During the Great Famine of the 1840s in Ireland, Vere Foster assisted the poor, helping with the re-settlement of thousands of emigrants to North America escaping starvation and disease.  For those unable to emigrate he set his sights on improving their life chances by lifting educational standards in Irish schools.  Jean Cannon revisits this momentous period in Irish history and Ian Wolseley explains how a seemingly innocuous bundle of family letters revealed a family link to this great man.

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