C. J. France collection of 1921 Dublin images, 1921, 1971
Scope and Contents
This is a collection of photographs and postcards of Ireland from multiple sources.
Black-and-white photographs of 1921 Dublin and the surrounding area document unrest surrounding the March 14th execution of six prisoners from Mountjoy Gaol (now Mountjoy Prison); protests, including by Cuman na mBan; military checkpoints and searches; and family of those executed. Of note is a photo of Maud Gonne with Thomas Whelan's mother. The photographs also show housing conditions and American Committee for Relief in Ireland members, possibly alongside Irish White Cross members. Many of the photographs are stamped by Dublin commercial photographer W. D. Hogan or the London-based British Illustrations Ltd. Notes by Boston College librarian Helen Landreth indicate that chairman of the American Committee for Relief in Ireland, C. J. France, collected these photographs while visiting Ireland.
The color slides feature Irish communities, landscapes, and everyday life in the 1980s and 1990s. Most document County Galway and County Cork, with particular focus on the Monaghan family in the small community of Blackweir, County Galway.
The Christine Spengler postcards feature images of Northern Ireland, specifically Belfast, Derry, and Londonderry, during the Troubles. Many of the images juxtapose military uniform and weapons with smiling children.
The Thomas Reiners collection of postcards feature images of tourist destinations in Ireland during the 1980s. Two of the postcards are addressed to Reiners.
The Francis J. Cotton collection of postcards feature images of farming life in Ireland around 1910, as well as images of Edinburgh and of St. Paul's Cathedral, London.
Dates
- Creation: 1921, 1971
Access Note
Collection is open for research.
Historical note: American Committee for Relief in Ireland (ACRI)
"In order that the truth of the existing conditions in Ireland
should be known, the Committee sent a delegation of American
citizens, all of whom were members of the religious Society of
Friends, to make an impartial investigation and ascertain to what
extent the American Committee might be called upon for aid.
The delegation consisted of Messrs. R. Barclay Spicer, Phila-
delphia, Pa. ; Oren B. Wilbur, Greenwich, N. Y. ; Philip W. Furnas,
Canby, Ind. ; William Price, Philadelphia, Pa.; John C. Baker,
SECTION III. 49
Everett, Pa.; and Walter C. Longstreth, Philadelphia, Pa. They
were accompanied by Messrs. C. J. France, Seattle, Wash., Chair-
man, and Samuel D. McCoy, New York City, Secretary, and arrived
in Ireland on February 12, 1921. Their report, which is printed in
full on pages 62 to 67, was used as the basis of the amount of relief
work that the Committee might have to furnish." p. 49
"The American Committee decided at an early date to distribute
its relief through the Irish White Cross, as it was realized that
this society covered the whole of Ireland, and being on the ground,
the distribution cost of affording relief would be very small." p.51
"Your delegation to Ireland respectfully reports that its mem-
bers arrived in Ireland on February 12th, and, with the exception
of Mr. France, had left Ireland by March 31st. During these forty-
nine days members of your delegation conducted an investigation
into economic distress in Ireland, which, they respectfully submit,
has not been equalled in scope by any other investigative body,
either Irish, British, American, or of any other nationality." ..."The members of the delegation visited no less than ninety-five
cities, towns, villages, and creameries, in which destruction of build-
ings or property by the military or police forces of the British
Crown has occurred." p.62
Sources:
REPORT OF the American Committee FOR Relief in Ireland
Full Extent
0.25 Linear Feet (1 container)
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Arrangement
A note on the origins of the photographs is arranged first, with the prints listed in chronological order thereafter.
Repository Details
Part of the John J. Burns Library Repository
John J. Burns Library
Boston College
140 Commonwealth Avenue
Chestnut Hill MA 02467 USA
617-552-4861
burns@bc.libanswers.com