"Poor Ireland," June 21, 1849 | State Historical Society of Iowa

This newspaper from 1849 was published in the Burlington Hawk-Eye to describe the destitution prevalent in Ireland.

Courtesy of Library of Congress, "Poor Ireland," Burlington Hawk-Eye, pp. 2, 21 June 1849

Description

This article from the Burlington Tri-Weekly Hawk-Eye in 1849 gives a dark picture of Ireland. The author states that the information being relayed is a month old and that conditions in Ireland are as bad as they have ever been. He states that starvation and disease are the leading causes of death in the country.

Transcript of "Poor Ireland" Newspaper Article

Printable Excerpt of "Poor Ireland" Newspaper Article

Source-Dependent Questions

According to the article, "The Foreign Element," the number of people emigrating from Ireland was decreasing. What in this article might explain that decrease?
What does the author of this article tell you about their source(s) of information? Does this make what they are telling you more believable? Why or why not?
What adjectives would you use to describe conditions in Ireland based on reading this article?

Citation Information

"Poor Ireland," Burlington Tri-Weekly Hawk-Eye, pp. 2, 21 June 1849. Courtesy of Library of Congress