Our adventures in New York

Seán and Susan (MDs of the Irish Photo Archive and LensmenPhotography respectively) arrived back from New York this morning after an exciting couple of days in the Big Apple launching our digital book. President John F. Kennedy Visits Ireland in 1963.

The decision to launch the book in New York was made thanks to Jimmy Deenihan, the newly appointed Minister for Diaspora Affairs.  He had agreed to contribute a foreword to ourdigital book, and while filming it (utilisng the option of a video foreword for a digital book…), the minister suggested the book should be launched at the Irish Consulate at his welcoming event.

Susan Kennedy, Minister Jimmy Deenihan and Seán Walsh at the launch of
President John F. Kennedy Visits Ireland in 1963, 4 November 2014 

We were very happy to have the opportunity to meet with the consulate staff in New York; Barbara Jones, Consul General, and Fiona McCabe, Vice Consul General. To show our appreciation to them for allowing us to launch our title there, we brought a print of Kennedy addressing both Houses of the Oireachtas. As you can see from the image below, Kennedy is standing in front of the flag of the colours of the of the 69th New York, the first Regiment of the Irish Brigade, which he presented to the Dáil.

Seán Walsh, Consul General Barbara Jones and Minister Jimmy Deenihan
with the presented print from the Irish Photo Archive, 4 November 2014

We were also happy to meet up with the Irish-American businesses and organisations that had gathered to greet Minister Deenihan. There was a wide variety of sectors represented, as you will see from this brief list of businesses we met:

• Easyshopnyc
• Irish American Cultural Institute
• Xavier Society for the Blind
• Navillus
• Digital Caddies
• The Wild Geese
• Tir na nÓg Irish Bar and Grill

It’s great to see that the Irish and their descendants are still playing a major part in the US corporate and cultural worlds. We hope to be able to work more with our Irish-American counterparts in the future, and bring our businesses closer together.

Some of the crowd at the event in the Irish Consulate in New York,
4 November 2014

Under the covers with JFK

We’ve told you about how our first digital book, President John F. Kennedy Visits Ireland in 1963, was launched yesterday. We would love if you purchased a copy, but we thought you might like a look inside first.

The second day - meeting the cousins

Each day Kennedy spent in Ireland is provided with a separate chapter. The images taken by the Lensmen photographers are the focus, of course, but we have tried to provide extra information on the other people featured in the shots. Most people know about how Kennedy visited his cousins and addressed the Dáil, but perhaps aren’t as familiar with the rest of the details of the trip, like for instance, the death threats issued against him or the riots that took place at the dinner party.

The major benefit of digital books is that the material can be updated without delay. There is no more need to wait for the next edition, or for the first print run to be exhausted. And anybody that bought a copy will have their digital book updated automatically each time the material is updated or added to.

All the images in the book are available from the Irish Photo Archive as fine art prints. There is a gallery at the end of the book featuring all images we have discovered of the visit so far. Each image has a link from the book directly to our website. Or you can of course access them directly from www.irishphotoarchive.ie.

Check inside and see if you find it interesting

You can also access a sample of the President John F. Kennedy Visits Ireland in 1963 on the iTunes Store. Each digital book has the option of downloading a sample 15 pages, like the ‘See Inside’ option on Amazon. This will be a section from one chapter, and you can purchase the full copy directly from it if you so choose.

We hope you enjoy the book, and that you find the photos as interesting as we do. If you have any further information about the people involved, or recognize anybody from the photos, we would love to hear from you on irishphotoarchive@gmail.com.

Launch of our first digital book

The Irish Photo Archive and ePublish  are delighted to announce that Minister of Diaspora Affairs Jimmy Deenihan is launching our inaugural digital book, President John F. Kennedy Visits in 1963, at the Irish Consulate building in New York on 4 November 2014.

This digital book is the result of a collaboration between two very different Irish companies, Irish Photo Archive and ePublish. The Irish Photo Archive is the largest private collection of historical images in Ireland whilst ePublish is a new and exciting digital publishing agency working with independent authors to produce interactive digital publications.

Our first digital book

President John F. Kennedy Visits in 1963 is structured around the images taken by the Lensmen photographers of JFK while he was on tour in Ireland. Many of these images have not been published since they were taken over 50 years ago, and many are unique. For instance, Andy Farren, one of the founders of the Lensmen agency, was the only professional photographer allowed inside the Kennedy homestead. 

The digital book follows Kennedy on his trip around Ireland, from Air Force One touching down at Dublin Airport to his farewells four days later. We see the ceremonies planned for his trip, the crowds that turned out everywhere to greet him, and Kennedy’s own enthusiasm for Ireland and the Irish people. The book does not just focus on Kennedy alone, but also all the other key personalities involved in bringing him to Ireland; De Valera, Lemass, Frank Aiken, the Ryan family of Dunganstown, Ambassador Matt McCluskey, etc. as well as others that shone out while Kennedy was here, e.g. the cadets performing the Funeral Drill at Arbour Hill.

Minister Deenihan is also the first ever Minister for Diaspora Affairs, and we are honoured that he chose our digital book as the Irish product he would launch on his first official visit to the US. He first became involved in the project when he contributed a foreword to the book, and has since thrown his full support behind the Irish Photo Archive and our plans for the future. We hope the interaction of our historical resources and the cutting edge technology provided by ePublish will open doors to new audiences across the globe.