Wednesday 23 July 2014

PRONI's July Document has high 'Ahhhh' factor

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland's Document of the Month is a photo, taken at the outbreak of WW1, that aims straight for the heart. As a wise marketing guru (yes, you, Jill) once told me, you can't beat a donkey picture for raising the 'Aaahhhhh' quota. And if you throw some children and a charitable cause into the image as well, you're onto a certain winner. I imagine this particular fundraising stunt was very successful.

The charitable causes in question were the National and Belgium Relief Funds. The latter played its part in bringing a large number of Belgian refugees to Ireland to escape the war. Among them was a group who found a welcoming and safe temporary home in Monaghan; Clogher Historical Society is still hoping to make contact with their descendents. I wrote about this in February, and it's worth a second airing: See blogpost.