KDHS Monthly Lecture. Dr Catherine Porter; Beyond the Map: County Clare in the 1st Ordnance Survey of Ireland.

In 1824, the first Ordnance Survey (OS) of Ireland began in earnest. The maps produced from this survey serve as the foundation for much of how we interpret today’s landscape. However, the geographies of Ireland collected and compiled by the OS extend far beyond cartography. Additional sources document the natural landscape, built environment, culture, society, and more.

While the material generated from this venture informs contemporary discussions on the contested tangible and intangible legacies of nineteenth-century Britain in Ireland, it also provides valuable insight into pre-Famine populations and their resilience in the face of an evolving landscape.

This lecture focuses on the project OS200: Digitally Re-Mapping Ireland’s Ordnance Survey Heritage whereby a research team based at the University of Limerick and Queen’s University Belfast sought to bring together—for the first time—the maps, memoirs, name books, and letters from the first Ordnance Survey into a freely accessible digital resource, now hosted by Digital Repository Ireland: https://dri.ie/os200/spotlight/os200.

Using examples from County Clare (and further afield!), this lecture will explore the archive and demonstrate how the resource can be used by researchers and the public.

Dr Catherine Porter is an Associate Professor and Head of Geography in the School of History and Geography at the University of Limerick.
A historical geographer, her research focuses on innovative approaches to analysing early maps and texts, particularly the history of mapping Ireland from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century. She is currently the Ireland lead investigator for OS200: Digitally Re-Mapping Ireland’s Ordnance Survey Heritage, a digital humanities project co-funded by the Taighde Éireann and the Arts and Humanities Research Council. Catherine was previously awarded the J.B. Harley Fellowship in the History of Cartography, the Royal Irish Academy R.J. Hunter bursary, and is a current member of the Royal Irish Academy Historical Studies Committee.

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If you are unable to join us in person, you can watch the lecture live online at the scheduled lecture time (or watch a recording online at any subsequent time of your choosing), by going to
https://www.youtube.com/@kilrushanddistricthistoric5599/streams
There will be a live chat (text) facility to enable the remote audience to participate in the discussion.

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KDHS lectures are free to members, €5.00 for non-members, payable on the night only. New members are welcome. The annual membership fee (July-June) is €20.00.
The membership form can be downloaded from our website at
http://kdhs.ie/assets/files/general/membership_form.pdf