From 1 May 2024, BorrowBox will offer library members access to newspapers and magazines as well as eBooks and audiobooks. The Libby and PressReader services will no longer be available to library members.
As illustrated in the ‘Doing their Bit: Irish women and the First World War’ exhibition, women played a central role in the British wartime propaganda campaign, which aimed to both engage the public with the war effort and to persuade volunteers to join the forces. News of German atrocities against Belgian and French civilians were widely reported in the press, with the treatment of women often being emphasised, as this example from the Freeman’s Journal in December 1914 shows.The case of Edith Cavell provided the British government with a propaganda coup which was exploited heavily. Born in December 1865, Cavell was the matron of a nursing school in Brussels when the First World War broke out. Following the German occupation of the city in November 1914, Cavell became involved in providing refuge for escaping Allied prisoners of war and often aided their flight. She was arrested by the German forces in August 1915 and charged with treason; tried by a military court-martial, she was found guilty and, despite the international community pressurising Berlin to commute her death sentence, she was shot by firing squad on 12 October 1915. The execution of Cavell, as well as the press reports of German violence against civilians and the sinking of the Lusitania off the coast of Ireland in May 1915, featured extensively in Allied propaganda. The below postcard from the Monica Roberts collection in Dublin City Library and Archives is typical of the time: Cavell’s status as a martyr is highlighted by the fact that she is depicted still wearing her nurses uniform when executed.Image. Postcard from Monica Roberts Collection, ref RDFA 1.09.135Such propaganda filtered through to the frontline and was often quite effective. Private Joseph Elley, 2nd Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers wrote in a letter home in November 1915 that the execution of Cavell was a ‘brutal affair’ and that ‘All the boys will never forget things like that if they get the chance.’ |Letter DCLA/RDFA1.03.038 from Pte Joseph Elley to Monica Roberts ref RDFA 1.03.038 (page 5 and 6 of letter) Bernard Kelly, Historian in Residence, Dublin City Library and Archive.Dublin City Council Historians in Residence are available to meet groups and schools, give talks, walks etc, run history book clubs and advise on historical research.
Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu (24 August, 1814 – 7 February, 1873) was a newspaper publisher and writer who is best remembered for his classic ghost stories. Born at 45 Lower Dominick Street in Dublin, his family were a mix of Huguenot, English and Irish ancestry.
2018 marks the 100th anniversary of World War 1 Armistice. From working in munitions factories, V.A.D. nursing, supporting the war effort through charitable works, and leading the anti-conscription movement, World War 1 led to a multitude of different experiences for Irish women. Here we read from some archival sources from Dublin City Library and Archive to highlight four Irish women whose lives were impacted by the First World War in very different ways.The four women featured are Anna Haslam, Nora Guilfoyle (pictured right), Monica Roberts and Maeve Cavanagh.Watch Women's Voices 1914 -1918 playlist:Or just listen:Part of a new exhibition by Dublin City Archives entitled “Doing their bit” Irish Women and the First World War. This exhibition draws on the collections of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers Association Archive and other material held at Dublin City Library and Archive and considers the legacy of World War 1 on the role of women in Irish Society. The exhibition is display at Dublin City Library and Archive until the end of April 2018.The exhibition is developed by Dublin City Archives and Dublin City Council Historian-in Residence Scheme and is funded by Dublin City Council Decade of Commemorations.
The Conscription Crisis – After Russia’s withdrawal from the First World War, Germany started an offensive on the western front in March 1918. The British Government subsequently introduced the Military Services Act in April 1918, extending conscription to every Irish male between the ages of 18 and 50. Most strands of Irish life vigorously opposed conscription, leading to a retreat from the British authorities some months later.Na Fianna article by Countess Markieviecz – January 1916 Digital.libraries.dublincity.ie History Document of the MonthEvery month the Dublin City Council Historians in Residence will be highlighting a document from Dublin City Public Libraries and Archives Digital Repository. An image of the selected document will be on display in branch libraries during the month.Historians in Residence are available to meet groups and schools, give talks, walks etc, run history book clubs and advise on historical research.
Manuscript of the Month: Grafton Street (WSC/Maps/564)
This map is what we would now call the development plan for what became Grafton Street. The plan is by the Dublin City Surveyor, John Greene, to the scale of 10 feet to an inch and it is dated 17 January 1680. At that date, Grafton Street was a humble country lane, linking the two open spaces of St Stephen’s Green and Hoggen Green. There was even a municipal dung-heap, known as ‘The Pound’ at the end of the lane.
Dublin City Hall was the venue for our third Heritage Week event, our seminar ‘Living in Victorian Dublin’. Our five speakers each spoke on a different topic, in order to cover all aspects of the Victorian city. Michael Barry was our first speaker. Author of Victorian Dublin Revealed he gave an overview of the entire city, demonstrating how many buildings, both public and domestic, have remained from that era and introducing them through his own splendid photography. Our next two speakers, Dr. Susan Galavan and Dr Jacinta Prunty, formed exact opposites. Susan’s talk was based on her new book Dublin’s Bourgeois Homes: building the Victorian suburbs 1850-1901.
No longer faceless or nameless – write the story of your First World War soldier
A long, long alphabetical list of 174,000 Allied soldiers who died on Belgian soil in the First World War; this is the new and emotive exhibit on display in Dublin City Library and Archive on Pearse Street until the end of March 2017.
The garden suburb of Marino was the first in Ireland and one of the earliest in Europe. It is located on the north side of Dublin City. This small garden village is unusual insofar as it was requested by the people themselves, at a public meeting held in Clontarf Town Hall in 1910. The historic village of Fairview was being redeveloped and the reclamation of land at the nearby Strand was underway in order to provide a public park.
The Orchestra of St Cecilia Collection includes concert programmes, posters, flyers, correspondence, programme notes, recordings, soloists and conductor’ biographies and administrative documents. Access to the collection provides unparalleled insight into the processes involved in professional orchestra and event management from the turn of the twenty-first century through recession times in Dublin. Find out more and view some items from the Orchestra of St Cecilia Collection...Dublin City Library and Archive.
Listen to Liz D’Arcy talk about conserving the Wide Street Commission Maps. Hear how she painstakingly removed sellotape, cleaned, repaired and strengthened these important maps. Liz D'Arcy, Paperworks, Studio for Paper Conservation is qualified with an MA in Conservation of Fine Art on Paper. Liz is an accredited member of the 'Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic works in Ireland' (I.C.H.A.W.I) and a member of the 'Irish Professional Conservators and Restorers Association' (I.P.C.R.A).Between 1757- 1851, the Wide Street Commission had a major impact on the development of the city, transforming it from a medieval city to the Dublin we know today. Its function was to provide “Wide and Convenient Streets” for Dublin and it had extensive powers to acquire property by compulsory purchase, develop new streets, demolish buildings and impose design standards on building lots which were sold to developers. Dublin City Archives hold the Wide Street Commission Archives, which comprises maps, minute books and drawings. www.dublincityarchives.ieRead more about the conservation project and view Wide Street Commission map collection image gallery.Search and browse the Archive of the Wide Street Commission Maps online.Conserving Wide Street Commission Maps - TranscriptAudio only:Recorded at Dublin City Hall on 24 August 2016 at Dublin City Archives' 'Living in Georgian Dublin' seminar. Part of Heritage Week 2016 programme.Dublin City Archives is grateful to the Heritage Council of Ireland for funding under the Heritage Management Project Scheme 2016 to conserve 23 Wide Street Commission Maps in 2016. Conservation NoticeIn order to reduce handling damage and to ensure the long term preservation of these fragile maps, all researchers are requested to view the digitised images in the first instance. High-Res versions can be provided on request. Viewing of original maps is strictly by appointment only: please apply to [email protected]. Please note: A minimum of 3 days notice is required to process your request and a maximum of 10 maps may be ordered per visit.