Historian and author Colm Liddy has amassed a vast collection of old photographs from Co. Clare, many of which depict fascinating farming scenes from the past.
Colm is behind ‘Long Ago in County Clare’, a Twitter/Facebook account that features interesting photos and stories from our past.
“The topics covered range across every era since the Stone Age, but with an emphasis on quirky facts that are not widely known,” he said.
“Sometimes highlighted are the exploits of our men and women from long ago.
“The account also takes people on a tour of the many ancient ruins that are dotted all over the Banner County. It’s nothing less than a crash course in Irish history, but in tiny bitesize chunks.
“Clare, after all, was the boyhood home of President Michael D. Higgins. This account has his school photo from 1950.
“It was also in the Banner county that the Land War was most intense in 1888. Check out the photo of the O’Halloran sisters for a vision of pure defiance. “
Colm also points out that footage has shown Beatles legend, John Lennon, at the Cliffs of Moher during the Fab Four’s 1963 visit to Clare. The footage was said to have been uncovered by Lahinch-based Matthew Kelly.
However, Colm believes that visions of ordinary life long ago are “just as important”, and farming is central to this.
“Because Clare has mostly been an agricultural county, this means that farming is the theme in many photos,” he said.
“Likewise, when the photos are of ancient ruins as they are now, you’ll often see a few Friesians standing in the background. Many of the photographs come various internet archives and also old books.”
The account was only set up two months ago, and is “slowly building a following” Colm said.
“We are currently on 1100 followers but certain posts have achieved a much bigger reach through retweets. The biggest went to 140,000 views and several have been in the 50,000 to 100,000 range,” he said.
Old photographs
Colm is intrigued by the work of Dorothea Lange, a renowned American documentary photographer whose portraits of displaced farmers during the Great Depression greatly influenced later documentary and journalistic photography.
She travelled to Ireland in 1954 on assignment from Life magazine and while here, captured over 2,000 images, mostly of Co. Clare.
Delving into images of times past and getting feedback on them is something that Colm enjoys enormously.
“I do get a bit of a thrill when ‘liked’ by various people in public life. I got quite a thrill when i was followed by former Clare hurler, Anthony Daly,” he said.
Colm has already produced four richly illustrated history books including titles on Drumoland and Nan Hogan, leader of Cumann na mBan in Clare.
“I hope to do a book similar to the Twitter account on Co. Clare, a miscellany of interesting photos and stories,” he said.
When Colm is not sorting through old photographs, he spends his free time gallivanting around the county exploring and photographing crumbling old cottages and graveyards.
“Sometimes I have to wade through briars and nettles but it’s all for a good cause,” he laughed.
“I work part-time as a pharmacist. Every other waking moment is spent reading, talking and thinking about history – my poor wife,” Colm quipped.