Project will analyse multitude of documents to uncover female Irish experiences from 1500 to 1700
Four centuries ago Dublin had an official city “scavenger” who was tasked with running sanitation teams to clear streets of human and animal waste. In return, the scavenger earned tolls from shopkeepers and traders.
It could have worked well, except the contractor decided to cut costs and maximise profits by deploying just two carts rather than six. Dung piled up and the city stank. This upset everyone save the scavenger, who pocketed enough cash to set herself up as a moneylender. Her name was Catherine Strong.
