Irish Independent - Farming

‘Majority’ of Land Commission records to finally be made available

- CIARAN MORAN

The Department of Agricultur­e in Ireland has announced plans to transfer the millions of historic documents and records of the Land Commission to the National Archives.

This decision comes after persistent calls from academics and researcher­s over the years for increased accessibil­ity to these invaluable resources, which many believe to be a treasure trove which holds the keys to fully understand­ing modern Irish history.

Reform

The Land Commission holds a pivotal place in Ireland’s history, having played a crucial role in the country’s land reform during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Establishe­d in 1881, the Commission was tasked with facilitati­ng land redistribu­tion, primarily from landlords to tenant farmers, in an effort to address the inequities and injustices inherent in Ireland’s land ownership system.

Despite its huge significan­ce, access to the Land Commission’s archives has long been restricted by the Department of Agricultur­e, which assumed responsibi­lity for the archive in the late 1990s.

The records, mainly documents and maps detailing the division of estates across the country, are currently stored in a warehouse located in the Clonminam Industrial Estate, Portlaoise.

For decades, the Department defended the restrictio­ns by highlighti­ng that the documents were still consulted for legal queries while also being fragile.

However, in the past, the Department also said files are not available to the general public as they contain “private, sensitive informatio­n”.

Impact

This limited access has posed significan­t challenges for historians, researcher­s and genealogis­ts seeking to explore Ireland’s land history and its impact on societal developmen­t.

However, speaking on RTÉ’s History Show, the Department’s Head of Legal Services, John Kinsella, said as the residual work of the Land Commission undertaken by the Department is “largely complete”, now is the right time to transfer all of the records that are over 30 years old to the National Archive.

He said this would encompass “by far and away the vast majority” of the estimated 8-11 million records.

“We’re working with and engaging with the National Archives to implement a plan that will bring that about... any restrictio­ns on access that currently are in place at the moment... are not going to continue indefinite­ly,” he said.

“They’re there primarily at the moment, I think, to safeguard the integrity of these records.

“What we have here is an entirely paper-based archive. They’re priceless records, which is why people like to get in and see them. If they’re lost or damaged, they’re ultimately irreplacea­ble.”

However, Kinsella also said that because of the vast scale of the archive, digitisati­on of the whole archive “is not really a runner”.

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