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My own paper will use the interviews conducted by the Irish Boundary Commission (1924-1925) to examine how residents along the new border defined, or redefined, their home.  Both the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland were probing the limits of Northern Ireland and striving to create economically- and culturally-viable states.  When economic interests conflicted with the stated desire for cultural and religious homogeneity within Northern Ireland, the Commissioners had to determine which was more valuable for the nascent state. In almost every case they opted to preserve the economic viability of the North at the expense of the ideal of an overwhelmingly Protestant citizenry.  I address the broad themes of  oral history as a historical source, state formation, and fluctuating identity.

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Clare

Clare Norcio