Blogs

Watch John Montague's presentation about the Wide Street Commissioners on May 24th 2022.

This Dublin City Libraries publication is a treasure trove of information on a distinguished line of Irish horror writers, from Charles Robert Maturin, through the great J.S. Le Fanu to Ireland's most prominent cult-creator and proponent of the vampire myth, Bram Stoker, and beyond.

In June 1963, the collapse of tenements at Bolton Street and Fenian Street led to the deaths of four people. On Sunday, 2nd June 1963, the collapse of 20 Bolton Street led to the death of Leo and Mary Maples, an elderly couple who were residents of the building.This was followed by the collapse of tenements at 2a, 3, and 4 Fenian Street on the 12th June 1963 which resulted in the deaths of Linda Byrne and Marion Vardy, both of whom were young girls who lived locally and happened to be passing the building at the time the collapse took place. These tragedies led to a Local Inquiry in Dublin City Hall. The Law Department of Dublin City Council transferred their records from the inquiry to Dublin City Archives for preservation and storage. A copy of the report into the Local Inquiry is available in the Minutes of the Muncipal Council of the City of Dublin in the Reading Room upstairs in the reading room in Pearse Street Library. Dublin City Archives are currently digitising photos pertaining to the collapses of tenements at Bolton Street and Fenian Street for publication. Of our two featured photos, the first one is of Bolton Street and the second is of Fenian Street.

On Wednesday, 27th May 2015, Dublin City Council's Public Library Service took possession of a copy of a rare eye-witness account of the outbreak of the 1916 Easter Rising. The account was in the form of a letter written by Elsie McDermid (seen on the right), a popular opera singer of the era, to her mother in England on the occasion of Elsie's visit to Dublin. She was in Dublin to perform in Gilbert and Sullivan shows at Dublin’s Gaiety Theatre with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. However, the performances were cancelled as a result of the dramatic outbreak of the Easter Rising on Monday 24th April 1916.

This 18th century manuscript is the meticulous record by an early Dublin meteorologist, who documented the weather in the city on a daily basis during the period 1716 to 1734. The manuscript is part of the Gilbert Collection and is held in the Special Collections of Dublin City Libraries.

Dublin City Council has acquired a unique Dublin Fire Brigade Ambulance log-book which covers the period of the Easter Rising, 24-29 April 1916. The log-book relates to Tara Street Fire Station and records hour-by-hour the response of the Dublin ambulance service to those injured in the Rising.