Additional Irish Collections - Special Collections - Arnold Bernhard Library - Research Guides at Quinnipiac University Libraries

Home Rule Cartoons

The Home Rule Cartoons Collection comprises 29 political cartoons that were published in Ireland in the late 19th century. The cartoons were donated to Ireland's Great Hunger Institute in 2014 by Irish historian Gerard Moran. In 2017, the Institute and the Arnold Bernhard Library will be mounting a shared exhibition that will feature selections from the collection.

Illustrated 19th Century Newspapers Collection

The Arnold Bernhard Library is currently cataloging a collection of bound Illustrated Newspapers from the 19th Century. These volumes have already been digitized and may be accessed via Ireland's Great Hunger Museum's Database.

Irish American Cultural Institute Collection

The Irish American Cultural Institute Collection consists of almost 4,000 books on Irish literature, history, culture, and society, donated to Ireland's Great Hunger Institute in 2014. This collection includes first editions and rare copies of works by Lady Gregory, W.B. Yeats, J.M. Synge, James Joyce, George Bernard Shaw and Sean O'Casey. Arnold Bernhard Library's staff are currently in the process of cataloging the collection.

The Irish Women's Movement : From Revolution to Devolution by Linda Connolly
Call Number: BERNHARD LIBRARY BOOK STACKS, 2ND FLOOR HQ1600.3 .C665 2003
Ancient Ireland : Life Before the Celts by Laurence Flanagan
Call Number: BERNHARD LIBRARY BOOK STACKS, 2ND FLOOR GN806.5 .F53 1998
Building Peace in Northern Ireland by Maria Power (Editor)
Call Number: BERNHARD LIBRARY BOOK STACKS, 2ND FLOOR DA990 .U46 2011
Irish Literature : A Social History by Norman Vance
Call Number: BERNHARD LIBRARY BOOK STACKS, 2ND FLOOR PR8711 .V3 1999
Re-Imagining Ireland by Andrew Higgins Wyndham; Virginia Foundation for the Humanities and Public Policy Staff (Contribution by)
Call Number: BERNHARD LIBRARY BOOK STACKS, 2ND FLOOR DA966.2 .R4 2006

Irish American Cultural Institute
The IACI is a federally recognized 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit national organization devoted to promoting an intelligent appreciation of Ireland and the role and contributions of the Irish in America. The IACI is strictly apolitical and nonsectarian, and is the only Irish American organization that has as its patron, The President of Ireland.

The Irish Echo newspaper collection

The Arnold Bernhard Library and Ireland's Great Hunger Institute at Quinnipiac University have recently accepted a donation of print copies of The Irish Echo spanning several decades. Additional information about this collection will be added to this page in the future.

The Irish Echo
Read recent articles from online The Irish Echo.

The Poverty Collection

The Poverty Collection was acquired recently by Ireland's Great Hunger Institute and comprises 65 volumes published between 1683- 1914. The volumes in the collection cover a variety topics related to poverty in Ireland over the span of two centuries. The collection is currently being cataloged by the library.

Ireland's Great Hunger at Quinnipiac University (Additional News and Resources)

Ireland's Great Hunger Institute
Ireland's Great Hunger Institute is a scholarly resource for the study of the Great Hunger, which is also known as An Gorta Mór. Through a strategic program of lectures, conferences, course offerings and publications, the institute fosters a deeper understanding of this tragedy and its causes and consequences.
Ireland's Great Hunger Museum - Músaem An Ghorta Mhóir
March 4, 2022 - Quinnipiac announces IGHM collection will remain in Connecticut and intact, and is moving to Fairfield.

The university will partner with the Gaelic-American Club of Fairfield for display of the collection, assuring a sustainable future and broad visibility for the collection.

Following a unanimous vote of the Quinnipiac Board of Trustees, Quinnipiac University announced today that it will partner with the Gaelic-American Club (GAC) of Fairfield to serve as the new location for Ireland’s Great Hunger Museum collection. The full collection will be displayed in a new space to be created by the GAC.

The collection has vital historical significance in memorializing the Irish Great Hunger and the plight of victimized peoples. The university’s goal is to preserve the collection, to have it displayed intact, and for it to remain in Connecticut in a more central location accessible to a broader public. The decision follows extensive exploratory conversations with many organizations and community leaders as the university investigated multiple avenues to preserve the collection and its important message.

The partnership with the Gaelic-American Club places the museum in a location at the heart of an already vibrant Irish-American community. The 75-year-old club is one of the largest Irish-American organizations in New England, with 6,000 members and a rich cultural program consisting of many active clubs and committees, and is located only 30 minutes from IGHM’s current location in Hamden. The university remains committed to keeping the collection together and honoring the terms of the original donor agreements for any items donated to IGHM.

After reviewing multiple proposals, the university’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously to partner with the GAC after the club submitted a sustainable plan based on its established infrastructure and cultural and financial resources to support the display of the full collection, and given the club’s location.

“The goals of keeping the museum collection together, in Connecticut and cared for by the Irish-American community were paramount in our decision making,” said Arthur H. Rice, Esq., Chairman of Quinnipiac’s Board of Trustees. “Working with the GAC means the university can ensure the collection remains broadly accessible as we also serve the growing needs of our students, faculty and staff. As Trustees, we must focus on the students and academic experience as we continue to adapt to accelerating changes in the higher education landscape.”

The GAC plans to locate the museum within the Fairfield Historic District, alongside other local museums and the downtown shopping district. The museum will be adjacent to the GAC’s headquarters, which includes a restaurant and event space, and within walking distance of the Fairfield MetroNorth train station.

“In light of the university's decision to relocate the collection, the Gaelic-American Club is honored to partner on a solution that keeps the treasured IGHM collection here in Connecticut, safeguarded and shared widely by the Irish-American community,” said Amy O’Shea, a representative of the GAC.

Gaelic-American Club Vice President John Foley added: “Now that a clear path forward has been established for the collection, it is time we unify our collective efforts and all rally around the shared goal of ensuring the future visibility and impact of the collection and the story that it tells.”

The university also will partner with the GAC on the educational message of the collection and will continue to advance the academic and research programs of Ireland’s Great Hunger Institute at Quinnipiac, the Irish collection in the Lender Reading Room and educational activities related to Ireland. Ireland’s Great Hunger Institute offers lectures, conferences, courses, research opportunities and publications that provide a deeper understanding of the causes and consequences of the Irish Famine. QU encourages the engagement of other schools and universities in the region to amplify the collection’s historic legacy.

Special Collections - Arnold Bernhard Library