Journal turns spotlight on social history
A LARGE crowd attended the launch of the sixth Rosslare in History journal, at Kelly’s Resort Hotel, Rosslare Strand.
The journal, which is edited by Gerry Breen, includes a wide variety of articles which shed light on the place and its people, in which there is great interest, as evidenced by the crowd in attendance on the night.
Val Boggan, Secretary of the Historical Society, welcomed the attendance, thanking the local community for their support, and the committee members for their work during the year.
Speaking about the publication, editor Gerry Breen acknowledged that history was a tricky subject with many different faces that professional historians didn’t always agree on the importance of different branches of the subject.
‘In Rosslare Historical Society, we have concentrated on social history because we believe this is really the history of ordinary people and it tells us about their strategies and institutions for coping with life.’
He added that while some felt that social history was ‘history with the politics left out’ but they preferred to think of it as history with ‘the people taking their proper place in telling their story.’
He urged those gathered to pick up their copy of the journal on the night, remarking that ‘when they’re gone, they’re gone’.
The journal was launched by Dr Austin O’Sullivan, a former scientist in Johnstown Castle Agricultural Centre who had been hugely influential in the establishment of the Irish Agricultural Museum there.
Dr O’Sullivan continues to maintain a close association with the museum and is also a historian and an author. Author of a book about the history of Johnstown Castle, his most recent book is a history of transport in Ireland. He gave a very interesting talk on local history and the important work being done by historical societies in recording the history of their areas.