The Reside Collection is the product of the professional lives of Samuel Wilson Reside and Major Gerald Reside who were architects and engineers in Newry and Margaret Reside, who was a solicitor. There are also elements that reflect their interests and hobbies, primarily local history.
There are around 12,000 artefacts, mainly archival, dating from 1708 to the 1990s in the Collection, which is wide ranging and sheds light on many aspects of local history in the Newry area.
The papers include estate records such as rental books, titles deeds, maps and surveys relating to the Earls of Kilmorey, Marquises of Downshire, the Hall family of Narrow Water and the Ross family of Rostrevor and some smaller landowners.
The architectural plans in the Collection drawn by Samuel Wilson Reside and Major Gerald Reside range in date from the late 19th century to the 1980s. These relate to a broad range of architectural and engineering projects including private houses, schools and commercial and business practices including factories and industrial installations. There are a large number of hand-drawn conveyance maps.
A quantity of Land Purchase Commission Papers are also preserved in the Collection in addition to material from a number of legal cases. There are also newspaper cuttings, notes and other ephemera relating to local history.