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Patricia Donlon was the first woman to be appointed as the director of the National Library of Ireland, and she was also the first woman to be appointed Chief Herald of Ireland,  a position which is also granted by the National Library of Ireland. In 1997, as Donlon’s final act as Chief Herald of Ireland before her retirement, she bestowed a coat of arms on Mary Robinson, who was the President of Ireland at the time. Throughout her career, Donlon has made significant contributions to the arts.

She dedicated much of her career to studying and promoting the importance of children’s literature, and is known as an expert or authority on the subject. . Amongst her past students is Irish author Marita Conlon-McKenna, who credited Donlon with encouraging her to pursue publishing her first children’s novel, Under The Hawthorn Tree, which has since come to critical acclaim.

Donlon created a collection of over 1,500 works of children’s literature for the National Library of Ireland during her tenure, which contains many examples of work by her former student Marita Conlon-McKenna. This collection contains books by Irish writers and/or illustrators, or authors with Irish connections. During her time as Director, she made an effort to collect more materials and works from Irish artists, and appealed to living Irish writers to donate their manuscripts to the National Library's collection. Among her most notable acquistions before her retirement is the complete archive of Irish author and dramatist Hugh Leonard, which she considers a significant achievement from her tenure.