A digital repository of emigrant letters is being made available to view online as a result of a major initiative by the University of Galway.
Spanning a period of almost 400 years, the letters give detailed insights into the ways in which generations of Irish people struggled and succeeded in the new world.
The material was gathered by American historian Kerby Miller, as part of research he conducted into the experiences of those who travelled to North America.
The collection expanded over several decades, following appeals for people to loan letters or other correspondence their families had received, to assist the research.
A total of 150,000 different pages have been digitised since the collection was donated to the University in 2021.
Now, more than 7,000 complete letters have been placed in a digital repository, which is fully searchable, under several different headings.
The letters take in a period from the late 1600s to the latter half of the twentieth century.
"I wanted to find out what ordinary Irish emigrants thought about life in the United States, about leaving home, the struggle for housing and employment and that really set me off to looking for the kinds of documents that would detail how they really felt," said Professor Miller.
The collection features some letters sent from Ireland to the US, but the majority of the content is made up of material sent in the opposite direction.
There are changes and constants throughout.
Improvements in the postal service globally in the mid-19th century mean there is a more steady flow of correspondence from that point onwards.
Professor Miller says he found it fascinating to see the structural processes that were at play.
Things he says, "be they capitalism or imperialism, that were for the most part beyond these individuals’ control, that created the circumstances that impelled, encouraged, obliged or forced them to emigrate and come to America."
Once they got there, they had to adapt, often to circumstances that were not in any way favourable.
In turn, these seem to have "structured their personalities and structured what they wrote home".
The results make for fascinating, deeply personal letters, that have a universal resonance.
Digital Archivist at the University of Galway, Marie-Louise Rouget, says the online database has been designed to be as user friendly as possible.
"When somebody visits the site and they open a letter item, you can reference the typed transcript, which is easier to read," she said.
"But you can also look at the original letter, and look at its distinctive qualities, look at it characteristics and see the words as they were written, in the original author’s hand."
More of the Miller collection will be made available as the project continues.
And the university is appealing for additional material from people around the country, to add to the archive.
Professor Breandán Mac Suibhne says he has no doubt that there’s a "massive volume of material" in attics, presses, wardrobes or boxes around the country, that would shed further light on the emigrant experience.
He is particularly keen to access letters sent by Irish speakers, written in either Irish or English, that would reflect the experience of those who left Gaeltacht communities.
