Natalie is a full-time professional genealogist, educator and author with many years of family history research experience. She undertakes ancestral research throughout the UK and Ireland, specializing in Irish and Scots-Irish research. A native of County Antrim, she has a Postgraduate Certificate in Genealogical Studies from the University of Strathclyde and is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists. Natalie is a frequent speaker on the local, national and international circuits on Irish genealogy topics and delivers regular genealogy courses with a focus on Irish records. Her company, Roots Revealed  (https://rootsrevealed.co.uk/), is based in Ballymena, Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland. Her first book, Tracing Your Family History Using Irish Newspapers and Other Printed Material, was published by Pen and Sword in February 2024.

Session: Sunday, 27 October 1:00 - 2:15 p.m. EDT My Ancestors were Irish ... or were they?

Austin Bovenizer was born into a minority community within Irish society. He belongs to a group descended from German Palatines who settled in Ireland in 1709. Raised as a Methodist, Austin grew up amid the rhythms of Palatine farming in Killeheen, one of the three main Palatine colonies in County Limerick. His family’s farm has supported nine generations since the arrival of Johann Adam Bubeheiser in 1709.

In addition to his Bovenizer lineage, Austin’s family connections include the Delmage, Legear, Shier, and Switzer families, all uncommon surnames in Ireland, creating a network of kinship that spans both maternal and paternal lines. This deep-rooted sense of heritage fuels his passion as the driving force behind the Irish Palatine Association, which he co-founded in 1989. In 2013, he was given the Eula C. Lapp Award by Ontario Ancestors’ Irish Palatine SIG in recognition of his work in preserving Irish Palatine heritage.

Session: Sunday, 27 October 2:30 - 3:45 p.m. EDT Irish Palatine: An Alternative Irish Heritage

Claire Bradley is a professional Irish genealogist working with both traditional paper records and genetic genealogy. She holds a Certificate in Genealogy from University College Dublin and an MA in History of the Family from the University of Limerick. Claire is passionate about teaching people how to research their own ancestry. She teaches a beginners’ adult education course that covers all the Irish major sources in Dublin, now running for over a decade. In 2022, she was appointed the Director of Irish Studies with the International Institute of Genealogical Studies. She regularly lectures both in person and online to a wide range of family history and historical societies in Ireland, the UK and countries with large Irish diasporas. Details are available at www.cbgenealogy.ie.

Session: Saturday, 26 October 12:30 - 1:45 p.m. EDT How to Use Hints: an Irish Case Study

John Grenham was Project Manager with the Irish Genealogical Project from 1991 to 1995 and later went on to develop and market his own genealogical software, Grenham’s Irish Recordfinder. In 2005, he was the first genealogist-in-residence at Dublin City Library. He was awarded a fellowship of The Irish Genealogical Research Society in 2007 and of the Genealogical Society of Ireland in 2010. John is the author of Tracing Your Irish Ancestors (5th edition, 2019), the standard reference guide for Irish genealogy, The Atlantic Coast of Ireland (2014), An Illustrated History of Ireland (1997), and Clans and Families of Ireland (1995), among other works. He wrote the "Irish Roots" column in The Irish Times from 2009 to 2016 and ran the Irish Ancestors website in conjunction with The Irish Times until 2016. He now runs the successor website at www.johngrenham.com and develops heritage databases.

Session: Sunday, 27 October 11:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. EDT Mapping Ireland's Records

Martin McDowell has a BA Honours Degree in Modern and Ancient History as well as a Further and Adult Education Teaching Certificate. Martin’s lifelong interest in local history and family history was reignited after he got his first DNA test in 2012.  He is the Education Officer of the North of Ireland Family History Society, the DNA Officer on the Executive Committee of the Family History Federation, and a co-administrator of the FTDNA North of Ireland project. He has been a speaker for Legacy Family Tree webinars and Genetic Genealogy Ireland. The goal of his talks is to make DNA research understandable to the average person and to encourage more people to embrace the rewards of DNA testing.

Session: Saturday, 26 October 10:45 - 12:00 p.m. EDT Using DNA in the North of Ireland

William Roulston was awarded a PhD in Archaeology by Queen’s University Belfast in 2004. He began working for the Ulster Historical Foundation in 1997 and has been its Research Director since 2006. He has written and edited a number of publications on different aspects of Irish and, in particular, Ulster history. These include Abercorn: The Hamiltons of Barons Court (2014), Researching Scots-Irish Ancestors (2nd edition, 2018), Researching Presbyterian Ancestors in Ireland (2020), and Researching Farming Ancestors in Ireland (2021).

Session: Saturday, 26 October 9:15 - 10:30 a.m.  EDT Researching Farming Ancestors in Ireland