Limerick has many old castles, buildings and bridges that make the county a wonderful tourist attraction. In 1943 and 1944, a survey was carried out to list the attractions in all Irish counties, including Limerick.
The survey was done by the Irish Tourist Association. This was the forerunner of Bord Fáilte, which is now known as Fáilte Ireland.
Topographical and General Survey
A detailed report was filled in for each area in Ireland by Irish Tourist Association surveyors in the 1940s. This example shows a section of the survey completed for the Barony of Glenquin.
© Limerick County Library.Topographical and General Survey
© Limerick County Library.
© Limerick County Library.
Topographical and General Survey
A detailed report was filled in for each area in Ireland by Irish Tourist Association surveyors in the 1940s. This example shows a section of the survey completed for the Barony of Glenquin.
© Limerick County Library.Those who carried out the survey went around to each parish and photographed the important historical monuments, buildings and other interesting landmarks.
They also recorded the history of the parishes, the topography, the customs and any other items of interest. The photographs were black and white and were taken with a camera called a 'box brownie'
camera.
Box Brownie Camera
The photos taken for the Irish Tourist Association survey in the 1940s were all black and white. They were taken with a small 'box brownie' camera. Box brownies were simple, popular cameras first introduced at the start of the twentieth century.
Courtesy of Making the Modern World.
Here we will examine some of the photographs from the Co. Limerick part of the survey. We will also consider whether the historical artefacts recorded have changed since that time.