We’re so excited to announce the launch of the final major output of the ‘Typhoid, Cockles & Terrorism’ project – ‘Fear and Fever: Dublin’s Struggle with Typhoid’ is a completely free (and ad-free) self-guided walking tour available now from the Typhoidland website!
Travel back in time to find out about Dublin’s diseased past in the company of one of the city’s first women sanitary officers. You’ll explore some familiar and some more unusual spots in Dublin centre as you discover more about the city’s deadly reputation at the beginning of the 20th century – when poverty, overcrowding, and bad sanitation made it a breeding ground of infectious disease. Typhoid was one of the most notorious. Lizzie Byrne, your guide, will tell you about some of the everyday tragedies connected to typhoid, the factors that enabled its spread, and how Dublin authorities tried to stop it. And finally, discover what the unappetising connection is between typhoid and Dublin’s famous daughter, Molly Malone.
The tour is an immersive, multimedia experience. The narration is enriched by key historic images from collections including Dublin City Library & Archive, Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, National Library of Ireland, National Archives of Ireland and Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland – and more!
Lizzie Byrne was a real person. Exploring the role of women in Edwardian Dublin’s public health workforce has been an important research strand of the ‘Typhoid, Cockles & Terrorism’ project, and we’ve positioned a real-life historical sanitary sub-officer as the guide for this tour to highlight the significant contribution these women made to improving the health and welfare of Dubliners at the turn of the twentieth century.
Visit the tour webpage for more info, and directions for downloading it. Also, if you aren’t based in Dublin never fear! You can take the tour virtually here.
