.

PRONI Ref D4977/11/80. Image courtesy of Mr Philip McAlpine.

We are delighted that the Now We’re Talking project will feature in this year’s Docs Ireland Festival. Join us to celeb...
26/05/2026

We are delighted that the Now We’re Talking project will feature in this year’s Docs Ireland Festival.

Join us to celebrate the legacy of Michael J. Murphy and Sam Hanna Bell through film, archive and lived memory. This special event will take place in PRONI at 1pm on the 18th June and at Tí Chulainn, Mullaghbane, Co. Armagh, at 7pm on the 20th June.

Tickets are free but must be reserved in advance:
PRONI Event - https://bit.ly/4tUdi26
Tí Chulainn Event - https://bit.ly/4dFhKvk

PRONI staff and some of our Now We’re Talking project partners were at the launch of the festival programme at the QFT yesterday.

The Now We’re Talking project is supported by an Archives Revealed consortium grant.

26/05/2026

Minister Gordon Lyons MLA has launched another milestone in the journey – ‘Ulster American Treasures: The Migration Story’, the latest publication by PRONI. 🇺🇸

👀 Find out more by following the link in the comments below. 👇

The Youth Justice Agency Exhibition is now open at PRONI! 🎉On Wednesday we welcomed the Youth Justice Agency to PRONI fo...
24/05/2026

The Youth Justice Agency Exhibition is now open at PRONI! 🎉

On Wednesday we welcomed the Youth Justice Agency to PRONI for the launch of the YJA Art Exhibition. It was an opportunity for the artists, who are all children engaged with YJA’s Belfast Team, Eastern Team and Woodland’s Juvenile Justice Centre, their families and statutory partners to see their work on display for the first time, all accompanied by a DJ set by one of the participants.

The exhibition will be running until the end of June.

Aoife Harvey and Archie Brine presented posters relating to their internships with our Private Records team at Queen’s U...
22/05/2026

Aoife Harvey and Archie Brine presented posters relating to their internships with our Private Records team at Queen’s University Belfast yesterday. Aoife and Archie are both students on the MA in Public History programme at QUB.

PRONI co-hosted Aoife’s internship with Cara-Friend. As part of her internship, Aoife catalogued additional papers within the Cara-Friend archive. Archie organised and catalogued papers within the archives of Michael J Murphy and Sam Hanna Bell archive. He also supported the team delivering the Now We’re Talking project.

Congratulations to Archie and Aoife!

22/05/2026

Happy !✨

In this UTV video from 1964, reporter Jimmy Greene speaks with a Mr Marks about the latest revolution in women’s hair. Apparently, this was the first time cosmetic colouring became available, and Marks explains that the colouring shades normally used for makeup would be extended “over the hairline” for the first time.

As is typical of many reports from the period, no one thinks to ask the women themselves whether this is a useful development or not, despite many of them standing around in the background. 🪮✂️

Clips Courtesy of UTV © ITV and Northland Films Ltd.

Northern Ireland Screen

Today marks World Day for Cultural Diversity!🌍These paintings were completed by award-winning artist Kwabena Adomako Gye...
21/05/2026

Today marks World Day for Cultural Diversity!🌍

These paintings were completed by award-winning artist Kwabena Adomako Gyedu, who was named Ghanaian Artist of the Year in 1989. The first painting is titled Deep Inside, and the second is titled Them Bellyful. Kwabena’s work depicts themes of social and cultural significance while also addressing global issues.

These artworks can be found on the front and back covers of Disability Arts Magazine from 1991. The magazine’s main goal was to advocate for disability rights and promote equality within the arts scene in Northern Ireland.

The Disability Arts Magazine is part of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland collection at PRONI. This collection includes a wide range of materials that celebrate cultural diversity across visual arts, drama, and music.

PRONI Ref: AC/7/87

Today marks the anniversary of writer and folklore collector Michael J. Murphy. Murphy was born on 13 July 1913 in Liver...
18/05/2026

Today marks the anniversary of writer and folklore collector Michael J. Murphy.

Murphy was born on 13 July 1913 in Liverpool and died on 18 May 1996. He is buried in Darver Cemetery near Walterstown, Co. Louth, though he spent most of his life in the Slieve Gullion area of south Armagh.

These documents are a collection of cards listing sayings and expressions from Slieve Gullion. Murphy collected them in 1985 and stored them in a postal envelope titled “Sayings of Slieve Gullion.” The expressions cover a range of topics from everyday life and include the context in which they were used.

The Now We’re Talking project, funded by Archives Revealed, has been cataloguing Murphy’s extensive archival collection. In collaboration with the Nerve Centre, a podcast series has been produced about his work, alongside a short film created by pupils of Dromintee Primary School, which he himself attended.
PRONI Ref: D4642/4/1/1

✨For more information on the Now We’re Talking project, see: https://www.proni.gov.uk/now-were-talking-project”

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