May Laffan


May Hartley was an Irish realist writer who wrote about Dublin society in the nineteenth century and was considered a pioneer of “slum fiction” in an Irish setting.

Career

Born on 3 May 1849 to Michael Laffan and Ellen Saran Fitzgibbon in Dublin, Hartley was educated in the Dominican Convent of Sion Hill and Alexandra College. She had an older brother, William, two younger brothers, Michael and James, as well as two younger sisters, Ellen Sarah and Catherine. After school Hartley worked with Fr. Meehan as a social worker in the Liberties. She also began writing with articles such as 'Convent Boarding Schools for Young Ladies' submitted to Fraser's Magazine.
She began writing novels but her early work was poorly received and she had a breakdown. However she continued to write and publish novels. She was also active in the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
In 1882 she married Walter Noel Hartley who was a chemistry professor at King’s College, London and Fellow of the Royal Society. During her marriage she was no longer writing very much. Her issues with mental health continued and in 1910 Hartley was admitted to Bloomfield Hospital. Her husband was knighted in 1911 and died suddenly in 1913. They had one son, Walter John Hartley. Born 25 April 1889, he was killed in Gallipoli, a Captain in the Royal Irish Fusiliers, 16 August 1915. Lady Mary Hartley died in hospital in 1916.