The Shamrock and the Shield: An Oral History of the Irish in Montreal

Bruce Grainger is head of the Public Services Department, Macdonald
Library, McGill University.

The title of this book is misleading, in that the volume is primarily an
oral history of the Irish Catholic working-class district of
Griffintown. Some interviews with Irish Protestants and Catholics from
other areas are included, but the focus of the book is essentially on
the people living in this one district. That said, The Shamrock and the
Shield is a story well told by the interviewees and expertly edited. A
sense of the strong community values of the Catholic Irish and the
dominant role of the Church in their lives is powerfully conveyed.
Memories of colorful characters and significant events are told in rich
detail. Human problems and activities such as alcoholism, poverty,
unemployment, welfare, wakes, church, school, workplaces, and
entertainment are described. Individual stories are frequently related
to important periods in the evolution of Griffintown: the Great
Depression, World War II, the postwar period, and the eventual dispersal
of the Irish throughout the city and the suburbs. The very interesting
stories in this volume are enhanced by numerous photographs of the
subjects interviewed, their family members and friends, local events,
and printed memorabilia of the era.