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Archbishop McQuaid viewed Communism and Socialism among the great evils of the 20th Century, and energetically set about to counter and limit their influences in Dublin. The Vigilance Committee was established for this purpose. The contents of the files are mainly in the form of minutes of meetings, reports, letters and memos, with a small number of newspaper articles and photographs. They deal with such varied subjects and persons as:
trade unions – Matt Merrigan, Des Brannigan, Jim Larkin, Donal Nevin; Sinn Fein (IRA) – Sean Russell, Neil Gould; objectionable literature; ‘teddy-boys’ – C. Gallagher; tenant associations (ACRA); Communism and the Irish Workers’ League – Michael O’Riordan, Peadar O’Donnell, Peadar Cowan, George Jeffares, Sam Mooney; left-wing literature and newspapers – The Irish Democrat, The Plough; a guild for Catholic Journalists; Scientology – L.R.Hubbard, Dr. Morris, Msgr. Kappes; the Anti-Nuclear Campaign; unemployment – Mr. Nightengale, Mr. Murphy; Irish Housewives’ Association – Hilda Tweedy; the Press – G.A. Hutt, Mr. Sweetman, Mr. Kirwan; Garda – Philip MacMahon, Detective/Sergeant Martin Lanigan.

These documents are of vital interest to students of Irish society in the mid 20th century as they reflect the thinking and attitudes of a Church that helped shape the ethos of the country. The response of the laity is correspondingly intriguing. The quote “I am a member of the (Labour Party, etc.) but my first loyalty is to the Catholic Church” is reflected in a sizeable number of documents.

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