Fiona is a founder and Director of Eneclann, a Trinity College Campus Company established in 1998, that specialises in history and heritage services.
As Eneclann’s Research director, she plays a key role in developing and ensuring quality in the company’s digital publications and online resources atwww.irishorigins.com and findmypast Ireland.
Since 1998 Fiona and the Eneclann genealogy team have completed over 15,000 research commissions, including Irish research for Who Do You Think You Are?, Faces of America and Finding Your Roots (PBS), Ancestors during the Famine (RTE), and other research for broadcast including the Oscar nominated film, Albert Nobbs.
Since June 2012, Fiona has been the project manager of the Genealogy Advisory Service in the National Library and National Archives of Ireland. She has introduced a mentoring system, and continuous professional development for all genealogists, to ensure a standard of excellence for all visitors that attend this free service.
Fiona and the Eneclann research team are occasionally requested to make private presentations to V.I.P. visitors to Ireland, on behalf of the Irish government. In April 2013 Fiona presented Tom Cruise with his Irish family history, in a private audience hosted by the Department of Foreign Affairs. In June 2013, Fiona gave Michelle Obama and her daughters a presentation on President Obama’s Irish family history, complete with wigs, in an event held at Trinity College Dublin.
Fiona lives in Dublin with her husband and three young sons.
Web sites
Publications
- In 2009-10 – a monthly column for Ancestor – the magazine of the National Archives UK
- Since October 2012 – a feature article in every edition of the monthly online magazine IrishLivesRemembered.
- academic history publications
Topics
- Getting started in Irish family history (beginners)
- Online sources for Irish family history (beginners and intermediate)
- How do you think, WDYTYA is done (beginners and intermediate)
- Where can I find that? Tracing records by administrative districts (beginners and intermediate)
- Using land records in Irish family history (intermediate)
- The Registry of Deeds, a unique source for Irish family history 1708 to the present (can be pitched to both intermediate and advanced levels)
- Pre-1800 genealogy (intermediate and advanced)
- Pre-1952 adoptions (advanced)
- Lesser known Irish records and repositories for family history (intermediate and advanced)
- Tracing families in business in Ireland – urban guilds and Freemen 1600s to 1840 (intermediate and advanced)
