Brought to you by Dublin City Libraries and axis Ballymun, this multi-platform project is a celebration and a recognition of the city libraries and throughout the pandemic, we re-discovered the power of literature, music, art and culture as sources of entertainment and wellbeing.
At the outbreak of the First World War, Monica Roberts was a young upper-class woman who lived at Kelston, Stillorgan, Co. Dublin. Together with her friends, she set up a 'Band of Helpers to the Soldiers' to provide gifts and comforts to men at the Western Front, who were members of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers or the Royal Flying Corps. The group sent cigarettes and tobacco, socks and vaseline for tired feet, handkerchiefs, boot-laces, chocolate, peppermint, oxo and dried fruit. Monica Roberts included a letter with her gifts and the recipients replied to her, setting up a correspondence. The letters from the soldiers give a vivid picture of conditions at the Front, and also include comments on contemporary politics. Of particular interest are remarks from soldiers regarding the 1916 Rising. Included in the collection and available here online is Monica Roberts' contemporary diary from Easter Week 1916, which includes her eye-witness account of the Rising.The collection contains 453 letters from 56 soldiers, who are mainly from the lower ranks; there is only one letter from Monica Roberts. These letters were kept for many years by Monica's daughter Mary Shackleton, who gave them to Tom Burke M.B.E., Chairman of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers Association. Since 2005, the collection has been housed in Dublin City Library and Archive, as part of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers Association Archive. We would be particularly interested in hearing from descendants of those soldiers featured in the collection, or indeed from anyone holding letters from Monica Roberts to the soldiers. Please e-mail [email protected] online publication of the Monica Roberts Collection is a Dublin City Council project, under the direction of Margaret Hayes, Dublin City Librarian, Brendan Teeling, Deputy City Librarian and Dr. Mary Clark, Dublin City Archivist. Project management is by Ellen Murphy, Senior Archivist, Dublin City Archives. Initial arrangement and cataloguing of the collection was by the late Andrew O'Brien, while scanning of the collection is by Christian Keegan, both of Dublin City Archives. Each letter was carefully transcribed by Finola Frawley of Dublin City Archives, who also translated letters written in French. A guide to the collection was prepared by Lisa Murphy, Dublin City Archives Intern (2012). Preparation of the collection for online publication is by genealogist John Grenham, who provided full text searching, and linked the original documents to the transcripts.Dublin City Council is publishing these letters online as part of its programme for the Decade of Commemorations, 1913-1923.Access A Guide to the Monica Roberts Collection (pdf, 1.77mb)Also Monica Roberts: List of Letters (pdf, 389kb)
Libraries are places of inspiration, escape and shelter for many. Now, with coronavirus having affected the arts and culture sector deeply, it's more important than ever to support those libraries we do have, which, as well as helping to create book lovers, also often provide things like wifi and computer access and help with accessing local services, and act as a community hub.
Jimmy Davenport was a member of the orchestra and occasional performer at the Capitol and Theatre Royal theatres in Dublin in the 1930s and 40s. Judging by his autographed photo album which has just been digitised, Jimmy Davenport was a bit of a showbiz addict. He collected over a hundred signed portraits of visiting celebrities and photos of some set pieces from the Theatre Royal.
This gallery consists of images of shops, stalls, and markets from the Dublin City Council Photographic Collection. A few of these are still open for business but most have closed their doors.
This gallery consists of images associated with the family merchant business Alex. Findlater and Company. The gallery highlights the life of Adam Findlater, 1855-1911, as he was not only the managing director of the business but he was also an extraordinary citizen of Dublin. Originally from Scotland, Alexander Findlater came to Dublin in 1823 to begin trading in Whiskey.
CITY ROUTES A Deep Mapping of Dublin’s Central Library
CITY ROUTES A Deep Mapping of Dublin’s Central Library is available to view in the Central Library, ILAC Centre, Henry Street, Dublin 1, until 12th November.
Building Healthy Homes, written by Joseph Brady and Ruth McManus, and published by Dublin City Council, is a commemoration and an analysis of the early schemes from the 1880s to the late 1920s.
Dublin UNESCO City of Literature Irish Language Residency
Dublin UNESCO City of Literature announce a new virtual writers’ residency programme for 2021/2022, which will pay a grant of €5,000 to two writers working in the Irish language, one writing for adults, and one writing for children.
