Research
Fitzpatrick Multimedia Archive (FMA)
The Fitzpatrick Multimedia Archive (FMA) is an electronic resource of content relating to the Manuscript, Family, and Published Sources for the Fitzpatrick Nation. It has evolved from the work of Steve Zalewski and Ronan Fitzpatrick as part of their collaborative research for their publication, The Descendants of Bryan Fitzpatrick, Lord and First Baron of Upper Ossory (2013). This work referred to extensive research sources, acquired copies of multimedia artifacts and recorded Fitzpatrick genealogical details with information of where these sources, artifacts and details can be accessed. The Archive merges these sources, multimedia acquisitions and Fitzpatrick genealogy records, as charted using Ancestral Quest, a genealogical program, for easy access and viewing by researchers.
The FMA consists of two parts – the descriptions and the sources. The descriptions of each entry in the FMA refer to many different electronic formats including electronic scans, photographs, documents, portraits, engravings, presentations, and similar multimedia. Each description is supported by its source which typically includes the author, year, title, publisher, repository, call number and a link to where it can be accessed online if appropriate.
The descriptions and sources are the principal components of the Archive and complement each other to describe each Archive entry more fully. The Archive may be scrolled in its entirety if desired. However, it is often more productive to limit the search to certain multimedia types, or specific family lines. In addition, individual items in the FMA may be accessed using a keyword search of the descriptions and may also be combined with family line and/or multimedia filters. To honour copyright requirements, the FMA displays copyright protected items through access to internet websites that contain the copyrighted content. This is achieved through a seamless link to the appropriate website followed by returning to the FMA. A complete catalog of the Archive will be available at the Research tab of the Fitzpatrick – Mac Giolla Phádraig Clan Society website.
The FMA requires the availability of three programs: Microsoft 365, Irfanview (a free graphics viewer), and Foxit PDF Reader (a free PDF reader). These programs function together to search and display the content of interest. These files may be installed on either a separate PC or a networked PC. The current size of the FMA including the multimedia files and application is 750MB so sufficient hard disk space should be allotted.
The Fitzpatrick Multimedia Archive currently consists of 350 entries and will grow as new content is discovered and added. Additional documentation for the FMA includes an Installation Manual and User Manual. Both manuals are available on the Research tab of The Fitzpatrick - Mac Giolla Phádraig Clan Society website. The website also contains a complete catalogue of The Archive.
Referencing This Work:
Zalewski, Steve & Fitzpatrick, Ronan (2021) Fitzpatrick Multimedia Archive: an electronic resource of the Manuscript, Family, and Published Sources for the Fitzpatrick Nation, Bend, Oregon : Upper Ossory Press, instructions for free download available at: https://fitzpatricksociety.com/research-2/.
Click to watch video on the FMA.
The Collection
The Collection of Fitzpatrick Research is a database of Fitzpatrick names, events, dates and places contributed by over 130 Fitzpatrick researchers worldwide and currently contains over 14,000 Fitzpatrick events. These events include, but are not limited to, births, baptisms, marriages, deaths, and burials. The Collection standardizes the format of the information submitted and organizes the resultant data into sorted lists to facilitate searching. If you have MSOffice 365, a PC application will be provided that makes searching by given name and/or location easier. The application and reports are made available to only those that have submitted Fitzpatricks to the database. The Collection is for the use of contributors to augment their own research and is expressly forbidden to be published on the internet or reproduced in any publication or in any electronic media.
Click the video above to watch The Collection of Fitzpatrick Research V.3 Tutorial.
The objective of The Collection is two-fold. The first objective is to consolidate the Fitzpatrick research of all participants into a single location and make this research available to all participants. The second objective is to facilitate the sharing of genealogical information by providing leads for contributors to contact each other when there is a likelihood of a common ancestor. These leads are achieved by comparing each entry in The Collection with all other entries in The Collection and reporting on the matches. The methodology involves collecting the research submitted and converting it into a common format. Placing a person in a known location at a known date is the goal for each event entry. Names, events, dates, locations, and the contributor’s name are the primary data items for each entry. In some cases, sources and comments may also be included.
To provide a higher probability for a match between entries of different contributors, as well as a providing a workable searching mechanism, a standard format is required. Files may be submitted in GEDCOM, CSV, TXT, or spreadsheet format and each file will be converted into the standard format. This format will contain a surname, given name, event, date, and location. All items must be present to be included in The Collection. In addition, the following criteria must also be met:
Surname: Must be a Fitzpatrick surname or close variant.
Given name: Must be a viable name or an initial. Cannot be blank, “Unknown”, “?”, “child”, “son”, “daughter” or similar names.
Event: An event in a person’s life that creates a document that can corroborate the name, date and location of the event. Common events are births, baptisms, marriages, deaths, and burials but may also include immigration, christenings, censuses, court proceedings, et. al.
Date: The date of the event with the right-most 4 characters indicating the year.
Location: The place of the event. The location may have up to four jurisdictional levels separated by commas. The smallest jurisdiction is at the left, larger jurisdictions to the right. A maximum of 30 characters per jurisdiction is permitted.
A minimum of 4 complete Fitzpatrick name, date, event, and location groups must be submitted by a contributor in order to be included in the database. Each entry satisfying the screening criteria will then be added to The Collection along with the name of the person submitting that entry. Files may be submitted in GEDCOM, spreadsheet, or document format as described below.
These files should be emailed to szalewski2000@yahoo.com before December 1, 2020. Only one GEDCOM file from each person will be accepted prior to that date and no files will be accepted after that date.