Canada, Ireland, and Transatlantic Colonialism Conference
& Honouring the Indigenous Gift, 1847
May 28-30, 2024
Why You Should Attend
The CITC Conference is an international gathering of scholars who will discuss the relationship between Ireland and Canada, particularly with reference to migration, the apparatus of the British Empire, colonialism, religion, and Irish engagement with the Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island. Admission is free, and sessions are open to the public.
The conference is co-sponsored by the Embassy of Ireland, Department of Foreign Affairs, the Ireland Funds of Canada, the Irish Cultural Society of Toronto, and the University of St. Michael’s College Offices of the President and the Principal and its Celtic Studies Program.
Keynote Speakers
The CITC Conference features distinguished speakers in Irish and Canadian history, Indigenous-Crown relations, and Irish literature and culture. They will cover themes such as settler colonialism, religious history, and new technologies.
Donald H. Akenson
A.C. Hamilton Distinguished University Professor & Douglas Professor of Canadian and Colonial History, Queen’s University.
Heidi Bohaker
Associate Professor & Associate Chair, Undergraduate, Department of History, University of Toronto.
S. Karly Kehoe
Professor of History & Canada Research Chair in Atlantic Canada Communities. Saint Mary’s University, Halifax
Christopher Morash, MRIA, FTCD
Seamus Heaney Professor of Irish Writing, Trinity College Dublin, University of Dublin
Deirdre Raftery, PhD, FRHistS
Full Professor, History of Education, UCD School of Education,
University College Dublin, Ireland
IN FOCUS
A Wealth of Ideas Leads to Irish Conference at St. Mike’s
By Mark McGowan, University of St. Michael’s College — The Canada, Ireland, and Transatlantic Colonialism Conference had a polygenesis of sorts. In March 2023, Ambassador Eamonn McKee held a reception at the Embassy Residence in Ottawa for the Coollattin Canadian Connection. I was invited because of my work with the project, which helps to link the former estate of Earl Fitzwilliam in Wicklow with descendants of the tenants he assisted off the estate in the 1840s and 1850s. It was there that Tom Jenkins, a Coollattin descendant – and recently Chancellor of the University of Waterloo – proposed that St. Mike’s be the hub linking Canada-Ireland research projects. This dovetailed nicely with the Ambassador’s and my plans to bring to light Ireland’s role within the British Imperial project, specifically settlement and migration to British North America.
Bronze shoes link Niagara to Global Irish Famine trail
Niagara Falls Review, May 25, 2024, By Ray Spiteri Reporter — “The past has something to teach us about our own condition today. These shoes will be, I think, reminders of the generosity that we must display.” An important yet not often talked about part of the Irish famine story — will be part of an international heritage trail memorializing immigrants who fled the potato famine in the 1800s and landed in ports around the world.“This is an absolutely critical and often forgotten part of the Irish story,” said Mark McGowan, a professor of history at the University of St. Michael’s College in the University of Toronto.
Honouring the Indigenous Gift, 1847
Honouring Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee & Huron-Wendat Irish Famine Aid
Honouring Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee & Huron-Wendat Irish Famine Aid pays tribute to the Indigenous peoples in Canada West (now Ontario) who contributed to Irish Famine relief in 1847. Based on newly discovered archival records, it tells the story of their efforts to help alleviate Irish hunger. The film features Indigenous descendants from donor communities reflecting on the compassion of their ancestors. They had donated over £170 in response to a plea for aid on St Patrick’s Day, 1847.
Honouring Indigenous Aid
Honouring Indigenous Aid pays tribute to the Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and Wyandotte-Huron First Nations in Canada West (now Ontario) that contributed to Irish Famine relief in 1847 when they faced considerable hardship, broken treaty relations, and forced relocation.
Toronto researchers help uncover Ontario First Nations’ donations to Irish Famine relief fund
CBC News – Mar 17, 2024. Toronto sheltered 38,000 Irish famine victims in the summer of 1847. As CBC’s Talia Ricci reports, researchers have recently discovered archival records that reveal an important connection between Ontario First Nations and Ireland.
St. Mike’s in Ireland
The University of St. Michael’s College has a long-standing engagement with Ireland and all things Irish. In 1979, its pioneering Celtic Studies Program began an important mission to teach Irish history, culture, literature, folklore, and language to undergraduate students. Through the program, upper-level students were also able to participate in special research courses that often took them to international conferences in Ireland and the United States. St. Michael’s also sponsors the “Boyle Seminar in Scripts and Stories.” Named in honour of SMC’s Irish-born and distinguished paleographer, Leonard Boyle, op, first-year students are able to study mediaeval Irish manuscripts and the historical context in which they were created. Several classes have been able to make a special trip to Ireland. In an effort to establish lasting ties with the academy in Ireland, in 2023, St. Michael’s signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Maynooth University. This agreement will foster further academic cooperation, research, and exchanges between the two institutions.
Our Sponsors
Thank you to our sponsors for your generous support.
