The Easter Rising, which led to the Republic of Ireland, was the work of Thomas J. Clarke, who returned to Ireland from his Manorville, Long Island farm, with his wife Kathleen, to re-organize the dormant Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). Tom not only rebuilt the IRB, but organized the Irish Volunteers who would plan a rising; Katty, as he affectionately called his wife, became President of Cumann na mBan, the Ladies Auxiliary to the Volunteers, and she organized the women. Katty had come from a staunch Republican family, and was so zealous for the cause that just before the rising, she … [Read more...] about Kathleen Daly Clarke – Leader, Heroine, Patriot
Historical Happenings
NA CEITHRE MÁISTRÍ
On August 10, 1636, a small group of highly dedicated historians put down their pens and probably soaked their aching wrists after completing the most extensive and valuable history of Ireland ever produced – and it was produced under the noses of an anti-Irish-Catholic government that would have arrested them had they known. Their coverage of Ireland’s history begins at about 3,000 years before Christ and ends at 1616 AD. The principal compiler of the effort was Michael O'Cleary, a native of Donegal, who was a trained antiquary and poet. O’Cleary joined the Franciscan Order, and went to … [Read more...] about NA CEITHRE MÁISTRÍ
They Sure Could Throw It
The rebirth of the Olympic games occurred in 1896 and the first of the modern games was held in Athens, Greece. Bill Mullins 1998 book on the 1896 Olympics records that James Connolly became the first known Olympic champion since Zopyros of Athens in the 291st games held in 385 AD. Connolly was born in Boston of Aran Island immigrant parents. He was only one of a group of Irish-born Olympic athletes who competed for the United States. A group nicknamed the Irish Whales dominated track and field events, particularly throwing events, for the United States, for the first two decades of the … [Read more...] about They Sure Could Throw It
A Little Green in the Red, White and Blue
June 14 is a special day for America and especially for the Irish in America. It is a day set aside to honor our national emblem - the stars and stripes. June 14 is flag day, a day when we should all be flying our flag in honor. Why is it flag day, what does it mean, and what is our flag anyway that it should have a day of its own? When you describe it in terms of material, it is only a piece of cloth, dyed with a little blue and red that makes a design symbolizes the United States. And that may be all that it is to some; to those who show it no respect, to those who make clothing from it, to … [Read more...] about A Little Green in the Red, White and Blue
The Cyclone from the West
On May 15, 1847, an Irish patriot died. He had been born in Kerry on August 6, 1775, the year America made her bid for independence, and he would bring a measure of freedom to Ireland. His name was Daniel O'Connell. Adopted by an uncle, he was forbidden, as a Catholic, to attend college in his own country, so after local preliminary education he went to France to study at the Jesuit College. He completed legal studies in England, and returned to Ireland in 1798 where he was admitted to the Irish Bar. It was a historic time, when Catholic and Protestant had combined in the United Irishmen to … [Read more...] about The Cyclone from the West