asked the Minister for Justice if he will make a statement on the nature of the information contained in the Blake Papers recently acquired by his Department; and if he will make copies available to voluntary bodies that may be interested.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Blake Papers.
62.
The papers in question, which were presented to the Public Record Office early this year, comprise a very large collection of documents relating to the Blake estate at Ballyglunin and elsewhere in County Galway, to property in or near Galway, and to the activities of the Blake family in public life. The preliminary examination and arrangement of the documents, which range in years from the 17th to the 19th century—approximately 1630 to 1890—have been completed and they are now being listed.
Based on the preliminary examination and arrangement of the papers, the main topics have been classified under the headings of Estate deeds and papers, Maps and plans, Wage Books, Rentals and accounts, Law cases relating to the Blake family and others, Correspondence, Local affairs (Galway City and County), Galway elections, Testamentary documents and Newspapers and miscellaneous.
The documents may be inspected by interested persons at the Public Record Office and copies made on payment of the appropriate fees as set out in the Public Records (Fees) Order, 1955— S.I. No. 53 of 1955. The fees charged for negative photostat copies or microfilm copies are low and particularly attractive to voluntary bodies and persons interested in learning more about the past through the country's records.