Local Irishness: storytelling, heritage, and place attachment in Douglastown, Québec

Leggo, Angelina (2020) Local Irishness: storytelling, heritage, and place attachment in Douglastown, Québec. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The community of Douglastown, on the Gaspé Peninsula in eastern Québec, has experienced profound change in recent years. An increase in migration to the area has relegated the once majority Anglophone population to a minority in the region. In response, community members use a history of Irish immigration to the area to differentiate themselves from other places in the Gaspésie and across the province. They likewise use this legacy to strengthen and express place attachment, celebrate their heritage and history, emphasize their language, and continue the traditions of the Catholic Church, both within and outside of their community. Through interviews, participant observation, mapping, and local research, I show how stories in Douglastown revolve around these multiple expressions if Irishness and how this has created a framework for defining belonging in the past that still resonates within the community today.

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