I started my working life in retail before making the decision to study at the University of Limerick as a mature student in 2005. It was here that I developed an interest and passion for history. While I was taught Irish, English, European and global history from the early modern period to the twentieth century, what I really liked learning about was Irish and English social and women’s history of the late nineteenth century and the twentieth century .
Today most of my research is focused on women’s history. Very often the enormous contribution women have made to Irish and English society has been forgotten about. And for me, it Is about recovering those lost voices.
Above all else, I believe that to understand the past we need to understand our local history. Uncovering the often-forgotten stories of our communities can provide surprising connections to national and international historical events.
History is all around us waiting to be uncovered. It can be found in official records, newspapers and in the unlikeliest of places: family attics and cupboards filled with records and mementos waiting to be discovered. The stories these records tell us can be quite surprising.
HISTORIAN.IE 