Dr Conor McNamara, the Athenry native who is today one of the foremost historians of modern Ireland, has been appointed Galway County Council Historian-in-Residence for 2021.
Dr McNamara has previously worked at NUI Galway; the University of Notre Dame’s Keogh-Naughton Centre for Irish Studies; the National Library of Ireland; and at the University of Minnesota’s Ireland Programme.
He has published five books on modern Irish history, most notably his study of the independence struggle in Galway, War and Revolution in the West of Ireland: Galway 1913-21, published by the Irish Academic Press in 2017.
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The appointment is part of the Galway County Council Centenary Commemorative Programme, the local authority’s contribution to the State’s Decade of Commemorations 2013–2023. The programme seeks to encourage Galway people at home and abroad to “explore and reflect on the tumultuous events which shaped us”.
The council is planning the publication of a series of local studies of the period focusing on seminal events that occurred across the County, and the publication of a landmark research guide aimed at schools and heritage groups.
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The council is particularly keen to record the history of Galway families whose relatives played a role during the independence struggle and create an archive of oral history to “preserve and enhance our understanding” of the Revolution.
As a result, Dr McNamara would like to hear from any individuals, community groups, or families with a connection to the period. He can be contacted via [email protected].
