The Beo Project for Heritage Week at Ballinasloe Library

Ballinasloe Library is hosting an exhibition of projects from 3 schools in the area, to celebrate Heritage Week.

Based on the work they did for the the "Beo Heritage Project", Kiltormer N.S, Lawrencetown N.S and Fohenagh N.S have submitted 3 very different projects for the exhibition.

Ballymore Hinterland is the title of Lawrencetown N.S project. The class visited Ballymore House, which is built on the outskirts of Lawrencetown Village.They were shown around the beautiful house and castle by the owner and saw the many historical and architectural features associated with both.There are many beautiful photographs included in the exhibition, an Ordnance Survey map and a dvd also.

Going to the Bog from Kiltormer N.S deals with memories that older people in the locality have about saving the turf. The children from 5th/6th Class spoke to grandparents and older people in the community and recorded their memories in print and on DVD. Photographs included in the exhibition are of the actual bog,turf cutting implements,wheelbarrow,donkey, families on the bog and the food they ate.

Our Place is the title of the project from Fohenagh N.S. It takes a look at Nature in the area, at Clonbrock House and its history and includes many photographs and posters. It also included models of the Church in Fohenagh...all hand made and exact replicas. Models of Clonbrock and Bothans from the area are also on display.

The Library staff would like to record their appreciation to the teachers from the schools for their help.

Heritage Week in Gort Public Library

Gort Library
Heritage Morning

Gort Library in Old Church on Queen Street)

Sat. 30th Aug. 11am – 1pm

Guest Speakers:

Archivist Patria McWalter
"The Gort Poor Law Union Archives Collection"

Ardrahan Local Heritage Group
"The heritage of Ardrahan and the projects which
this group has undertaken"

There will also be a coffee interval for informal discussion.

Admission Free

Books are alive: magic is afoot in Woodford

The blue and light blue of the building, the distinctive plaster detail surrounding the windows, and the decorative features of the parapet roof identify the exciting new Credit Union premises in Woodford, which also incorporates a library.

The official opening of this new Credit Union project in Woodford took place on Saturday July 26th, when Councillor Peter Feeney, Mayor of the County of Galway along with Máire Doyle, Vice-President of the Naomh Breandán Credit Union jointly cut the tape in the presence of Martin Smith, Treasurer, and other members of the Loughrea Credit Union Board.
The decision of the Loughrea Credit Union to share its new Woodford building with the library service is a fine example of Credit Union operating principles in action, principles which are based on "the concept of human development, expressed through people working together to achieve a better life for themselves and their children."

On a recent April Tuesday evening the artist Astrid Hofmann demonstrated the many possibilities of the venture when her exhibition of felt and silk pieces introduced some further blues and lilac colours inside the refurbished building. Her dominant and vibrant reds caught by the evening light shining through the front windows suggested that magic was afoot in Woodford. Her two small sculptures entitled Einstein’s curl old and Einstein’s curl young sitting on top of book shelves seemed made for any library, while her Orbital Mongolia, a piece made from a yew tree, encompassed the knowledge and vision of a library.

To further inaugurate the service, a set of beautifully bound hardcover books with decorative endpapers and silk ribbon markers were added to stock. This selection of 100 books is intended to provide in Woodford an enduring hardcover library of classic and contemporary works from literature to history to philosophy. This initiative forms part of a programme to place a strong, but unchanging, collection in Woodford branch library and promote its use with readings, talks, and discussions.
At the official opening, The Fake McCoys, a group of musicians from east Clare, brought another dimension to the project, when for two hours in the freshly planted courtyard of the Credit Union/Library they played a wonderful combination of Irish and bluegrass music.

'Forty Years behind the Lens' in Westside public Library

Westside library are hosting an exhibition by Godfrey Graham - ' Forty Years behind the lens'. The Launch is scheduled for Tuesday 19th of August at 6.30 where the author will discuss the various people/events that he witnessed during his time as a cameraman with RTE. All are welcome to attend.

Tuam Arts Festival in Tuam Public library

The following are some events that are on in Tuam library next week. These events are part of the Tuam Arts Festival:

Monday 18th August – Storyteller Rab Fulton will visit Tuam Library.

11.00: Session for 3-6 year olds filled with fun, active and participatory stories, including animal tales, adventure tales and old favorites from around the world.

12.00: Session for 7-10 year olds: Join Rab and take a journey from Irish warrior tales to stories of adventure from around the world.

Tuesday 19th August:
Creative Writing Workshop for Children- Bernadette McQuaid presents a poetry workshop for children at 10.30 in the library

Thursday 21st August:
Local artist Mairead Brennan presents a Creative Arts Workshop making Crazy Creatures at 2.30.

TryART Exhibition in Tuam Library

A year’s work by Traveller men was exhibited in Tuam Library recently. The exhibition displayed work incorporating both visual and traditional crafts.
The group of men had been taking part in Tuam Traveller Men’s project, which is a Back to Education Initiative run by Co. Galway Vocational Education Committee.
TryART showcases five different introductory modules; Drawing, Painting, Woodcraft, Woodcarving and the building of a traditional
traveler wagon, in which fifteen men took part in.

Our photos illustrate some of the art works exhibited and the various stages involved in the building of the wagon.

Property valuation of 19th century Ireland free online

GRIFFITH'S VALUATION, the most detailed guide to people and property in mid-19th century Ireland, has gone online for free for the first time. One of the most important surviving genealogical sources from the era after the Famine, the valuation is likely to be of use to family history researchers in Ireland and throughout the world.

The version available on the askaboutireland.ie website is searchable by family name and place name; copies of the original document can be printed off; and the website also includes maps from the mid-19th century and contemporary maps from Google Earth.

Over the past year, however, the Library Council of Ireland has spent €230,000 on digitising its copy of the document and making it available online. The work was also undertaken to ensure the document remained in the public domain.
"We're committed to retaining and enhancing public access to important source documents such as Griffith's, and ensuring they do not go back to private copyright," said Annette Kelly, assistant director of the Library Council.

Griffith's Valuation was the first full-scale valuation of property in Ireland.
The work was overseen by Richard Griffith, a Dublin geologist, and published between 1847 and 1864.
It delivered the information necessary for local taxation by providing a uniform valuation of all property in Ireland based on the productive capacity of land and the potential rent of buildings. The document lists every landholder and householder in the 32 counties, and is arranged by county, barony, poor law union, civil parish and townland.