The Irish Workhouse Centre is holding a conference from Saturday 17 to Sunday 18 May entitled ‘The Irish Workhouse Past and Present’.
The conference aims to tell the story of the workhouse as an institution that operated in Ireland from the early 1840s to the early 1920s.
There were 163 workhouses built in Ireland, places where the poorest and most destitute of Irish society would work for food and shelter. There were 10 workhouses in Galway itself, in places like Tuam, Ballinasloe and Clifden.
The conference will deal with such topics as children in Irish workhouses, the architecture of Irish workhouses and rioting in workhouses during the Great Famine.
Held in Portumna, one-day conference fees cost €35, while full conference tickets cost €60. For booking information, email [email protected] or call 090-9759200.
