A loyal blog reader shared a link to IrelandOldNews, which is a collection of social, political, maritime and criminal news stories transcribed from Irish newspapers of the 18th to early 20th century. The site, found at http://www.irelandoldnews.com/, is an interesting read even if you don't find references to your ancestors. Fern pointed us to this County Cavan story from June, 1878: SINGULAR PHENOMENON AT LOWER CUMBER A singular phenomenon was witnessed here on Wednesday night last, about eleven o’clock. A large fir tree, growing at the gate of the church avenue, appeared all dotted over with twinkling little stars, of a whitish-blue colour, whose rays shed a faint light for some distance around, and filled the surrounding atmosphere with an oppressive and disagreeable odour. These atoms of light in a short time united into a globe of fire at the top of the tree, of a brilliant green, and immediately rose into the air, wafted slowly by a slight breeze – leaving a trail of luminous matter behind it – towards the church tower, against which it struck, smashing the ball into atoms. A few very large drops of rain at this juncture fell, accompanied by a brilliant flash of lightning and followed by a terrific peal of thunder, when the glittering sparks evaporated. – Derry Journal The site also includes an Irish Death Notice Index showing names and dates of obituaries for nearly 55,000 people who were born and/or died in Ireland or who were mentioned in Irish newspapers. You'll find news clips from the 1798 Rebellion as well as Runaway Servant Ads (looking for escaped Irish indentured servants) published in the Pennsylvania Gazette. Fascinating stuff!