This live interview features the story of Catherine Strong, Dublin’s official city “scavenger” tasked with running sanitation teams to clear the streets of human and animal waste. Audiences will hear how over four centuries ago Catherine Strong earned her money through levies on shopkeepers and traders but when the dung began to pile up and the stench spread across the city, her career in public service ended. Professor Jane Ohlmeyer (Erasmus Smith’s Professor of Modern History (1762) at Trinity College Dublin) tells the audience how things went spectacularly wrong for Catherine but how she in turn profited by setting herself up subsequently as a moneylender. We also hear some suprising details about women’s lives and work practices in this era. Songs are provided by Ann Buckley from An Góilín Traditional singers .

About the series

Dublin’s Hidden Histories now in its second series, is in partnership with Trinity Long Room Hub and Unit18.  Recorded in front of a live audience, and featuring songs sung by An Goilin Traditional singers, the series will bring to light histories of Dublin that have been lost or forgotten The series is made with the support of Coimisiún Na Meán’s Sound and Vision scheme, with the Television License fee.

The Trinity Long Room Hub is Trinity’s research institute for the Arts and Humanities. For more visit https://www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub/about/

For more on An Góilín Traditional singers please visit https://goilin.com/

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:54 — 130.3MB)

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