JOIN THE ILHS. SEE PAGE 4 FOR DETAILS May 2015 Volume 1, No. 1 Irish Labour History News Editors: James Curry & Adrian Grant The Bi-Annual Newsletter of the Irish Labour History Society Out-going ILHS President, Brendan Byrne, accepts the formal Contents donation of Richard Corish archival material from Helen Cor- ish-Wylde at the 2014 AGM. (Photograph by Eddie Soye) • Archival Donation at AGM - 1 • Saothar 39 Now Available - 1 • Book Launch - 2 • Lecture at Liberty Hall - 2 • Rosie Hackett Lecture at Liberty Hall - 3 • Annual Conference - 4 • Upcoming Labour History Events - 4 SAOTHAR 39 NOW AVAILABLE RICHARD CORISH ARCHIVAL MATERIAL DONATED TO ILHS AT 2014 AGM The Annual General Meeting of the Irish of former Labour Party leader Frank Labour History Society took place at Cluskey. This saw John Horgan, Tony Beggars Bush on the afternoon of the Brown and Flor O’Mahony (all of whom 7th June 2014, opening with an address worked closely with Cluskey prior to from Brendan Byrne, the out-going his death) recalling his political life and President. After the various items on achievements. These recollections, and the AGM’s agenda had been taken care those of several others, are currently of Brendan was delighted to accept being prepared for publication by the formal handing over of valuable Umiskin Press. archival family material dealing with the life of Richard Corish by Ms. Helen Kieran Jack McGinley was elected as The latest issue of Saothar, the annual Corish-Wylde, including letters between the new President of the ILHS. His journal of the Irish Labour History the former Mayor of Wexford/Labour successful nomination was proposed Society, is now available. Members Party T.D. and James Connolly. by Brendan Byrne and seconded by receive a complimentary copy in the ILHS’s Vice-President Fionnuala December of each year. Copies can also The day concluded with a touching Richardson. be purchased directly from the ILHS panel session remembering the life Musuem, Beggars Bush. ILHS Newsletter May 2015 1 ILHS: Latest News LECTURE BY EMMET O’CONNOR AT LIBERTY HALL On 23rd October 2014 former Irish 1913 Lockout should be looked at Labour History Society committee in terms of the international issues member and Saothar co-editor Emmet at stake, rather than the traditional O’Connor, senior lecturer in history tendency of focusing on the ‘clash of at the University of Ulster, delivered a titans’ James Larkin vs William Martin thought-provoking free public lecture Murphy aspect or the issue of the at Liberty Hall entitled ‘An International notorious Dublin slums. Perspective: How international was Larkinism? How British was Larkin?’ Having published a biography of Larkin in 2002 with Cork University Press, LAUNCH OF Organised jointly by the Irish Labour O’Connor is set to release an eagerly History Society and SIPTU Dublin awaited extended and revised study of FIGHTING FOR District Council, this well-attended Larkin’s life with UCD Press within the REPUBLICAN SPAIN, event saw O’Connor argue that the next year. 1936-38 O’Connor discussing ‘Lar- kinism’ at Liberty Hall on On 8th September 2014 the latest 23rd October (Photograph book by Irish Labour History Society courtesy of SIPTU Video) member Barry McLoughlin, Fighting for Republican Spain 1936-38, was launched at Beggars Bush Barracks. Approximately 230 Irish-born men were among the 35,000 volunteers in the International Brigades fighting fascism in the Spanish Civil War. While McLoughlin’s book focuses in particular on six volunteers from Limerick, it also uses Russian intelligence files to paint a general picture of the involvement of the Brigades, their leaders, foot-soldiers and the politics in the units, especially ‘LABOUR IN DERRY’ BOOK in the British battalion of the 15th Brigade. LAUNCH Emmet O’Connor’s new book on the syndicalist surge from 1907-23. the Labour movement in Derry was Derry Labour in the age of agitation, launched at Ulster University’s Magee 1889-1923: New unionism and old, College recently by John Sweeney, 1889-1906 costs €9.95. the former President of the AFL-CIO. The book is the first installment of a two-part history of the Labour move- ment in the city from 1889-1923. This first book explores the demographics of Derry in the late nineteenth and The first monograph on Irishmen early twentieth centuries, before go- fighting for Republican Spain to ing on to examine the impact of the make liberal use of the files of the rise and decline of new unionism on International Brigades held in the the city. It forms part of the popular former archive of the Communist Maynooth Studies in Local History se- International in the Russian capital, ries, published by Four Courts Press. Fighting for Republican Spain 1936-38 The second part of the book will costs €17.95. examine the impact of Larkinism and 2 ILHS Newsletter May 2015 ILHS: Recent Events May O’Brien (who regularly encoun- tered Rosie at the ITGWU shop on Eden Quay in the 1940s and 1950s) with the then Lord Mayor of Dublin, Oisín Quinn, on 9th May. (Photo- graph by Pól Ó Duibhir). On the 19th May 2014 Irish Labour History Society committee member ROSIE HACKETT James Curry delivered a free public lecture entitled ‘The Story of Rosie Hackett’ to a packed audience at a LECTURE AT LIBERTY special Liberty Hall event, organised by the Society and SIPTU to mark HALL the launching of the nearby Rosie Hackett Bridge over the River Liffey the Dublin City Library and Archive on historian who was one of the many the following day. the 9th May. His Liberty Hall lecture public figures to lend their support to was dedicated to the memory of the Rosie Hackett Bridge Campaign in In attendance were a large number Shane MacThomáis, the late Glasnevin 2013-14. of Rosie’s relatives from across Dublin Cemetery tour guide and Dublin and parts of England, as well as the Former ILHS President Brendan Byrne introduces James Curry Rosie Hackett Bridge Campaign’s at Liberty Hall (Photograph by Ethel Buckley). Angelina Cox and Jeni Gartland. The memorable evening, which included the playing of an audio clip of Rosie’s voice and a slideshow of photographs being displayed to a soundtrack of Dublin councillor Dermot Lacey’s ballad marking the naming of the new bridge, saw the NUI Galway doctoral researcher construct the story of Rosie’s life using a wide array of primary sources that helped debunk various myths to emerge in recent times. James had previously penned an essay on Rosie for the official Dublin City Council commemorative booklet Crossing the Liffey in Style: Rosie Hackett Bridge, which was launched by Dublin Lord Mayor Oisín Quinn at ILHS Newsletter May 2015 3 9Q Recent & Upcoming Labour History Events ANNUAL CONFERENCE: ‘WE SERVE NEITHER KING NOR KAISER’ - 1 NOVEMBER 2014 The annual winter conference of the language of class during the war, John Cunningham discusses the life the Irish Labour History Society retired ILHS president Brendan Byrne of the Galway-born anti-war activist took place at Beggars Bush Barracks examine the anti-conscription campaign Tom Glynn. on Saturday 1st November 2014, of 1918, and James Curry of NUI Galway (Photograph by Mary Cunningham) focusing on the First World War in discuss the suppression of the Irish la- relation to the Irish labour move- bour press by Dublin Castle in 1914-15. ment and entitled ‘We Serve neither King nor Kaiser’. The conference was In the third and final session of the divided into three separate panels day Catriona Crowe of the National which were each made up of three Archives of Ireland examined soldiers speakers. wills, Irish Congress of Trade Unions Industrial Officer Peter Rigney outlined The first session saw historians the recruitment of Irish railway work- Pádraig Yeates discuss police arrests ers during the war, and historian Brian made in Dublin during the first half Hanley discussed James Connolly and of 1916 and Theresa Moriarty the the war. Hanley’s paper was subsequently impact of the war on the influence uploaded to the political blog website of Irish trade unions, and Dr John ‘The Cedar Lounge Revolution’. Cunningham of NUI Galway narrate the life of the Galway-born global All three panels were well-attended and anti-war activist Tom Glynn. led to lively question and answer sessions The second session then saw Profes- afterwards. The conference programme sor John Horne of Trinity College was put together by ILHS Vice-President Dublin present a paper on work and Fionnuala Richardson. UPCOMING LABOUR JOIN THE ILHS TODAY HISTORY EVENTS Join the Irish Labour History Society 9 MAY 2015: 26-28 JUNE 2015: today and receive notice of upcoming events, a complimentary copy of Saothar, Irish Labour History Byrne Perry Summer and the bi-annual ILHS Newsletter. Society AGM: School: ILHS Museum & Archive, Gorey Library & Adult You can download an application form Beggars Bush, Dublin 4. Education Centre. at the web address below. Alternatively you can obtain a copy by email, phone or post: 22 MAY 2015: 29 JULY - 1 AUGUST 2015: Irish Labour History Society Museum & ‘Cross-Currents in British & The Spirit of Mother Jones Archive Irish Working Class Life’: Festival: Beggars Bush QUB Conference to be held Shandon, Cork. Haddington Road in Belfast (Venue TBC). Dublin 4 19-20 JUNE 2015: OCTOBER 2015: +353 (0) 1 6681071 [email protected] ‘From Civil Rights to the ILHS Annual Conference: Bailout’ Conference. ‘Labour in 1915 on the cusp www.irishlabourhistorysociety.com. Irish Centre for the of the Revolutionary Year’ Histories of Labour & Class, Liberty Hall (Date TBC). NUI Galway. 4 ILHS Newsletter May 2015.