The Little Museum of Dublin is a
local history
Local history is the study of history in a geographically local context, often concentrating on a relatively small local community. It incorporates cultural and social aspects of history. Local history is not merely national history writ small ...
museum situated at
St Stephen's Green
St Stephen's Green () is a garden square and public park located in the city centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current landscape of the park was designed by William Sheppard. It was officially re-opened to the public on Tuesday, 27 July 1880 by ...
,
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
, Ireland. The museum is located in an 18th-century Georgian townhouse owned by Dublin City Council.
Collection
As a local history museum for the city of Dublin, the Little Museum chronicles the history of the city in the 20th century. It provides visitors with information on life in Dublin during that time period. The Little Museum, the "brainchild" of director
Trevor White and curator Simon O’Connor, was formed in April 2011 and officially opened its doors to the public in October of the same year. A registered charity,
the museum is governed by a board that includes representatives of Dublin City Council and Fáilte Ireland, the national tourism development authority.
The museum has a collection of over 5,000 artefacts that have been donated or loaned directly from the people of Dublin. It has three floors of exhibition space in the Georgian townhouse and one floor for office space. Exhibitions in the museum include displays covering the
1916 Rising, U.S. President
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
's visit to Dublin, and many other events in Irish political and social history. In 2014 the museum opened an exhibit that focuses on the rock band
U2.
The museum also offers "I Love Dublin" classes for school children ages 6–17, and a tourist greeter program, City of a Thousand Welcomes. The program is a "civic initiative" that connects first-time visitors to Dublin with a local 'ambassador' who welcomes them by taking them out for a cup of tea or a pint. During the outing, the ambassadors tell their guests about the city.
In 2014, the museum purchased an archive of work by artist and poet
Christy Brown
Christy Brown (5 June 1932 – 7 September 1981) was an Irish writer and painter who had cerebral palsy and was able to write or type only with the toes of one foot. His most recognized work is his autobiography, titled ''My Left Foot'' (1954). ...
. As of 19 March 2014, the Little Museum and the National Library of Ireland were the proud joint owners of a collection that includes private letters and previously unseen sketches, paintings, and poems. The collection was sold by
Bonhams
Bonhams is a privately owned international auction house and one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. It was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. This brought to ...
in London for nearly 45,000 euro.
Patrons of the Little Museum include
Dublin City Council
Dublin City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Dublin in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the council was ...
, the
Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht
The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media ( ga, An Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán) is a department of the Government of Ireland. The mission of the department is to promote a ...
, the Matheson Foundation, and
The Ireland Funds
The Ireland Funds are a global fundraising network for people of Irish ancestry and friends of Ireland, dedicated to raising funds to support programs of peace and reconciliation, arts and culture, education and community development throughout t ...
.
Recognition
In 2012, the Little Museum of Dublin was nominated for the
European Museum of the Year Award
The European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA) is presented each year by the European Museum Forum (European Museum Forum, EMF) under the auspices of the Council of Europe. The EMYA is considered the most important annual award in the European mu ...
.
An ''Irish Times'' article of May 2013 listed the Little Museum as the "best museum experience in Dublin". In 2014,
TripAdvisor awarded the museum with a Certificate of Excellence for the third year in a row. In February 2014 the museum won a "David Manley Emerging Entrepreneur Award" in the Arts category. As of 2022, The Little Museum was ranked #4 on TripAdvisor's "things to do in Dublin".
Other programs
In June 2011, the Little Museum launched an initiative called "City of a Thousand Welcomes". The goal of this initiative was to show the "warmth of local Dubliners" to visitors to the city, by connecting first-time visitors to Dublin with hospitable locals. Over 1,000 such local "ambassadors" were sought to advise visitors on "underestimated" attractions in Dublin, and included historians, teachers, writers and other ordinary city residents. As of 2021, as part of the response to the
COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland, this initiative was not active.
Gallery
File:Little museum front room lo.jpg, Front Room of the Museum
File:Little museum back room lo.jpg, Telephone display in the Treasury Room
File:Groceries lo.jpg, Groceries display in Treasury Room
File:Devalera instructions lo.jpg, Rare decree of plenipotentiaries signed by Eamon De Valera under the heading Anglo Irish treaty
File:Gold flake lightbox.jpg, Gold flake lightbox
File:Messenger bike.jpg, Messenger bike
References
External links
*
The Little Museum of Dublin at Google Cultural Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Little Museum of Dublin
Museums in Dublin (city)
History museums in the Republic of Ireland
Art museums and galleries in the Republic of Ireland
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
St Stephen's Green
2011 establishments in Ireland
Museums established in 2011