Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland, and Heather Humphreys, Minister for Arts, Heritage, and Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, opened the Saving the Famine Irish: The Grey Nuns and the Great Hunger exhibit at Glasnevin Museum for the National Famine Commemoration in Dublin.
In paying tribute to the Grey Nuns of Montreal, President Higgins said, “During that bleak and terrible period of our history, an estimated one hundred thousand Irish people fled to Canada. It is impossible to imagine the pain, fear, despair, and suffering of these emigrants, many of whom lost beloved family members on their journey. As a country, we owe an enormous debt of gratitude to the Grey Nuns, who cared for so many Irish widows and orphans who were left destitute, impoverished and alone in a strange country.”
Curated by Professor Christine Kinealy, Founding Director of Ireland’s Great Institute at Quinnipiac University, and Dr Jason King, the exhibit is open to the public free of charge until the end of the year in the Glasnevin Museum.
For those of us not travelling to Dublin, the Irish Famine Virtual Archive is here. A photo and more info is on the Irish Canadian Famine Research blog.
