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John O'Grady was a member of A Company, 3rd Battalion, Dublin Brigade of the Irish Volunteers. He was the only volunteer from the Jacob's Factory Garrison killed in action during the 1916 Rising.Last year we were honoured to welcome Dermot Hogan, a relative of John O'Grady to our Reading Room, and he kindly showed us some of the 1916 memorabilia carefully preserved by the family for over 100 years. Pictured below is the 1916 medal awarded to John by the President of Ireland. The 1916 Medal is awarded to persons with recognised military service during the 1916 Rising. The medal is bronze and it depicts the death scene of Cú Chulainn, surrounded by a circle of flames. The reverse is inscribed "Seachtain na Cásca 1916 John O'Grady".  John's brother Charles was also a Volunteer and was involved in fighting in the South Dublin Union. Returning to the family residence on Nicholas Place following the Rising Charles met with a neighbour who sympathised with him on the death of his brother. Until that moment Charles had not been aware of his brother's fate.Here Dermot tells the story of the night of 29 April 1916 when John O’Grady died.There is a memorial to John O'Grady in St James Graveyard where he is buried. The old St James' Church is now the Pearse Lyons Distillery.Image: John O'Grady's wife Josephine O'Grady (née Gray) and mother Ellen O'Grady at his grave at St James' Church, Thomas Street. Photo: Dermot Hogan. Further readingMurphy, Sean J. 1916 Rebel John J O'Grady Buried in St James's Graveyard, Dublin. https://ucd.academia.edu/SeanMurphy.Jacob's Biscuit Factory and the 1916 Rising. Lisa McCarthy, Eneclann, Project Contract Archivist. 

In this podcast ‘William Spence: A Victorian engineer in the right place at the right time’, Cathy Scuffil, Dublin City Council Historian in Residence, looks at the history of William Spence Engineering Works Cork Street. The Cork Street Foundry and Engineering Works of William Spence and Son was established in Dublin in 1856.  It continued trading over two generations of the Spence family, with no small measure of success until 1930.  The company was situated on a large, circa 3 acre industrial site located at 105 -109 Cork Street, Dublin, on a site that, until the early 1850s, had housed the tanning and currier business of a James O’Neill, who also had a residence at 26 Cork Street.It is generally accepted that the Spence operations that evolved over the years, should be ranked among the first and finest concerns of the kind in Ireland, devoted primarily to general engineering and steel foundry. The main achievements of the company were the construction of the Birr telescope and the little trains that served the Guinness brewery, and system that was in existence in living memory.  A number of church bells located in the Liberties are also of Spence origin.Of interest were the houses constructed by William Spence for his employees at Spence’s Terrace, Cork Street and at Marion Villas – which was named for his much loved wife.  Upon his sudden death in 1907, the business passed to his son Arthur.  The company ceased trading in 1930.  ‘Plant Life’ occupies the premises today.  Image of Plant Life above from Google Maps.The Rathmines Township commemorated William Spence in a unique way which Cathy reveals during her talk. Recorded on 24 November 2017 as part of Explore Your Archive (18 - 26 November 2017). ‘Explore Your Archive’ campaign is an initiative of the Archives and Records Association of Ireland and UK which aims to raise awareness of archives, their value to society and the impact they have on individual lives.Thank-you for listening to the Dublin City Public Libraries and Archive Podcast. To hear more, please subscribe on iTunes or SoundCloud.

Marjorie Hasler (c. 1887 -1913) joined the Irish Women’s Franchise League (IWFL), a militant suffrage group, in 1910. She was at the frontline of the women’s suffrage campaign during its explosive pre-war years. She travelled to London in November 1910 to protest against the Liberal Prime Minister H.H. Asquith’s dismissal of a Conciliation Bill that would extend voting rights to women. The suffragists were attacked by the police in an event that became known as ‘Black Friday’. Marjorie was among those injured when her head struck a wall during the agitation. Undaunted she travelled to London once more in November 1911 where she was imprisoned for breaking government windows (the suffragists’ preferred protest strategy). She spent fourteen days in Holloway prison.Marjorie was among the eight IWFL members imprisoned in Mountjoy for breaking windows in Dublin in June 1912. She was fined £10 and sentenced to six months in jail, of which she served four. This was the longest single sentence served by any of the eight women.She died of measles in 1913 but her IWFL colleagues insisted that her injuries and imprisonment contributed to her early death. The Irish Citizen declared that Marjorie was ‘the first Irish martyr for the cause’.Marjorie Hasler believed that Irish suffragists were forced to adopt violent means in the face of public apathy and institutional hostility. She wrote in the Irish Citizen (22 June 1912): ‘We don’t like smashing glass any more than men like smashing skulls. Yet in both cases there is, I believe, a strong feeling that something must be broken before a wrong is changed into a right’.Marjorie Hasler is just one of the Irish suffragists commemorated in the exhibition ‘Suffragist City: Women and the Vote in Dublin’ at Dublin City Library & Archive. The exhibition runs throughout January and February 2018. Admission Free.Further Reading:Hourican, Bridget, ‘Marjorie Hasler (c.1887-1913)’, Dictionary of Irish Biography, vol. 4 G-J, James McGuire and James Quinn (eds.), pp. 516-7.Ward, Margaret, Hanna Sheehy Skeffington: a life (1997).The Irish Citizen (available on microfilm in the Dublin City Library & Archive).  

Muckross Hockey Club was founded in 1917 by the past pupils of Muckross Park College. Over the past 100 years it has won over 30 Leinster league titles, an unparalleled 29 Leinster Senior Jacqui Potter Cup wins, a strong representation at international and provincial level and a record seven past players inducted into the Irish Hockey Association Hall of Fame.View Muckross Hockey Club Image Gallery.The Muckross Hockey Club collection comprises 70 photographs including material donated via international player Joan Priestman. It was transferred to the Dublin City Sports Archive via Peter Agnew and the Irish Hockey Archive.The photographs have been digitised and catalogued by Library Assistant, Finola Frawley.To hear more about the history of Muckross Hockey Club listen to Off the Bench podcast's "When we were Queens" episode. The Dublin City Sports Archive was established by Dublin City Library and Archive in September 2010 to provide a lasting legacy to Dublin’s term as European Capital of Sport.   It aims to  collect, preserve and make accessible to the public, records relating to sports events, clubs, sporting organisations, and records of sporting individuals, fans and players. The Dublin City Sports Archive ensures that records which reflect the rich sporting heritage of our city and county are given a permanent and secure home.

The very existence of this document is somewhat surprising, as it was issued during the Cromwellian inter-regnum in Ireland, a regime that despised ostentatious show. Nevertheless, ‘Richard Carney, Principall Herald of Armes for the whole Dominion of Ireland’ prepared this grant of arms to the Dublin Guild of Tailors in 1655.  This guild was founded in 1418 by royal charter and was second in order of precedence in the Dublin City Assembly.  The grant of arms states that the Dublin guild used the arms of the Merchant Taylors of London but that it had now applied for arms in its own right.  Carney concurs with this request, ‘in perpetuall memorie of (not onlie the ever constant Loyaltie of the said Cittie of Dublin and the many greate and famous services by them done the Commonwealth).’  The grant is issued on parchment and the top portion consists of three coats of arms, those of Ireland (left) and Dublin (right) with the arms of the Commonwealth in the centre; their inclusion indicates support for this grant. The Tailors’ arms is in the left panel, with its motto ‘Nudus et Opervistis Me’ (I was naked and you clothed me) a quotation from the New Testament (Matt. 25, 36). Elements of the coat of arms include the head of John the Baptist (whose feast was the guild’s swearing-in day, 24 June).  The guild colours were white and watchett (light blue) and these are referenced in the arms.The grant of arms was donated to Tailors’ Hall by a member of the public who had found it in her house.   It was placed on permanent loan by An Taisce with Dublin City Library and Archive and was conserved by Elizabeth D’Arcy, 2015.Manuscript of the Month: Grant of arms to the Dublin Guild of Tailors, 1655 (click to enlarge) Manuscript of the MonthEach month, Dublin City Archives will be showcasing a manuscript from their collections on our blog. Check back next month for the next instalment! 

Listen back to local Historian and well-known author Bernard Neary from Cabra West as he brings us on an interesting tour of Dublin 7, including the people, places and buildings of interest. Find out where the writer Iris Murdoch was born, where the poet Austin Clarke grew up and where Matt Kiernan made his Uilleann Pipes.

Down the years Jacob’s Biscuits introduced new products on a regular basis. Some did not survive the court of consumer taste while others, like Cream Crackers and Fig Rolls, remain proven favourites. From time to time the more popular products got a new label, updated to reflect the style of the time.

Listen back to a talk by Peter Clarke looking at the 225 year history of the Royal Canal, from its origins in 1789 through all its phases to the present day. The talk traces the planning and construction of the canal and will reference many places, people and events of historical interest along the course of Dublin’s beloved Royal Canal.Image: Foster Aqueduct and Royal Canal House Phibsboro (see larger image)Reserve a copy of Walking the Royal Canal by Peter Clarke from the library catalogue.Recorded at Phibsboro Library on Monday 21 August 2017 as part of Heritage Week 2017.See more at Royal Canal Amenity Group (RCAG).

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.

On Tuesday, 3rd October, 2017 in the Mansion House, Dawson Street, an tArdmhéara Míchéal Mac Donncha, launched a new Guide ‘Knowing Dublin – Know Your City Council’; an introduction to the work of Dublin City Council and the role of our elected representatives in the life of the city. Download a copy of Knowing Dublin - available in English and Irish.Knowing Dublin – Know Your City Council is a simple introduction to the work of Dublin City Council and the role of the elected representatives in the life of the city. It is a nuts and bolts piece, told in plain language, designed to inform those with little or no knowledge of the many services that the Council provides. As such, it is relevant for young adults, new citizens, immigrants, and anyone who wants to know more about how Dublin City functions.  It is also a useful tool for teachers as a basis for class lessons.Listen back to Sheela Keane discussing 'Knowing Dublin - Know Your City Council' on NearFM's Northside Today programme: http://nearfm.ie/podcast/?p=23766Many thanks to NearFM for permission to reproduce this recording.“Local democracy is strengthened by the active participation of citizens working towards a shared future. The active engagement of citizens can lead to an improvement in the quality of services delivered and the quality of democratic debate and dialogue surrounding decisions about the future of the city. Tá an daonlathas aitiúl mar bunú d’ár daonlathas náisiúnta” said Ardmhéara Míchéal Mac Donncha.The guide describes in detail the work of the local government elected representatives. There is a strong emphasis on voting: how to vote and why it is so important that citizens use their vote.“One of the main aims of Dublin City Public Library Service is to inform, educate, and enhance the lives of the people it serves. This guide is designed to give citizens an understanding of the way local government functions; by doing so, it facilitates greater participation in the democratic process and strengthens our shared  citizenship” commented Margaret Hayes, Dublin City Librarian.Download Knowing Dublin in English (PDF, 3.2MB) Cannot access PDF?Download Knowing Dublin in Irish (PDF, 3.15MB) Cannot access PDF? The Guide forms part of Dublin City Council’s calendar of events supporting Social Inclusion.