National Archives brings Census 1926 on the road with a series of tour dates across Ireland

The Story of Us exhibition will travel to 10 Local Authority venues as well as the Ploughing Championships over the coming months

As part of the release of the 1926 Census, the National Archives will bring a specially curated exhibition, The Story of Us to 11 venues across Ireland over the coming months as part of its public engagement programme developed to accompany the launch of Census 1926.

Now the Story of Us exhibition will begin a tour to 10 Local Authority venues over the coming months including Meath, Donegal, Wexford, Waterford, Cork, Limerick, Kildare, Westmeath, Kerry and Tipperary. It will also be presented at the Ploughing Championships at Screggan, Co. Offaly.

Local Authorities were invited by the National Archives to host the exhibition which explores what life was like in the newly independent Ireland of 1926. Using contemporary documents and images, audio-visual displays and, above all, the census returns themselves, The Story of Us explores the 1926 census to present a picture of life in Ireland in 1926: from sport and entertainment to language, culture, religion, gender and the working lives of the inhabitants of the Irish Free State a century ago.

Speaking in advance of the tour, Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O’Donovan TD, said:

Orlaith McBride, Director of the National Archives, said:

The National Archives released Census 1926 on 18th April 2026, making it freely available and fully searchable on www.nationalarchives.ie. The newly released records provide an unprecedented resource, allowing users to efficiently navigate detailed household returns from 1926 for the first time. Since its release, there have been over 40 million hits to the National Archives website.

The preparation of the 1926 Census for public release has been a major project for the National Archives and the State, supported by a €5 million Government investment. The initiative which took almost three years, saw the careful conservation, preservation, high-resolution digitisation, and transcription of over 750,000 individual household and enumerator returns.

ENDS

Note for editors

Full details of Exhibition Tour

• Meath – St Marys’s Community Centre, Navan, 13 – 28 June
• Kildare – Naas Library & Cultural Centre, 4 – 28 July 2026
• Cork – St. Peter’s, Cork, 7 – 26 July 2026
• Waterford – Central Library, Waterford City, 1 – 20 August 2026
• Wexford – Wexford County Council, County Hall, 4 – 21 August 2026
• Westmeath – Westmeath County Council Buildings, 25 August – 11 September 2026
• National Ploughing Championships – Screggan, Co. Offaly, 15 – 17 September 2026
• Kerry – Kerry County Library Tralee, 1 – 17 October 2026
• Limerick – Civic Offices, Merchants Quay, 2 – 16 October 2026
• Tipperary – Source Arts Centre Thurles, 2 – 21 November 2026
• Donegal – Donegal County Museum, Letterkenny, 25 November – 20 December 2026

About the National Archives of Ireland

The National Archives preserves the memory of the State in the form of its written records. It acquires and protects Ireland’s public records, thereby ensuring their availability as a resource for all. These records relate to the social, cultural, economic and political history of the island of Ireland from the Middle Ages through to the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922 and into the modern era.