The burning of Cork (11.12.1920) in six newspaper archives

On 11 December 1920, five acres of property was destroyed in Cork City, Ireland. In a reprisal attack, members of the British Crown forces set fire to buildings including shops on the main street, St Patrick's Street, as well as the City Hall and Carnegie Library. The toll of destruction was unprecedented. All together, 57 buildings were completely destroyed, 20 were badly damaged and a further 12 were wrecked and looted. 

The damage was estimated at around £2.5 million. 2,000 people lost their jobs and it took years to rebuild the city center. The event, which became known as the Burning of Cork, generated newspaper headlines all over the world. If you are interested in finding out more about what was said in the newspapers, below you will find a list of some of the newspaper archives that you can search for free and discover articles and images from the time. I did a quick search myself and have included some examples of the kind of articles / photographs that can be found. Try it yourself!

1. Chronicling America (American newspapers) Link. Below are a couple of example of the articles and photographs that you can find in this database of American newspapers that is run by the American Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The Washington Herald, 13 December 1920, p. 1. Image source.

The Evening World, 23 December 1920, p. 9. Image source.

2. Trove (Australian newspapers) Link - Below are a couple of articles from two different Australian newspapers from December 1920. Trove is a collaboration between the National Library of Australia and other libraries in Australia. 

The Argus, 14 December 1920, p. 6. Image source.

The Armidale Express. 14 December 1920, p. 4. Image source.

3. Papers Past (New Zealand newspapers) Link - Below are a couple of newspaper articles from two different New Zealand newspapers. Papers Past contains digitised copies of newspapers, magazine, journals and much more. It is provided by the National Library of New Zealand.

Northern Advocate, 15 December 1920, p. 5. Image source.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, 14 December 1920, p. 5. Image source.

4. Delpher (Dutch newspapers) Link - below are a couple of examples of the articles and photographs that I found in this easy to use database. I don't speak Dutch, but I searched for 'brand' [fire] and 'Cork' and found a good few articles. I wonder if anyone has done any research on Dutch-Irish relations using this great resource. Delpher was developed by the Dutch National Library.

De Courant, 15 December 1920, p. 1. Image source.

Dagblad van Zuid-Holland, 31 December 1920, p. 3. Image source.

5. Gallica (French newspapers) Link - below are some of the articles and photographs on the Burning of Cork from the Gallica database. This is the database that I am most familiar with and it is relatively easy to navigate, even if you don't speak the language. Gallica is the digital library of the Bibliothèque nationale de France.

Le Matin, 15 December 1920, p. 1. Image source.

'Après les incendies de Cork'. Image source.

6. Hemeroteca (Spanish language newspapers) Link - below are some of the articles that appeared in the Spanish speaking press about the burning of Cork. The database is provided by the Spanish National Library. 

La Voz, 13 December 1920, p. 5. Image source.

El Liberal, 14 December 1920, p. 1. Image source.