This photo gallery tells the history of social housing in Inchicore which is a suburb of Dublin, 5km west of the city centre. It traces the history of the area from tenements and one of Dublin Corporation’s first social housing schemes to the conversion of Richmond Barracks to Keogh Square then St Michael’s Estate and beyond.
Dining in Dublin: 150 Years of Eating Out in Ireland’s Capital
What’s it like to eat in Dublin? As this image gallery shows, Dublin boasts a rich and varied food history that includes everything from haute cuisine to kosher pickles to a “Wan an’ Wan” by the Liffey. Some of the Dublin eateries in these pictures came in and out of existence within just a few years, making their stories harder to trace. Others evolved into cultural institutions, famous not only for their food but for their contribution to the vibrancy of Dublin life.
The area around the mouth of the River Liffey was inhabited from at least Neolithic times by farmers and fishermen. The great arc of Dublin Bay offered an inviting harbour for sea-going vessels, although its sand banks, shallows, slob lands and treacherous currents proved an obstacle to larger shipping in reaching safe anchorage upriver. This image gallery explores the course Liffey as it runs through the city.
A collection of eight Ordnance Survey maps, donated to Dublin City Library and Archive, constitute a wonderful addition to local and family history for the Terenure Crumlin area in the late 19th century. The maps are folded and bound into one volume, bound in half leather with gilt lettering on the top cover.
I am currently digitizing photographs from the Fáilte Ireland Photographic Collection at Dublin City Library & Archive. These photos date from back to about the 1930s up until the present day. There are also negatives, in all sizes from glass plates to 5x4 negatives to small 35mm. The negatives are in good condition and due to their size they retain a great amount of quality.The photos for the most part are of Ireland's popular tourist destinations but also of places that are historically important. The photos show the unique beauty of Ireland and its unique culture. The boxes are organized by county. So I started with Wicklow as it is where I am from. After getting through several photos I found one funny picture of a lady hugging a cross and later on I found one similar. It was from Glendalough. I’ve been to Glendalough a lot; my grandparents are buried there. I’ve never noticed this large cross and certainly never noticed anyone hugging it. The cross is 'St Kevin's Cross' or 'The Wishing Cross'.Another picture that caught my eye was of a cross that was standing inside what looked like an old stone room. This cross was distinctive in its appearance. The cross appeared to be cracked in several places and also had a relief of a crucifixion on it. What also struck me was its location as if it was in storage or locked away.View the photos on flickr.The Wishing CrossSt Kevin's Cross as it is also known is almost four meters high. It stands in the graveyard near to the cathedral. The name 'Wishing Cross' derives from the legend that anyone who comes to the cross should try to embrace it. If they can wrap their arms fully around it and touch their hands on the other side a wish can be granted. The cross was dug and straightened and reinforced in 1989 so today it looks different from the pictures from Fáilte Ireland which are from between the 1940s and 1950s.The Market CrossThis Cross dates from about the 12th century. The name comes from the original location of the cross. It stood near the front of the entrance gateway where a market took place. Due to increasing traffic it was moved in 1912 to St Kevin's Kitchen where it stood before being placed in the visitor's centre. The cross was rebuilt from several different pieces in the 19th century. These different pieces show evidence of different types of wear and decay so it is believed they could have been used for different functions. Another piece seems to have been buried for some time. The pieces were found scattered around the Glendalough site. The cross features the figure of the crucified Christ with another figure under him, possibly a saint or bishop.All black and white photographs are from the Fáilte Ireland Photographic Collection, Dublin City Library & Archive. See more Fáilte Ireland images in 'Through the Looking Glass': Tourism in Dublin 1940s-1950sAbout our Guest BloggerWritten by Joe Melican, Solas Student in the National Print Museum, on work experience in Dublin City Library and Archive, Pearse Street.
Digging through the photographic collections of the Dublin & Irish Collections, Pearse Street, I came across this set of photos from May 31st 1985. These photos were of the instantly recognisable collection of beards known as the ‘The Dubliners’ standing on a bridge playing music. The event was the unveiling of a plaque that announced the renaming the Ballybough Bridge to the Luke Kelly Bridge.
Through the Looking Glass: Tourism in Dublin, 1950 - 1990
These photographs tell a part of the story of tourism in Dublin, offering an insight into how the city has been seen from both the inside and out. The timeline created by these images allows for an interesting comparison between then and now.
This image gallery shows a selection from the photographs and slides of the amateur photographer, William Stafford. He took most of these pictures during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The collection contains a great variety of images, from the imposing form of Queen Victoria in the days after she was moved from her plinth outside Leinster House, to the derelict courts and alleys of the mid-20th century city. There are images here of Nelson’s Pillar just after the explosion of March 1966, the old Queen's Theatre, of flower sellers and fishmongers and street urchins. Many of the places he photographed, such as Hospital Lane in Islandbridge, have now disappeared or have changed beyond recognition. There are also images of the family business; the Stafford brothers started out importing coal and salt to their works on Ormond Quay, eventually concentrating on salt importation and packaging.The Stafford Collection material was retrieved by Jeremy Wales of the City Architects Division, and Charles Duggan, Heritage Officer, Dublin City Council, during clearance works to facilitate the development of the ‘Dublin House’ project at 29-30 Fishamble Street, the former home of William Stafford. Now held in Dublin City Library and Archive, it includes postcards, business and family papers and a large collection of religious ephemera. The siblings Angela and William appear to have been very religious, and one of their sisters, Cissie, became a Carmelite nun. One of the most interesting parts of the collection is the photographic element. On retrieval, the slides and prints had been left for years in unsuitable conditions, and were in very poor condition. Apart from a little work on the colour slides, we have not done any restoration work on the images as yet, so the viewer will get a real sense of the years that this material lay neglected in the dark and damp house in Fishamble Street.The main reason for publishing this gallery is to bring the images captured by William Stafford back into the light. We also hope that it will be seen by members of the extended Stafford family and that they will get back to us with more information on the fortunes of the family and especially on William, our photographer. Finally we are anxious to establish whether anyone has a claim to the material, and whether it can be made freely available to the people of Dublin, as we feel William Stafford would have liked.View the Stafford Image Gallery.
For over 180 years, Dublin zoo has been known to house a vast array of wildlife. In its early years, the zoo was home to 46 mammals and 72 birds all donated by the London Zoo. Dublin Zoo has been transformed over the years to what it is today: Ireland’s largest family attraction. The images from the Fáilte Ireland Photographic Collection show these treasured animals thriving and coexisting with each other between the spring of 1960 and the summer of 1961.
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.