S04EP06 - 'The Politician' with Claire Bradley

The Family Histories Podcast

In this sixth episode of Series Four, Andrew meets Irish professional genealogist Claire Bradley. He'll be finding out how she got hooked on family history, the impact of the Irish Civil War on her family history research, how she's teaching genealogists, and her time as a genealogist in control of the national @Ireland twitter account.
The Life Story - Michael Joyce
Claire has chosen her 2x Great Grandfather, Michael Joyce who was born in Limerick, County Limerick, Ireland, in 1851.
Michael was both a Mayor of Limerick, and a Member of Parliament (MP) in the UK Government.
His journey to politics was quite eventful, seeing him survive four shipwrecks, and another one involving a torpedo during later life, but he remained dedicated to the people he served almost until his death in 1941.
The Brick Wall - Thomas Reilly
It's a brick wall that's seemingly in Cork, Ireland, that's giving Claire a headache.
She's looking for the marriage and earlier life of a Thomas Reilly, who married Elizabeth Murphy. The challenge is that those two surnames are very common in Ireland, and she has already manually gone through all the Thomas Reilly's that she can find, leaving her with just two men, neither of whom she can prove are her Thomas Reilly.
Where was Thomas Reilly really from, and where did he marry Elizabeth Murphy?
If you think that you can help Claire with a clue or research idea, then you can contact her directly at her twitter account (@CBGenealogy), her Facebook Page, or her website. Alternatively, you can send a message via our contact form, and we'll pass it on to her.
In the meantime, Claire accepts Andrew's offer, but will he really able to help her?
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Episode Credits
Series Four, Episode Six:

• Andrew Martin - Host and Producer
• Claire Bradley - Guest

Show notes and more at: familyhistoriespodcast.com

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Chapters

1. Intro (00:00:00)

2. The Interview - Claire Bradley (00:00:54)

3. The Life Story - Michael Joyce (00:23:01)

4. The Brick Wall - Thomas Reilly and Elizabeth Murphy (00:39:25)

5. The Departure (00:48:13)