Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin Letters 1916-1923 Celia Duffin

This work was originally published by Maynooth University in Ireland in 2017. In 2026 this data, stored in a relational database was extracted and converted into this TEI/XML document.

 Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities Vienna, AT 2026

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This letter is part of a rich correspondence between various members of the Duffin family, a large prosperous family living in Strandtown, Belfast. Several family members served in the war, including Major Terence Duffin, who served as a staff officer with 107 Brigade, and later with Royal Irish Rifles; Major Charles G Duffin MC, Royal Field Artillery; and their sisters Emma, Celia and Dorothy who served as Voluntary Aid Detachments (VADS) in Egypt and France, and with the YMCA. Celia Duffin was a VAD with the 3rd London General Hospital in Wandsworth which opened in 1914. She was an accomplished poet, publishing, amongst other volumes, a book of poetry with her sister Ruth.

 Public Record Office of Northern Ireland Duffin Papers, D2109/10/1/C/23 https://letters1916.ie/item/2657 English Celia Duffin 1916 3rd London General, London SW, England Maria Duffin Dunowen, Belfast, Ireland Female Personal Relations World War I (1914-1918) Personal Relations

The data in these XML files was generated based on a data dump from the Magellan database (https://github.com/Maynooth-Center-for-Digital-Humanities/Magellan). Each database record has been converted to a JSON file (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/json). The element section of the JSON file contains the TEI-encoded contents of the letters. The TEI XML has been cleaned and made well-formed using a Python script (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/src).

 Tuesday 3rd London General SW Dearest Mamma I got your letter this morning and was awfully sorry to hear about aunt Margaret, please let me hear news of her soon. I suppose Marjorie will come home. We have had very cold weather here and thick snow, but it is clearing off at last and it feels quite warm again to-day. The Australians were so excited about it as most of them had never seen it before, or only on distant hills. They were out of bed in the middle of the night to watch it come down, and they really saw it at its best as it was nice dry crisp snow and the whole place was white. They made snowmen and had snowball fights like schoolboys. It was as much as your life was worth to go down the main avenue and you weren't even safe in the ward. Work is still slack here and there is little to write about. The lead sister has returned after 6 weeks leave and seems in rather a better temper, and the disagreeable staff nurse has been moved to another ward. We are getting a day off instead of a half day this week so I have written to aunt Fanny Garret to ask her to have me there next Saturday. Last half day was sprung upon me suddenly and I had no time to make arrangements I called on the Aislie Garden Bruces who have often asked me there and found them out. Marjorie Bruce wrote me a nice letter saying she was so sorry. We have now signed on for the next 6 months so I am bound here till July. I wonder what will happen to Emma, her 6 months must be nearby up now. Josse is having her time off too,so we have lit a fire and she is busy cleaning her shoes and her silver. We had supper here together last night. We tried stewing dried fruits, but they weren't a great success, however I made delicious scrambled egg in my little saucepan and had hot buttered toast, and Josse made some good chocolate. I hear all leave is stopped from the front, so I suppose it means a big push soon, what and endless war this seems. Would it be possible to get a copy of those framed verses of Yeats that are in the schoolroom. If so, would you buy me one, and I will send you the money. They may be out of print now. Best love to you all from your ever loving Celia Dunowen, Belfast, Ireland Letter from Helen Duffin to Celia Duffin, 22 December 1915Letter from Terence Duffin to Maria Duffin, March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 15 March 1916Letter from Helen Duffin to Celia Duffin, 16 March 1916Letter from Dorothy to Maria Duffin, 25 March 1916Letter from Dorothy Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, 30 March 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 13 February 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 9 January 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 27 February 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria DuffinLetter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 19 March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria DuffinLetter from Emma Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, 5 March 1916Letter from Dorothy to Maria Duffin, 22 March 1916Letter from Dorothy Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, 31 July 1916Letter from Emma Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 27 March 1916Letter from Olive Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, November 1915Letter from Emma Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 22 November 1915Letter from Terence Duffin to his father Adam Duffin, 10 November 1915Letter from Terence Duffin to his mother Maria Duffin, 26 November 1915Letter from Olive Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, November 1915Letter from Adam Duffin to his daughter Dorothy Duffin, 7 November 1915Letter from Dorothy Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 8 November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, November 1915 3rd London General, London SW, England Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 15 March 1916Letter from Helen Duffin to Celia Duffin, 16 March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin Maria Duffin Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 24 January 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, February 1916Letter from Emma Duffin to Maria Duffin, 5 February 1916Letter from Terence Duffin to Maria Duffin, March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 15 March 1916Letter from Dorothy to Maria Duffin, 25 March 1916Letter from Dorothy Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, 30 March 1916Letter from Terrence Duffin to his mother, Maria Duffin, 31 December 1915Letter from Emma Duffin to Maria Duffin, 29 December 2015Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 8 December 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Adam Duffin, 9 December 1915Letter from Olive Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, January 1916Letter from Olive Duffin to Maria Duffin, circa 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 8 January 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 13 February 1916Letter from Terence Duffin to Maria Duffin, 29 February 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 6 February 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 9 January 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 27 February 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 14 February, 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria DuffinLetter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 19 March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria DuffinLetter from Emma Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, 5 March 1916Letter from Dorothy to Maria Duffin, 22 March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 10 February 1916Letter from Dorothy Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, 31 July 1916Letter from Emma Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 27 March 1916Letter from Olive Duffin to Maria Duffin, 28 March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, April 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to her mother, 15 November 1915Letter from Olive Duffin to her mother, Maria Duffin, November 1915Letter from Olive Duffin to her mother, November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 3 November 1915.From Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 9 April 1915Letter from Emma Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 22 November 1915Letter from Terence Duffin to his mother Maria Duffin, 26 November 1915Letter from Olive Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, November 1915Letter from Dorothy Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 8 November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 26 November 1915Letter from Olive Duffin to Maria Duffin, November 1915Letter from Dorothy Duffin to Maria Duffin, 28 November 1915Letter from Olive Duffin to Maria Duffin, 1 November 1915 Celia Duffin Letter from Emma Duffin to her sister Celia Duffin, 29 December 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 24 January 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, February 1916Letter from Helen Duffin to Celia Duffin, 22 December 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 15 March 1916Letter from Helen Duffin to Celia Duffin, 16 March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Ruth Duffin, 6 December 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Auntie D, 3 December 1915Letter from Emma Duffin to Celia Duffin, 15 January 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 8 December 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Adam Duffin, 9 December 1915letter from Anna Duffin to Celia Duffin, 3 December 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 8 January 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 13 February 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 6 February 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 9 January 1916Letter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 27 February 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, 14 February, 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria DuffinLetter from Maria Duffin to Celia Duffin, 19 March 1916Letter from A. Duffin to Celia Duffin, 2 March 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria DuffinLetter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 10 February 1916Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, April 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to her mother, Thursday November,1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 3 November 1915.Letter from Celia Duffin to her mother Maria Duffin, November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to her sister Ruth, 3 November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to her aunt, 18 November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to Maria Duffin, 26 November 1915Letter from Celia Duffin to her aunt, 1915