Samuel Lewis (1) (–1865)

This esteemed work contains every fact of importance tending to illustrate the local history of Ireland. Arranged alphabetically by place (village, parish, town, etc.), it provides a faithful description of all Irish localities as they existed at the time of publication (1837), showing, for example, exactly where a particular civil parish was located in relation to the nearest town or towns, the barony, county, and province in which it was situated, its principal landowners, the diocese in which it was situated, and--of great importance--the Roman Catholic district in which the parish was located and the names of corresponding Catholic parishes. In addition, Lewis's gazetteer is augmented with engravings of the arms and seals of the various towns and boroughs in Ireland, an appendix showing the boundaries of the cities and boroughs, and a list of nearly 10,000 subscribers to the original publication, in effect a list of the Irish gentry of 1837.… (mais)