Tracing Your Roots in County Antrim: A Heritage Plan for the Irish Diaspora

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If your family left Ireland from the north, there is a good chance County Antrim is where your story begins. Antrim gave the world some of its most remarkable emigrants. The Ulster-Scots who crossed the Atlantic in the 18th century shaped the American South, the Appalachians, and hundreds of communities across the United States and Canada. Tracing your Irish roots in County Antrim takes you to one of the most historically rich corners of the island.

Whether your ancestors were Presbyterian farmers from the Glens, fishing families from Ballycastle, or linen weavers from the inland parishes, County Antrim has records and places waiting for you.

Why County Antrim Matters to the Irish Diaspora

County Antrim sits in the north-east corner of Ireland. It is part of Northern Ireland, which forms part of the United Kingdom. But for the diaspora, that boundary matters far less than the human story behind it. For more on the legends and history that shaped the Ulster landscape, read our piece on the Red Hand of Ulster.

Between 1717 and 1776, an estimated 250,000 Ulster-Scots crossed the Atlantic. Many came from Antrim, Derry, Down, and Tyrone. They settled in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the Carolinas. They spread across Appalachia and became a distinct cultural force — Presbyterian, tough, and determined.

These were your ancestors. They built homesteads in the Blue Ridge and the Smoky Mountains. They carried Gaelic and Scots-Irish surnames across the water. Names like Boyd, McCann, McAuley, McKay, and McDonnell were common in Antrim. The same names appear in American census records two generations later.

If you have ever felt both Irish and something older — something harder to name — Antrim is often the answer.

The Story the Glens of Antrim Still Hold

Stand in the Glens of Antrim at dusk. Nine valleys run down from the Antrim plateau to the sea. Each one has its own character. Glenariff is lush and forested. Glendun is quiet and narrow. Glenarm feels ancient in a way that takes time to place.

It was in these glens that families farmed for generations before the Atlantic called them away. On a summer evening in the 1740s, a family from the parish of Layd near Cushendall sat around their turf fire for the last time. The next morning, they sailed from Larne with little more than the names they carried.

The McDonnell and McAuley clans held the Glens for centuries. Irish-American families in Pennsylvania and the Carolinas still sing songs rooted in Antrim. Tunes from the Glens crossed the ocean and became Appalachian ballads. The landscape shaped the music. The music survived the crossing.

Going back to Antrim is not just a genealogy trip. It is a way of hearing the original note.

Key Genealogy Records for Tracing Your Antrim Roots

Research in County Antrim works differently from the Republic. Most records for Northern Ireland are held at a separate archive. Here is where to start.

PRONI — Public Record Office of Northern Ireland

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) in Belfast holds the core genealogical records for County Antrim. These include:

• Church registers (Presbyterian, Church of Ireland, Catholic, Methodist)
• Estate papers and landlord records
• Petty sessions and court records
• Valuation revision books, updated annually from the 1860s
• Freeholders’ records and poll books

PRONI is free to visit and sits at 2 Titanic Boulevard in Belfast, close to the Titanic Belfast museum. Many records are also searchable online at nidirect.gov.uk/proni.

IrishGenealogy.ie

The 1901 and 1911 Irish Census records are free at IrishGenealogy.ie — and they cover all of Ireland, including County Antrim. Search your family surname alongside a townland or parish name. Civil registration records for births, deaths, and marriages are also here. Northern Ireland registered births and deaths from 1 January 1864, and Catholic marriages from 1 April 1878.

Griffith’s Valuation

The Griffith’s Valuation survey (1847–1864) covered County Antrim in full. It recorded every landholder and tenant by name, townland, and parish. Search it free at askaboutireland.ie. If your Antrim ancestor left before 1864, this is often the last record that placed them in a specific location. Read our full guide to using Griffith’s Valuation for Irish genealogy research.

Presbyterian Church Records

Many Antrim families were Presbyterian, not Catholic. If you cannot find your ancestor in Catholic parish registers, search Presbyterian records instead. PRONI holds registers for dozens of congregations in County Antrim. Some go back to the 1690s — nearly 200 years before civil registration began.

For more on how to find the records that place your family in a specific place, see our guide to how Irish-Americans find their ancestral townland.

Your 5-Day County Antrim Heritage Itinerary

This plan suits first-time visitors with Irish roots in Antrim. You will cover the key archives, the major heritage sites, and the landscapes your ancestors knew before they left.

Day 1 — Belfast: Start at the Archive

Fly into Belfast International Airport or George Best City Airport. Head to PRONI at Titanic Boulevard. Book your reader’s ticket online in advance — it is free. Spend the afternoon searching church records and estate papers for your family name.

In the evening, walk the Cathedral Quarter. Or visit the Ulster Museum on the Botanic Gardens campus. The museum holds artefacts covering 9,000 years of life on the island.

Day 2 — Carrickfergus and the North Coast

Drive north from Belfast along the A2. Stop at Carrickfergus Castle — one of the best-preserved Norman fortifications in Ireland, standing since 1177. Your ancestors would have known this as a symbol of power on the Antrim coast.

Continue along the Causeway Coastal Route. Stop at Ballygally, a quiet village with a 17th-century castle now used as a hotel. Arrive in Ballycastle for the night.

Day 3 — The Glens of Antrim

The nine Glens are the ancestral heartland for many diaspora families. Drive into Glenariff Forest Park — the broadest of the glens, known as the Queen of the Glens. Walk the Waterfall Trail. It takes about an hour through ancient woodland.

Then head to Cushendall. The village of Layd, just outside town, holds a ruined medieval church with graves going back centuries. Many Glens families are recorded here. Visit the Glens of Antrim Historical Society for local research help (open seasonally).

Day 4 — Giant’s Causeway and the Causeway Coast

Drive west to the Giant’s Causeway. Its 40,000 interlocking basalt columns are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Your ancestors walked here. The Causeway features in Irish mythology as the path built by the giant Finn McCool.

Stop at Dunluce Castle — a dramatic cliff-edge ruin near Portrush. Then visit Bushmills Distillery, licensed since 1608 and the world’s oldest licensed whiskey distillery.

Day 5 — Final Archive Day and Cave Hill

Return to Belfast. If PRONI did not give you what you needed on Day 1, try again with different search terms. Visit the Ulster Historical Foundation at records.ulst.ac.uk — they hold additional databases and carry out professional research for Northern Ireland families.

Before you leave, walk up to Cave Hill. From the summit, you can see across Antrim, Down, and on a clear day, Scotland. Your ancestors stood on this hill and saw the same view before they crossed the sea.

Famous Americans with County Antrim Roots

County Antrim shaped a remarkable slice of American history. Andrew Jackson, the seventh US President, had parents from County Antrim — his father arrived from Carrickfergus. Chester Arthur, the 21st US President, had paternal roots in Antrim. Davy Crockett had Ulster-Scots ancestry tracing back to the north of Ireland.

The Boyds, McMullans, and McAllisters who settled in the Appalachians carried Antrim character with them. If your surname is any of these, Antrim almost certainly appears somewhere in your family tree.

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Practical Tips for Your Antrim Heritage Trip

• When to go: May to September gives the best weather for the Causeway Coast. The Glens are beautiful year-round but can be very wet from November to February.
• Where to stay: Ballycastle and Cushendall are the best bases for Glens research. Belfast suits archive days. The Causeway Hotel at Giant’s Causeway is the most atmospheric option on the coast.
• Hiring a researcher: If you cannot visit in person, PRONI runs a paid research service. The Ulster Historical Foundation also provides professional genealogy searches for Northern Ireland families.
• Getting around: A hire car is essential. Public transport in rural Antrim is limited. The Causeway Coastal Route is one of the world’s great driving roads.
• How long do you need: Five days covers the key sites and archives. Add two more if you want to search parish-level records in depth.

For a broader framework, read our guide to planning an Irish heritage trip to your ancestral county. Our 5-day heritage plan for County Tipperary shows how the same approach works across the island.

Frequently Asked Questions About County Antrim Genealogy

What genealogy records are available for County Antrim?

The main records are at PRONI in Belfast. These cover church registers (Catholic, Presbyterian, Church of Ireland), estate papers, valuation books, and petty sessions records. Civil registration births and deaths start from 1864 and are searchable at IrishGenealogy.ie. The 1901 and 1911 census records are also free on that site.

How do I find my ancestors’ townland in County Antrim?

Search Griffith’s Valuation (1847–1864) at askaboutireland.ie using your family surname and county. This gives you a specific townland. Then use that townland to search PRONI records. IrishGenealogy.ie also allows townland-level searches for many Antrim parishes.

Were most Antrim emigrants Catholic or Presbyterian?

Both. The Glens of Antrim had a strong Gaelic Catholic community — the McDonnell and McAuley clans especially. The inland parishes and those near Belfast had a large Presbyterian population. These were the Ulster-Scots who left for America in their thousands from 1717 onwards. If you cannot find your ancestor in Catholic records, try Presbyterian church registers at PRONI.

Is County Antrim part of the Republic of Ireland?

No. County Antrim is in Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. However, IrishGenealogy.ie and most major genealogy databases cover all 32 counties. Antrim ancestors can be researched using the same online tools as families from the Republic.

Can I visit PRONI without a prior booking?

You need a reader’s ticket to access original documents at PRONI. Getting one is simple and free — book online in advance at nidirect.gov.uk/proni. The archive is open Monday to Saturday. Walk-in access for general enquiries is also available at the front desk.

Begin Your Antrim Heritage Journey

County Antrim shaped a huge part of the Irish diaspora. Its people left for America, Canada, Australia, and beyond. But they left behind names, records, and landscapes that still remember them.

If you want to start tracing your family tree from scratch, our cornerstone guide to how to trace your Irish ancestry covers every record type and archive across all 32 counties of Ireland. Start there, then narrow your search to Antrim when you have a county name to work with.

The Glens are green. The basalt columns of the Giant’s Causeway have stood for 60 million years. Your family walked this coast before they crossed the ocean. It is time to walk it again.

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