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A file relating to a questionnaire circulated by the Sacred Propagation of the Faith in order to obtain up to date information for the Dictionary of Missions.

Letters from Fr Daniel McDonald SJ, St Mary's, Emo, County Laois to Irish Fr Provincial John R. MacMahon SJ concerning Chinese language studies for Irish Jesuits bound for the Chinese mission.

Copy letter from Fr Superior (Fr Robert Tyndall SJ), St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin to the Sodalists concerning the Annual Sale of Work to raise money for the missions in Canton and Hong Kong.

Document concerning new regulations on the type of apostolate work being carried out in China. The document was circulated at a General Congregation of the Society.

Copy of a letter from Fr Patrick Joy SJ (Superior of the mission), Wah Yan College, Hong Kong to Bishop Valtorta, Vicar Apostolic of Hong Kong concerning the Bishop's approval for the Jesuits to have their own church in Hong Kong. Discusses possible sites. Includes a copy of the Bishop's reply.

Copy of a letter from Fr John Hannon SJ (English Assistant) to Fr General seeking permission for Fr Patrick Joy SJ (Superior of the mission) to sell property in Hong Kong. The permission was granted.

Letter from Fr Patrick Joy SJ, St Mary's, Emo, Portarlington to Fr Coyne SJ concerning the sale of Loyola in Hong Kong and Fr Harold Craig SJ and his work in Calcutta.

Copy of a letter from Fr John Hannon SJ (English Assistant), Rome to Fr Patrick Joy SJ (Superior of the mission) concerning the Hong Kong mission. Encloses a copy of a letter from Fr General to Fr Hannon raising a number of points about the work of the Hong Kong mission.

Report by Fr Patrick Joy SJ (Superior of the Hong Kong mission) on interviews he had in Rome with various officials concerning the future of the Hong Kong mission.

Copy of a draft of a letter from Irish Fr Provincial Michael A O'Grady SJ to Fr General J. B. Janssens SJ concerning the question whether the Irish Jesuit Mission of Hong Kong (including Singapore and Malaya) should be constituted a dependent Vice-Province or retain its status as a mission under the jurisdiction of the Irish Provincial. Outlines the opinions of the consultors of the Irish Province the Superior and consultors of the Hong Kong mission and the Provincial of the Irish Province.

Copies of documents sent to the Province entitled 'China. Secretive Directives on how to Destroy the Church' from International Fides Service.

Black and white photographs of Fr Richard Gallagher SJ on his voyage to China and photographs of China.

• 'Shadow of 'Mongolia' on bank of Canal (Suez) about 7.30', 5 October 1927;
• 'Monsoon in China Sea', 20 October 1927;
• 'Cecilia, Two [ ] The Coolie is wearing a mackintosh D' [1928] - [1938];
• Fr Richard Gallagher SJ at his desk [1928] - [1938];
• Fr Richard Gallagher SJ in Ireland [1945]-[1947];
• 'Left to right standing - Father H. Morris, Con Lynch, M O'Flanagan, Mosignir Collins, Monsignir Crowley. Seated Fr Michael Sheehy, Fr Tom Lynch';
• 'At a party given for Fr Dick by two lawyer friends' [1950] - [1962];

Letters from Fr Daniel J Finn SJ, 62 Robinson Road, Hong Kong to Fr Aubrey Gwynn SJ concerning his life and work in Hong Kong. Describes his surroundings and discusses Chinese culture. The second letter is incomplete.

Summary of the Annual Letters from the Hong Kong mission, including a summary of the Apostolates in each house in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaya.

Copy of a letter from Irish Fr Provincial Michael A. O'Grady SJ, 85 Eglinton Road, Donnybrook, Dublin to Fr General J B Janssens SJ, 5 Borgo Santo Spirito, Rome outlining the reasons why he feels the novitiate for candidates of the Society of Jesus in the far East should be transferred from Formosa to Hong Kong.

Letter from Fr Thomas Fitzgerald SJ, Catholic Cathedral, 3 Farquhar Street, Penang to Fr Pat [ ] SJ concerning a questionnaire about Chinese Rites. Asks for Pat [ ], SJ's opinion on some points relating to Chinese Rites.

Advertisement leaflet for a sale of work in aid of the Irish Jesuit mission to China.

General financial statement of the Hong Kong mission.

Ricci: Souvenir record of the silver jubilee of Ricci Hall, Hong Kong University 1929-1954.

A file relating to the will of Canon Roche and money he left for the education of students for foreign missions.

Correspondence between Fr J. O'Leary PP, Dunmanway, Cork and Irish Fr Provincial Laurence Kieran SJ concerning a donation from Fr O'Leary for the Chinese mission.

Telegram from Fr Eddie Bourke, SJ concerning masses said. Requests money.

Wah Yan College Kowloon 50th anniversary magazine.

A file relating to requests received from the Hong Kong mission for financial assistance.

Points discussed and agreed between Irish Fr Provincial John R. MacMahon SJ and Fr Patrick Joy SJ (Superior of the Hong Kong mission) concerning financial arrangements for the mission.

Documents for:

• First Catalogue (Catalogus Personarum Primus)
• Second Catalogue (Catalogus Personarum Secundus)
• Annual Letters (Litterae Annuae)
• Lives of those who have died (Summarium vitae defunctorum)
• Index of authors and books published by Ours (Index auctorem et librorum a Nostris editorum)
• Lists of admissions to the Novitiate, (Elenchi Triennales Admissorum in First and Final Vows, etc noviciatum, Admissorum ad Vota Prima et Ultima)
• Catalogue of journals , periodicals (Catalogus ephemeridum et and school annuals.libellorum periodicorum)
• Supplement to First and Second Catalogue (Supplementum Triennale ad Catalogum Personarum Primum & Secundum)

Letter from Fr Daniel J Finn SJ, 62 Robinson Road, Hong Kong to Fr Brennan SJ concerning the Chinese mission, his work and the Chinese people.

Carte postale from Fr Richard Gallagher SJ, Catholic Mission, Shiu-Hing, West River, China to Mrs M. A. Archibald (aunt), 16 Lower Gardiner street, Dublin, describing Chinese students and his teachings.

Expenses of Hong Kong mission visitors. A note reads 'It was agreed that the Provincial would support and clothe the above visitors (extraordinary medical expenses excluded) and should receive anything earned by them while in Ireland, including masses.'

A file containing financial accounts of the Chinese mission.

Revisors reports of the Chinese mission.

Letters from J. P. McCarthy SJ, Heythorp College, Chipping, North Oxon. to Irish Fr Provincial Thomas Byrne SJ concerning the finances of Hong Kong, in particular Canton.

A file relating to the Irish Jesuit Mission Office (The Ricci Mission Unit) based in Ireland. The file contains financial information (accounts, donations and burses) relating to the Hong Kong mission, letters by Fr Thomas Martin SJ, relating to the administration of the Hong Kong mission and personnel/volunteers for the mission.

List of volunteers for the Chinese mission.

List of Chinese names of Irish Jesuit mission personnel.

Photograph of Fr Daniel J. Finn SJ's grave stone in London.

A file relating to the deaths of Frs Michael Saul SJ and Joseph McCullough SJ from cholera.

A file of letters written to Irish Fr Provincial expressing dissatisfaction at Fr Tom Cooney's return to China in the light of his poor health and the long sea journey in a second class cabin.

Many Jesuit Provinces had missions in China before 1926 when the Vicar Apostolic of Hong Kong, Fr Henry Valtorta (1883-1953), invited the Irish Jesuits to his vicariate. In October 1926, Frs George Byrne (1879-1962) and John Neary (1889-1983) left Dublin for Hong Kong, which became a Mission for the Irish Province. They were joined, in early 1927, by Fr Daniel Finn (1886-1936) from Australia and later by Frs Richard Gallagher (1887-1960), Patrick Joy (1892-1970) and Daniel MacDonald (1891-1957).

The initial work of the mission concentrated in Hong Kong, with some teaching in Canton and Macao. Their works involved: reviving the Catholic journal, ‘The Rock’; the opening of a hostel (Ricci Hall) for Chinese Catholic students at the University of Hong Kong (1929-); their involvement in the Regional Seminary, Aberdeen, Hong Kong (1931-1964), Wah Yan College, Hong Kong (1932-) and Wah Yan College, Kowloon (1952-). Some lecturing occurred in the university, in areas such as archaeology, education, engineering, and geography. In Canton, Frs Michael Saul (1884-1932) and Joseph McCullough (1892-1932) died from cholera. Hong Kong was under Japanese occupation 1941 - 1945. The Irish Jesuits organised a school for refugees from Hong Kong in Macao and the Regional Seminary was also moved to Macao. Wah Yan College was closed in 1941 and reopened in 1945. Fr Thomas Ryan’s account “Jesuits under Fire in the siege of Hong Kong 1941” deals fully with this time.

After World War Two, the Irish Jesuits established a language school, student centre and parish in Canton. They were expelled by the Communists in [1953]. Wah Yan College grew and developed and further works included the foundation of a university hostel at Kingsmead Hall, Singapore and at Xavier Hall, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. Other works of note that Irish Jesuits had a hand in establishing and running in Hong Kong include: the Hong Kong Housing Society (1938); Wah Yan Relief Association (1938); Shoeshine Boys Club (1952-1962); the Credit Union Movement (1962); Rehabilitation Centre for the Handicapped (1962); Catholic Marriage Advisory Council (1963); Road Safety Association for Schools (1964); Industrial Relations Institute (1968); Chinese Opera in English (1960s); Fisherman’s Children School (1960s) and Welfare for Police in the Training School. In 1966, Hong Kong became a Jesuit Vice-Province and in 1985, the Province of Macau-Hong Kong was established. Today, Hong Kong is a unit within the Chinese Jesuit Province.

Over a hundred Irish Jesuits have served in Hong Kong, China, Malaysia and Singapore - 30 of whom are buried in St. Michael’s Cemetery in Hong Kong and two in mainland China.