IRISH FAMINE Memorials

This site is a work in progress, featuring a sample of the 140+ records of recent Famine commemoration collected by Dr Emily Mark-FitzGerald (University College Dublin) as part of her research into Famine memory, visual culture and commemoration. The full records are being migrated to UCD’s Digital Library for open use.

Information on the monuments has been collected through site visits and research conducted since 2003, as well as through interviews with individuals involved in memorial projects, monument inscriptions, newspaper reports, local archives and historical journals, commemorative committee websites, unveiling publications, and other material provided by commemorative committee members. It is largely through their generosity of time and materials that the compiling of this information has been possible. Updated and corrected details, additional photographs, and records of new monuments are always welcome.

If you’re looking for a complete list of the Famine monuments surveyed as part of this research:
Summary guide (PDF) available here.

Should you have any information you’d like to contribute (or corrections to make), please feel free to email.

Photographs & use

Unless otherwise indicated, all photographs are by Emily Mark-FitzGerald. Individuals are welcome to use information and images (but please not those images credited to other individuals) for educational and non-commercial purposes. If you’re looking to use a particular image but are unsure about permissions, just get in touch. Please do link back to (or otherwise credit) this site if using images sourced here: Emily Mark-FitzGerald (University College Dublin), www.irishfaminememorials.com (date accessed).

Should you wish to obtain high-resolution copies of these images for any other purpose – including print or online publication, or any other use – please email.

Definitions

For the purposes of this project, a Famine monument has been defined as a three-dimensional form set in public space. The summary catalogue excludes wall plaques (if not accompanied by other memorial objects), as well as any memorial erected on publicly inaccessible property. This catalogue is limited to commemorative projects unveiled from 1990 onwards; however a few monuments pre-dating 1990 are included due to their re-dedication or reinsertion into a post-1990s commemorative landscape.

Organization

Each entry refers to a memorial ‘site’, some of which contain more than one monument (as indicated).

Artist/Creator

Where known, the name of the primary artists or creators of the monument has been included.

Commissioners

The commissioners listed indicate the primary groups or individuals responsible for the erection of the monument. In a few cases this differs from the group designated on the memorial inscription (as in cases where an official body, such as a County Council, was given credit but was not actually the primary agent in creating the work).

Inscriptions

Complete transcriptions of all monument inscriptions accompany each entry (exceptions are noted). Line breaks are indicated with a backslash (/).

Contact

Information on the monuments was collected from a wide variety of sources, including site visits, interviews with artists, committee members, local government, newspaper clippings, etc. Contact information for individual commemorative committees is available through the author.