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Hand drawn map of Northern Rhodesia depicting the Jesuit Mission stations.

Letters from Fr Jeremiah Sullivan SJ, St Ignatius, Richmond, Victoria to Irish Fr Provincial John Fahy SJ concerning Mr George Hughes SJ, his poor health, unsuitability to the Society and subsequent death. Refers also to the Novitiate at Loyola and drawing (12 February 1930, 4pp).

Annual accounts for the Hong Kong Mission. Includes accounts for the Wah Yah Colleges in Hong Kong and Kowloon, the Language School in Cheung Chau and Kingsmead Hall Singapore and the Revisor’s report.

Plans, elevations cross-sections and brochure of the proposed new building for Wah Yah College, Kowloon.

Article entitled ‘Missionary endeavour of the Irish Province of the Society of Jesus from 1915 to 1940’ which gives a history of the mission in Hong Kong and China.

Panoramic postcard containing views of the harbour at Hong Kong. Annotations on reverse by Fr John Neary SJ pointing out significant features.

Copy of circular sent by Irish Fr Provincial John Fahy SJ to Jesuit houses in Ireland announcing Fr General's decree for an Irish foreign mission to the Chinese province of Nan-King.

Two letters written by Fr John Neary SJ to Irish Provincial John Fahy SJ relating to arrangements for his journey to Hong Kong.

Airgraph from Fr John B Moyersoen SJ, 32, Park street, Calcutta, India to Irish Fr Provincial John R MacMahon SJ, Dublin, replying to ‘Your airgraph of 27th ult.’. Mentions writing to Fr Marin and Fr Donnelly and ‘We often see Fr Naughton’.

Note from Irish Fr Provincial John R MacMahon SJ to Mr. Hollis, Burns, Oates and Washbourne Ltd., London ‘with reference to an Australian edition of Jesuits under Fire’.

Letter from Irish Fr Provincial John MacMahon SJ, St Francis Xavier's, Dublin to Fr Thomas Ryan SJ, Chungking, China relating to news about Jesuit works, Irish Jesuits and their travels and work, recent deaths, schools and contemporaries of Fr Ryan.

File of telegrams concerning the Hong Kong mission and departure to and arrival of Jesuits in Hong Kong.

General Memoriale and Memoriale for Fr Superior of the visitation by Fr Thomas Ryan SJ to St Ignatius’ House, Canton.

Article entitled ‘Cross-roads in China’ by Fr Thomas Ryan SJ, which discusses the transformation in Chinese society, pre and post war, missionaries, Catholicism and schools.

Photographic album with original and copy inserts of scenes from Hong Kong, Canton and China. The copy photographs (seem to be mass-produced and touristic) have numbers in the bottom left hand corner, with white handwritten captions, for example, 'A chair at Hong Kong', while original photographs are often described on reverse with pencil, 'The Seminarians 1926', and underneath in light pencil. The first number of photogrpahs are missing. The album appears to contain a large number of photographs of Franciscans in China and of Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America, Inc. (Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers), and some Jesuits. Includes: the consecration of Bishop Valtorta [with the] Band from the Salesian Industrial School, Macao (1926); Fr Crochet SJ and his Chinese flock; Bishop Wittner OFM and his Chinese priests; seminarians of the regional seminary at Tatungtu, Shansi; Fr Netto; Fr Pradel with lepers at Sheklung; Fr Nugent (Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America), Ningpo, Fr Gleeson, Frs Driscoll, Malone and Murphy (Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America). The Irish element to the album may perhaps why it ended up with the Irish Jesuits.

Photographic album of the (the new) Wah Yan College, Hong Kong. The photographs have typewritten captions. Includes: various buildings, exteriors, interiors and landscape photographs of Wah Yan College, Queen's Road East, Hong Kong: opening day ceremonies of the new college (27 September 1955); Irish Jesuits Frs John Carroll, Richard Harris, Matthew Corbally, Richard Gallagher, Donald Lawler, Thomas Ryan, Timothy Doody, James McAsey, Herbert Dargan, Patrick Toner, Edmund Sullivan and Cyril Barrett; Monsignor Lorenzo Bianchi, Bishop of Hong Kong; Governor, Sir Alexander Grantham and Lady Grantham; Professor Gordon Brown.
Includes photographs of Fr Gallagher's jubilee dinner ar Ricci Hall.

Series of letters written by Fr John Neary SJ to Irish Provincial John Fahy SJ concerning his arrival to Hong Kong and the development of the Mission there

5 December 1926, 3pp
9 December 1926, 3pp
12 December 1926, 4pp
18 December 1926, 5pp
21 December 1926, 3pp
29 December 1926, 3pp
17 February 1927, 1p
26 February 1927, 2pp
1 March 1927, 1p
11 April 1927, 3pp
2 June 1927, 1p

Group photograph taken on the occasion of His Excellency Mgr Zanin's (Apostolic Delegate to China) visit to the Regional Seminary.

Group photograph of the retreat group at the Regional Seminary, Hong Kong.

Group photograph of the first year of Aberdeen Seminary, Hong Kong. The photograph includes Bishop Valtorta and Fr Thomas Cooney SJ (Rector) and other Irish Jesuits.

Group photograph of the first seminarians and their professors taken at the Regional Seminary.

List of kodachrome transparencies taken by Fr Smetsers in Southern Rhodesia and Mozambique.

A file relating to the fate of the Irish Jesuit priests working in Hong Kong during the Second World War and the Japanese occupation of the city. Includes returned letters to Irish Fr Provincial marked 'No Service Return to Sender'. Includes letters from family members asking for news or reporting to Irish Fr Provincial on letters received by them. Includes letters from other individuals seeking news about non Jesuit family members. Includes a copy of a request by Irish Fr Provincial John R. MacMahon SJ to Joseph P. Walshe, Department of External Affairs seeking help in assisting four Jesuit students to return home to Ireland (23 March 1943, 1p). Includes a reply stating that a proposed scheme to exchange civilian internees applies only to British or Allied subjects (12 May 1943, 1p). Includes a memorandum written by Fr Joy on Irish nationals in Hong Kong. The memorandum was sent by Irish Fr Provincial to the Irish Red Cross (24 October 1942, 2pp). Includes letters concerning Irish Jesuits who left Hong Kong to live and work in India during the war and subsequent return to Hong Kong when the war was over. Includes 'A Priest in a Japanese Jail' by Fr Gerard Casey SJ (1948)

Draft letters, unsigned, from Irish Fr Provincial Thomas V Nolan SJ, St Francis Xavier's, Upper Gardiner Street, Dublin to Fr James O'Dwyer concerning the position of Rector of Newman College and explaining why Fr O'Dwyer service as Rector was not continued.

Copy of school journal from St Ignatius' College, Riverview, Sydney entitled 'Our Alma Mater' (no. 46).

School journal from St Ignatius' College, Riverview, Sydney entitled 'Our Alma Mater' (vol. 1 no. ix).

Copy of an image from the Jesuit Year Book on the occasion of Irish Fr Provincial Thomas Byrne SJ visitation to Northern Rhodesia.

Booklet entitled 'St. Ignatius Parish 50 Years in Zambia'.

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.