Tríd an Lionsa

Series examining the early Irish photographic collections taken during 1880-1902. Presented by University of Limerick historian Dr. Úna Ní Bhroiméil. Through the photographs in the reports of the Congested Districts Board in the National Library this programme examines the work of the pioneering Nurses appointed to some of the poorest parts of the west coast of Ireland through the Lady Dudley Nursing Scheme.

In 1913 Dublin was a city of contrasts. On the one side, the privileged leafy suburbs of the moneyed classes, on the other, over one third of the population lived in slum housing and poverty.

The fictional town of Ballymaclinton was the brainchild of Lady Ishbel Aberdeen, then head of the Irish Industries Association. It aimed to reinvent the image of the Irish woman as clean.

An exploration into rare and early images from inside and outside the National Library (NLI) from the perspective of gender and class.