delanceyplace.com 1/28/09--our american ancestorsMaybe some of yours! Maisie Subject: delanceyplace.com 1/28/09--our american ancestors In today's excerpt-early British colonizers of America in the 1600s and 1700s needed laborers for their new colonies: "They needed a compliant, subservient, preferably free labour force and since the indigenous peoples of America were difficult to enslave they turned to their own homeland to provide. They imported Britons deemed to be 'surplus' people--the rootless, the unemployed, the criminal and the dissident--and held them in the Americas in various forms of bondage for anything from three years to life. ... In the early decades, half of them died in bondage. "Among the first to be sent were children. Some were dispatched by impoverished parents seeking a better life for them. But others were forcibly deported. In 1618, the authorities in London began to sweep up hundreds of troublesome urchins from the slums and, ignoring protests from the children and their families, shipped them to Virginia. ... It was presented as an act of charity: the 'starving children' were to be given a new start as apprentices in America. In fact, they were sold to planters to work in the fields and half of them were dead within a year. Shipments of children continued from England and then from Ireland for decades. Many of these migrants were little more than toddlers. In 1661, the wife of a man who imported four 'Irish boys' into Maryland as servants wondered why her husband had not brought 'some cradles to have rocked them in' as they were 'so little.' "A second group of forced migrants from the mother country were those, such as vagrants and petty criminals, whom England's rulers wished to be rid of. The legal ground was prepared for their relocation by a highwayman turned Lord Chief Justice ,who argued for England's jails to be emptied in America. Thanks to men like him, 50,000 to 70,000 convicts (or maybe more) were transported to Virginia, Maryland, Barbados and England's other American possessions before 1776. ... "A third group were the Irish. ... Under Oliver Cromwell's ethnic-cleansing policy in Ireland, unknown numbers of Catholic men, women and children were forcibly transported to the colonies. And it did not end with Cromwell; for at least another hundred years, forced transportation continued as a fact of life in Ireland. ... "The other unwilling participants in the colonial labour force were the kidnapped. Astounding numbers are reported to have been snatched from the streets and countryside by gangs of kidnappers or 'spirits' working to satisfy the colonial hunger for labour. Based at every sizeable port in the British Isles, spirits conned or coerced the unwary onto ships bound for America. ... According to a contemporary who campaigned against the black slave trade, kidnappers were snatching an average of around 10,000 whites a year--doubtless an exaggeration but one that indicates a problem serious enough to create its own grip on the popular mind.' " Don Jordan and Michael Walsh, White Cargo, New York University Press, Copyright 2007 by Don Jordan and Michael Walsh, pp. 12-14. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- To visit our homepage or sign up for our daily email click here To view previous daily emails click here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- daily@delanceyplace.com Forward email This email was sent to shrbl@aol.com by daily@delanceyplace.com. Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribeT | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by Delanceyplace.com | daily@delanceyplace.com | Philadelphia | PA | 19102

Voices of Irish "Travellers" -- "This is how I makes a cup if yer want to know how's the thing done. I sits with the anvil like a saddle between me legs. I just pick up my hammer or a stick that says to me it is going to make a right hammer, and I just hit the tin plate just straight between the eyes that's looking back at me in the mirror of me soul, and I just put together the edges of the tin to make me a handle first, and when I have the two edges bent straight in a line I hit the shape into a ladle and leave it aside me. Then I take up me snips and snip out the cup and with a clean tinwhistle you could see the snips takin' all of the tin in. Then I cuts me the circle, the brim, and I get me the rivets aside me, and I put it together with rivets or I can solder in the fire if the fire is lazy and the solder is right. It's the cleanest trade is the tin. But cleaner still sweeping, and you can clean the sky of sparrows with my little brushes..." "I just combed her hair and said there now child go off and play and patted her head with the sides of the comb to make her fine. I always plaited her hair that time in the morning and then she went out playing somewhere, I don't know where; & that morning they found the where, in the long plaited grasses by the river where she was drowned, may God rest her soul, and I never saw the place before because we never went swimming, until we went swimming that day for to get her little body out and I had a pot of stew hanging on the fire waiting ready hot for to give her. I threw it out on the grass rather than give it - my dead, my dear, dead, daughter. My young son came running in and he says to me, She's stuck, she's stuck, God help her He was so young he didn't know what had happened. He didn't know she was dead. Oh, my poor dear dead daughter, may God rest her! I hurled myself at her grave. I wrecked myself. I drank myself. I threw white paint and ashes at me mouth! I didn't want to live after and I swore I'd have no more children after. But I got ten children now, God bless them all, but it's not the same as my Bridget, may God rest her!" -- Excerpts of conversations from the book "Irish Tinkers," Wiedel & O'Fearadhaigh.

UNLEGENDARY HEROES 'Life passes through places.' - P.J.Duffy, Landscapes of South Ulster Patrick Farrell, of Lackagh, who was able to mow one acre and one rood Irish in a day. Tom Gallagher, Cornamucklagh, could walk 50 Irish miles in one day. Patrick Mulligan, Cremartin, was a great oarsman. Tommy Atkinson, Lismagunshin, was very good at highjumping - he could jump six feet. John Duffy, Corley, was able to dig half an Irish acre in one day. Edward Monaghan, Annagh, who could stand on his head on a pint tumbler or on the rigging of a house. - 1938 folklore survey to record the local people - who occupied the South Ulster parish landscape. Kathleen McKenna, Annagola, who was able to wash a week's sheets, shirts and swaddling, bake bread and clean the house all of a Monday. Birdy McMahon, of Faulkland, walked to Monaghan for a sack of flour two days before her eighth child was born. Cepta Duffy, Glennan, very good at sewing - embroidered a set of vestments in five days. Mary McCabe, of Derrynashallog, who cared for her husband's mother in dotage, fed ten children, the youngest still at the breast during hay-making. Mary Conlon, Tullyree, who wrote poems at night. Assumpta Meehan, Tonygarvey, saw many visions and was committed to the asylum. Martha McGinn, of Emy, who swam Cornamundern Lough in one hour and a quarter. Marita McHugh, Foxhole, whose sponge cakes won First Prize at Cloncaw Show. Miss Harper, Corley, female problems rarely ceased, pleasant in ill-health. Patricia Curley, Corlatt, whose joints ached and swelled though she was young, who bore three children. Dora Heuston, Strananny, died in childbirth, aged 14 years, last words 'Mammy, O Mammy!' Rosie McCrudden, Aghabog, noted for clean boots, winter or summer, often beaten by her father. Maggie Traynor, Donagh, got no breakfasts, fed by the nuns, batch loaf with jam, the best speller in the school. Phyllis McCrudden, Knockaphubble, who buried two husbands, reared five children and farmed her own land. Ann Moffett, of Enagh, who taught people to read and did not charge. -- Mary O'DONNELL >From Unlegendary Heroes (Salmon Poetry, 1998)

THE TRAVELLERS' TENT Down at the cross-roads on my way to school, I would cycle past the travellers and watch the steam rise from the dark brown dusky tent. Shaped like the last quarter of the moon, it was tiny, a family lived here quietly mending our buckets, making pongers in different sizes. We exchanged vegetables and milk for the goods they provided tin pongers, buckets and crepe paper flowers. After nights of heavy rain they woke to find the sagging canvas sink into the tiny space, their only heat the closely packed bodies within the small tent. -- Mary Guckian, born 1942, Kiltoghert, Co. Leitrim,"Perfume of the Soil" (1999). Mary has lived/visited several places in the world including England, the United States and Australia. She presently works and lives in Dublin. "We're queer ways travelling people. One night we'll stay and one night we'll not and we'll have the whole camp gone up and thrown into a cart, cocks and roosters and goats and all the crockery and the kettle bar and all your belongings heaped together in a heap on the back of the cart." -- Excerpts of conversation, "Irish Tinkers," Wiedel & O'Fearadhaigh

THE OSPREY To whom certain water talents -- Webbed feet, oils - do not occur, Regulates his liquid acre >From the sky, his proper element. There, already, his eye removes The trout each fathom magnifies. He lives without compromise, His unamphibious two lives -- An inextinguishable bird whom No lake waters waterlog. He shakes his feathers like a dog, It's all of air that ferries him. -- Michael Longley (born 1939 Belfast)

http://www.theage.com.au/national/one-war-two-lives-forever-twined-20090424-ai4j.html?page=-1 Fr. John FAHEY & Private Martin O'MEARA They were born a few miles apart in County Tipperary, Ireland, they both sailed for Australia, worked for a time in the forests of south-west Western Australia and both became heroes, one on Gallipoli, the other in the horror of the Western Front. Both won great honour for bravery: one was awarded the Victoria Cross; the other the Distinguished Service Order. FYI - The stories of two Australian heroes from Tipperary are among many researched by Canberra-based historian Dr Richard REID for his forthcoming book "Scattered Children of St Patrick." The book will be published to coincide with the Australian National Museum's major exhibition The Irish in Australia, which will open on St Patrick's Day, 2011.

RESOURCE: "Diaries of Ireland, An Anthology, 1590-1987," editor Melosina Lenox-Conyngham, was published by the Lilliput Press, Dublin (1998) - "a fascinating read." Ms. Lenox-Cunningham has collected and shared excerpts from many diaries, mainly those from the more affluent. Meticulous records and diaries were often kept by individuals from the privileged "upper classes," Quakers, etc.; these have contributed greatly to our understanding of Ireland. The editor prefaces each chapter with interesting background material about each diarist, his or her family, personality, occupation and/or interests, and what was going on in Ireland during that period of time. One or two gave first-hand accounts of the famine and their attempts to alleviate suffering. Some of the diaries were kept by impressionable young children. Note - there are apparently also many Quaker letters to be found in the Society of Friends Library, Swanbrook House, Donnybrook, Dublin.

Irish Echo Australia's Irish Community Newspaper --02/2002 What is the Irish legacy to Australia? How influential have the Irish been in shaping Australia? It's a broad question and an important one. Michael Finn examines the issue in a historical context and through the thoughts and utterances of two of Australia's best known Hibernians - Paul Keating and Tom Keneally. AUSTRALIA would not be what it is today without the contribution of the Irish. A leaf through the pages of this country's continuing march to nationhood uncovers the contribution made by countless Irish men and women whose fingerprints are marked indelibly on the evolution of Australia. Prime Minister, John Howard, once singled out the larrikin element of his country's character as Ireland's greatest contribution, but former leader Paul Keating hit the nail more squarely on the head during a state visit to Ireland in 1993: - "The spirit of [Ireland] was at the centre of most Australian attitudes. And that was a basic lack of respect for undemocratic authority, a belief in equality and the right to justice. Australia owes a lot to Ireland and we owe [it] a great deal for being such an important thread in our history, for being a vital part of our past and, I hope, a vital part of our future." There are several reasons why the formative role of the Irish is not often trumpeted, or perhaps even acknowledged, by many Australians. One of the main ones being the fact that this country, as a political entity, sprouted from the roots of a British penal colony. And colonialism, if not strictly by definition certainly by practice, is founded on the suppression of existing,weaker and 'alien' cultures. So for every ounce of Irish tradition that is discernible in the Australian character, so too - in disproportionate measure -- the remnants of colonial rule. In the early days of the colony the Irish were perceived as a lazy and feckless lot, which they most likely were at the outset. Such traits were,after all, endemic to a poor and largely rural country like Ireland where there was very little for the natives to be enthusiastic about in the first place, save rebellion against foreign foes. Yet, when presented with the opportunity to better their lot, the Irish fast emerged as a people who thrived on hard work and later emerged with a suitably enhanced reputation. Among the greatest contributions made by the Irish to Australia was the fostering of a love for the land, and a sense of place. With notable characters like the Wicklow Chief, Michael Dwyer, there was an attitude that the Irish did not want to happen in Australia what had occurred in Ireland under British rule. And as the Irish convict immigrants were continuously encouraged to abandon their nativeness and assimilate into the Australia psyche, the further they rebelled against it. Not surprisingly, therefore, the Irish were seen as the enemy who plotted against the stability and order imposed by the governors. Renowned Irish Australian author, Tom Keneally (Schindler's Ark, The Great Shame) put it well when he said that as a modern day Australian, he had inherited this empathy for the oppressed and the underdog. "You've got to make an effort, if you have that belief, to get over siding with the underdog," he said. "Because life was tough in Ireland, they didn't expect perfection on earth but accepted stoically what came. The thing about Irishness that thrills me most is stroppiness and being troublesome. "As the colonies grew, the restlessness exhibited by the Irish began to permeate through society and the need for an all-embracing form of government was identified. But even prior to Federation, the centenary of which is celebrated this year, William Smith O'Brien was busy working on a draft of a Federal Constitution, proving that the Irish had a hand in instigating the changes that set Australia on its way. During his historic state visit to Ireland, Prime Minister Keating - whose ancestors hailed from County Galway - reflected on the bond between the two countries. He believed there was "no other country in the world more like Ireland than Australia" and said that because so many Irish people took the fateful decision to cross the world and go to other places, they "changed the lives of many others." "The great consciousness of the Irish reached way out there [to Australia],the spirit of which has impacted itself on a whole nation. We since made it a place where, in our country, we've smoothed out the differences and worn down the old enmities. People tolerate everyone else's attitudes because of their essential belief in the rights of others." Australia, he pointed out, was a great place for the Irish to go to because once there, they made their way on merit. "Australia is not a country of class, and unlike Europe and unlike the tyranny of so much of Irish life, we didn't have to make our way on the basis that we were not born equally. That we are born equally and that we are entitled to life's opportunities - because we certainly die equally - means the notion that any of us, individually or as a society, should live in some way in deference to some other class or people is a complete anathema to anyone who puts a high price on the dignity of human life. "To have Irish ancestry is to have an asset one carries forever. Because when you carry it around, you carry the wishes and feelings of the Irish people with you." Nowadays, the colour of Irish influence on Australia has changed. No longer is the Irish influence needed to safeguard the rights of the Irish community within society, because it is no longer persecuted and because so many from it have prospered and progressed to positions of high repute. And no longer is the Irish influence required to constantly nip at the ankles of a colonial power, to ensure justice for all - irrespective of race or religion. This enshrining of basic civil rights must be regarded as one of the greatest bequests by the Irish to the land under the Southern Cross.

I have just transcribed and added to the County Limerick section of my website, the tithes for the Uregare Civil Parish. More additions this week will include Ullid and Urlingford Civil Parishes from County Kilkenny plus for County Tipperary, Upperchurch, Templebeg and Uskeane Civil Parishes and for County Laois, Teacolm Civil Parish and Kilclooney and Mullaghbrack Civil Parishes, County Armagh. -- Pat Connors, Sacramento CA http://www.connorsgenealogy.com

THE QUEEN'S LAST RIDE The Queen is taking a drive to-day, They have hung with purple the carriage-way, They have dressed with purple the royal track Where the Queen goes forth and never comes back. Let no man labour as she goes by On her last appearance to mortal eye; With heads uncovered let all men wait For the Queen to pass, in her regal state. Army and Navy shall lead the way For that wonderful coach of the Queen's to-day. Kings and Princes and Lords of the land shall ride behind her, a humble band; And over the city and over the world Shall the Flags of all Nations be half-mast-furled, For the silent lady of royal birth Who is riding away from the Courts of earth, Riding away from the world's unrest To a mystical goal, on a secret quest. Though in royal splendour she drives through town, Her robes are simple, she wears no crown: And yet she wears one, for, widowed no more, She is crowned with the love that has gone before, And crowned with the love she has left behind In the hidden depths of each mourner's mind. Bow low your head -- lift your hearts on high -- The Queen in silence is driving by! (Note, in 1861 Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, died of typhoid). SNIPPET: I found a little volume of poetry entitled "Poems of Power" by Ella Wheeler WILCOX, published in London in 1910 by Gay & Hancock, Lt., 12 & 13, Henrietta St., Covent Garden, London. Per the poetess, the title of her volume refers to the divine power in every human being, the recognition of which is the secret to all success and happiness and that is the idea which many of her verses endeavour to illustrate. When Queen Victoria died, Ella, who was born in WI in 1850, was invited to join reporters of the NY "American" as their official poet at the royal funeral. The Britons already loved Ella's poems, which were taught in schools. Ella's burning desire as a child was to lift herself and her family out of poverty, and she chose writing as her means. Her father, Marcus Hatwell WHEELER, was a dance teacher, music teacher and farmer. Her mother was Sarah PRATT, a woman who sought solace in literature and who encouraged Ella to write. Ella's maternal grandmother from Boston, Abagail CONNOR, was of Irish ancestry and the wife of William PRATT, Bradford, VT. Ella produced an eleven-chapter novel when she was only nine, bound in kitchen wallpaper! Her professional career began at 14 when she submitted prose to the NY "Mercury" to pay for an expired subscription. Her work appeared in "Leslie's Weekly" & "Waverly" magazine. Ella, who died in 1919, made a small fortune writing. She was married to Robert Marius WILCOX; after he died from pneumonia Ella tried to reach him in the spirit world by means of a Ouija board. She is best remembered by these famous lines from "Solitude." Laugh and the world laughs with you/Weep, and you weep alone/For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth /But has trouble enough of its own/Sing and the hills will answer/Sigh, it is lost on the air/The echoes bound to a joyful sound/But shrink from voicing care. Another of her verses is entitled "The World's Need" - So many gods, so many creeds/So many paths that wind and wind/While just the art of being kind/Is all the sad world needs. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jean R." <jeanrice@cet.com> To: <irelandgenweb@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, April 27, 2009 11:08 AM Subject: Re: [Irish Genealogy] Recent Trip to Ireland - Cobh,Cork's marvelous "Queenstown Story" Museum > Thanks, Maisie, for setting the record straight! J. xx

Thanks, Maisie, for setting the record straight! J. xx ----- Original Message ----- From: "Maisie Egger" <campsiehills@sbcglobal.net> To: <irelandgenweb@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, April 27, 2009 10:10 AM Subject: Re: [Irish Genealogy] Recent Trip to Ireland - Cobh,Cork's marvelous "Queenstown Story" Museum > With all due respect: > > When Elizabeth of England died in 1603, as next in line, James VI of > Scotland inherited the throne of England, thus becoming James I of GREAT > BRITAIN, not just of ENGLAND!. (James VI of Scotland was the son of Mary > Stuart, Queen of Scots. She had been beheaded per her cousin Elizabeth's > signature.) > >>From the year 1603 on, therefore, all monarchs were not king or queen of > ENGLAND but of GREAT BRITAIN, etc. Both the crowns of Scotland and > England > were united under one CROWN in that year. Queen Victoria, therefore, can > not be Queen Victoria of ENGLAND. <snip>

With all due respect: When Elizabeth of England died in 1603, as next in line, James VI of Scotland inherited the throne of England, thus becoming James I of GREAT BRITAIN, not just of ENGLAND!. (James VI of Scotland was the son of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots. She had been beheaded per her cousin Elizabeth's signature.) >From the year 1603 on, therefore, all monarchs were not king or queen of ENGLAND but of GREAT BRITAIN, etc. Both the crowns of Scotland and England were united under one CROWN in that year. Queen Victoria, therefore, can not be Queen Victoria of ENGLAND. Also, the present monarch's numerical title is in error, as she is not Elizabeth II. The first Elizabeth was correctly Elizabeth I of ENGLAND as the crowns had not been united at that point, to repeat. The Scots vehemently protested the present queen's nomenclature, but to no avail. Bad enough that she is entitled Queen Elizabeth II, but worse that she is too often referred to as Queen Elizabeth II of ENGLAND everywhere but Scotland. The year 1603 was supposed to have sorted all of that. Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; born 21 April 1926) is the queen regnant of sixteen independent states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. Simply, for the purposes of everyday usage, her title is Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. To repeat: historically it is wrong to refer to her as Elizabeth II. She should be Elizabeth I as the first Elizabeth to ascend the throne AFTER the UNION of the CROWNS. This is probably not of much interest to some, but it is of historical importance to those who live in the constituent parts of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and particularly Scotland. Maisie ----------------------- Subject: [Irish Genealogy] Recent Trip to Ireland - Cobh,Cork's marvelous "Queenstown Story" Museum Snipped: " When Queen Victoria of England came to Ireland for the first time in 1849, Cobh was the first Irish ground she set foot on. The town renamed it "Queenstown" in her honor."

SNIPPET: Patrick PEARSE (1879-1916), educationalist, writer, poet and revolutionary, is best known as a leader of the rising of 1916, but his nationalism was initially more cultural than political. A bilingual secondary school, St. Enda's (Scoil Eanna) was founded in Dublin by PEARSE in 1909 to give expression to his ideals, both nationalistic and educational. He intended that the Gaelic ethos and curriculum of the school should inspire his boys to a nobility of character in which love of Ireland would be the guiding principle. Condemning contemporary intermediate education, with its emphasis on rigid teaching methods, examinations and neglect of Irishness, he emphasized the importance of eliciting and fostering each pupil's talent through a school regimen that looked to the feats of Ireland's past heroes for inspiration.

SNIPPET: One of the most moving experiences my sister and I shared on our summer 2006 trip to Ireland was a visit to "The Queenstown Story" museum, Cobh's major sightseeing attraction that fills its harborside Victorian station. The topics and displays - the famine, Irish emigration, Australia-bound prison ships, the sinking of the "Lusitania," and the ill-fated voyage of the Belfast-built "Titanic," are fascinating in themselves. What set it apart for us was the heart-stopping multi-media experience. In a large, darkened room, dramatic film footage of heaving old ships, monstrous, pounding waves, the deafening cries of frightened passengers assail you on all sides. By the time we left we felt "half-drowned," having been at the mercy of a ship on the high seas. It effectively brought history and the emigrant experience home to us. Cobh (pron. "cove") in Co. Cork was the last Irish soil a great many emigrants had under their feet. It was the major port of emigration in the 19th century. Of the six million Irish who have emigrated to America, Canada and Australia since 1815, nearly half have left from Cobh. The first steam-powered ship to make a transatlantic crossing departed from Cobh in 1838, cutting the journey time from 50 days to 18. When Queen Victoria of England came to Ireland for the first time in 1849, Cobh was the first Irish ground she set foot on. The town renamed it "Queenstown" in her honor. It was still going by that name in 1912, when the Titanic" made its final fateful stop before heading out on his maiden (and only) voyage. To celebrate their new independence from British royalty in 1922, locals changed its name back to its original name, Cobh. The harborside has gaily painted houses, St. Colman's towering neo-Gothic cathedral is impressive, and the beautifully-sculpted emigration statue just outside the "Queenstown Story" set the mood for the experience to come. We were there on a gorgeous, sunny day, and the blue sky and sea were stunning.

SNIPPET: Impressions of recent trips to Ireland were shared in a recent issue of "Ireland of the Welcomes" magazine published in Dublin: Mary PARKER, Lake Hiawatha, NJ, wrote: .... "My sister and I were very excited about the trip which we had planned to Ireland. We hadn't travelled together since we were children, many years ago. Chris was leaving her husband in charge of teenage children and I was leaving my grandchildren with promises that I would take lots of photographs and buy lots of 'Flake' chocolate. We planned our trip for September 30, 2001, and then the unthinkable happened - September 11, 2001. Chris lives in NYC, but thankfully up-town. We were grateful that she and her family were safe. I live across the river in NJ and as I drove down the highway on my way home from work, I could see the smoke rising from the rubble. It is a sight that I will never forget. We were among the fortunate ones who did not lose loved ones in the massacre. We realised that we had a decision to make and make quickly. This trip was meant to be a celebration, as my sister had just won a 5-year battle with cancer. Our decision was not to cancel our trip, as we were not ever going to let terrorists stop us. We also felt that we had to set an example for all the children in our lives. We heard so many stories of courage during the days that followed September 11, that we, too, wanted in our small way to show our tenacity. We travelled under tight security by Aer Lingus, but the airline staff could not have been nicer. We stayed in Westbury Hotel, in Dublin, strolled through Trinity College, went to the Abbey Theater and shopped till we dropped. We rented a car and travelled around the country. We saw the Ring of Kerry, Cliffs of Moher and Galway. No matter where we travelled in Ireland, we felt as if we were with family. Everyone was so kind and concerned about our fellow countrymen and us. Photographs of our Irish adventure now cover the wall of my apartment and they remind me of a trip of a lifetime, the beauty of your country and the caring heart of Ireland's people. We do not know what tomorrow will bring - so visit Ireland first! <snip>

SNIPPET: Impressions of recent trips to Ireland were shared in a recent issue of "Ireland of the Welcomes" magazine published in Dublin: Mary PARKER, Lake Hiawatha, NJ, wrote: .... "My sister and I were very excited about the trip which we had planned to Ireland. We hadn't travelled together since we were children, many years ago. Chris was leaving her husband in charge of teenage children and I was leaving my grandchildren with promises that I would take lots of photographs and buy lots of 'Flakef unthinkable happened - September 11, 2001. Chris lives in NYC, but thankfully up-town. We were grateful that she and her family were safe. I live across the river in NJ and as I drove down the highway on my way home from work, I could see the smoke rising from the rubble. It is a sight that I will never forget. We were among the fortunate ones who did not lose loved ones in the massacre. We realised that we had a decision to make and make quickly. This trip was meant to be a celebration, as my sister had just won a 5-year battle with cancer. Our decision was not to cancel our trip, as we were not ever going to let terrorists stop us. We also felt that we had to set an example for all the children in our lives. We heard so many stories of courage during the days that followed September 11, that we, too, wanted in our small way to show our tenacity. We travelled under tight security by Aer Lingus, but the airline staff could not have been nicer. We stayed in Westbury Hotel, in Dublin, strolled through Trinity College, went to the Abbey Theater and shopped till we dropped. We rented a car and travelled around the country. We saw the Ring of Kerry, Cliffs of Moher and Galway. No matter where we travelled in Ireland, we felt as if we were with family. Everyone was so kind and concerned about our fellow countrymen and us. Photographs of our Irish adventure now cover the wall of my apartment and they remind me of a trip of a lifetime, the beauty of your country and the caring heart of Ireland's people. We do not know what tomorrow will bring - so visit Ireland first! Bob and Averill BINGHAM, Sutherlin, OR, shared: "We have been subscribers .... for several years now and enjoy your delightful magazine, reading it from cover to cover. We always wish that we might visit the land of our ancestors one day. In your May/June 2003 issue, we read with interest your article on Queen Victoria's visit to Ireland - a fascinating journey into the past. In this article there is a reference to a book entitled, 'Book of Household Management' by Mrs. BEETON, published circa 1860. This reference reminded us that we have an old cookbook in our library, a later edition called 'Every Day Cookery and Housekeeping Book,' by Mrs. BEETON. This is a new and revised edition and there is no date to be found printed anywhere in the book to help date it. So thanks to you we now know approximately how old our book is! Marie DUNNE, Clonmel Co. Tipperary, wrote: "I am a widow and an old age pensioner. After I got married, I did not have the opportunity to travel, and then, last year, I had to have two hip replacements due to arthritis. I was finally free to travel - so off I went on my own. I first went to Schull, in West Cork, I went out in a boat to Fastnet Lighthouse, Cape Clear, Sherkin Island and Mizen Head. I went to Knock in Co. Mayo, and then on to Galway and did a day tour of Connemara. The weather was in my favour and I had a most pleasant time. I enjoy "Ireland of the Welcomes" and I hope to travel around again this year, please God." M. Lynne WOOD, Douglasville, GA, commented: "I have just recently returned from a trip to Ireland with several members of my family. We all travelled in Dublin to attend the graduation of one of my cousins from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. It was indeed a most memorable experience in all ways. Upon receiving my most recent copy of your magazine with the photograph of the 'Spire of Light' in Dublin - a landmark to use since our B&B was nearby - I couldn't help but recall, with a smile, on one of 'those moments' that occurred while we were all together. During our tour of Dublin, we quickly learnt to appreciate, and in fact to assimilate the sense of humour about day-to-day things that the Dubliners demonstrate. We learned that notable landmarks in the city had nicknames such as the Molly Malone statue, which is known as 'the dish with the fish' or the 'tart with the cart.' And the statue near the Liffey of the ladies resting between purchases was known as the 'hags with the bags.' It was a wonderful trip for all of us, most of whom had not been to Ireland ever before. The glory of the country and the warmth of the people we met are certainly more than enough for us to begin plans for our next visit. Thank you for the memories and the smiles."

Jean - Lovely story. Peter Wilkinson ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jean R." <jeanrice@cet.com> To: <IrelandGenWeb-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, April 24, 2009 3:55 AM Subject: [Irish Genealogy] Frank McCOURT/"Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" (1996) -Visit, Antrim McCOURTs > SNIPPET: Writer Frank McCOURT born in NY, went back to live in Ireland as > a > small boy with his family. His paternal grandparents lived in Co. Antrim. > His maternal grandparents, the SHEEHANs, lived in Limerick, where they > eventually settled. "Angela's Ashes" was written from Frank's > recollections > as a child and went on to win a Pulitzer Prize. > > In this excerpt they are visiting his father's people in Northern Ireland: > > "In a week we arrived in Moville, County Donegal, where we took a bus to > Belfast and from there another bus to Toome in County Antrim. We left the > trunk in a shop and set out to walk the two miles up the road to Grandpa > McCOURT's house. It was dark on the road, the dawn barely stirring on the > hills beyond. Dad carried the twins in his arms and they took turns crying > with the hunger. Mam stopped every few minutes to sit and rest on the > stone > wall along the road. We sat with her and watched the sky turn red and then > blue. Birds started to chirp and sing in the trees and as the dawn came up > we saw strange creatures in the fields, standing, looking at us. Malachy > said, What are they, Dad? Cows, son. What are cows, Dad? Cows are cows, > son. > We walked farther along the brightening road and there were other > creatures > in the fields, white furry creatures. Malachy said, What are they, Dad? > Sheep, son. What are sheep, Dad? My father barked at him, Is there any end > to your questions? Sheep are sheep, cows are cows, and that over there is > a > goat. A goat is a goat. The goat gives milk, the sheep gives wool, the cow > gives everything. What else in God's name do you want to know? And Malachy > yelped with fright because Dad never talked like that, never spoke sharply > to us. He might get up in the middle of the night and make us promise to > die > for Ireland but he never barked like this. Malachy ran to Mam and she > said, > There, there, love, don't cry. Your father is just worn out carrying the > twins and 'tis hard answering all those questions when you're carrying > twins > through the world. Dad set the twins on the road and held out his arms to > Malachy. Now the twins started to cry and Malachy clung to Mam, sobbing. > The > cows mooed, the sheep maaed, the goat ehehed, the birds twittered in the > trees, and the beep beep of a motor car cut through everything. A man > called > from the motor car. Good Lord, what are you people doing on the road at > this > hour of an Easter Sunday morning? Dad said, Good morning, Father. Father? > I > said, Dad, is that your father? Mam said, Don't ask him questions . Dad > said, No, no this is a priest. Malachy said, What's a ------? but Mam put > her hand over his mouth. The priest had white hair and a white collar. He > said, Where are you going? Dad said, Up the road to McCourts of > Moneyglass, > and the priest took us in his motor car. He said he knew the McCourts, a > fine family, good Catholics, some daily communicants, and he hoped he'd > see > us all at Mass, especially the little Yankees who didn't know what a > priest > was, God help us. > > At the house my mother reaches for the gate latch. Dad says, No, no, not > that way. Not the front gate. They use the front door only for visits from > the priest or funerals. We make our way around the house to the kitchen > door. Dad pushes in the door and there's Grandpa McCourt drinking tea from > a > big mug and Grandma McCourt frying something. Och, say Grandpa, you're > here. > Och, we are, says Dad. He points to my mother. This is Angela, he says. > Grandpa says, Och, you must be worn out, Angela. Grandma says nothing, she > turns back to the frying pan. Grandpa leads us through the kitchen to a > large room with a long table and chairs. He says, Sit down and have some > tea. Would you like boxty? Malachy says, What's boxty? Dad laughs. > Pancakes, > son. Pancakes made with potatoes. Grandpa says, We have eggs. It's Easter > Sunday and you can have all the eggs you can hold. We have tea and boxty > and > boiled eggs and we all fall asleep. I wake up in bed with Malachy and the > twins. My parents are in another bed over by the window. Where am I? It's > getting dark. This is not the ship .... I get up and poke at Dad. I have > to > pee. He says, Use the chamber pot. What? Under the bed, son. It has roses > and maidens cavorting the glen ... He leads us downstairs and through the > big room where Grandpa is dozing in his chair .... In the house there are > other people in the room with my grandparents Dad says, These are your > aunts: Emily, Nora, Maggie, Vera. Your aunt Eva is in Ballymena with > children like you. My aunts nod their heads but they don't hug us or > smile. > Mam comes into the room with the twins and when Dad tells his sisters, > This > is Angela and these are the twins, they just nod again. Grandma goes to > the > kitchen and soon we have bread and sausages and tea. The only one who > speaks > at the table is Malachy. He points his spoon at the aunts and asks their > names again. When Mam tells him eat his sausage and be quiet his eyes fill > with tears and Aunt Nora reaches over to comfort him. She says, There, > there, and I wonder why everyone says there there when Malachy cries... > It's > quiet at the table till Dad says, Things are terrible in America. Grandma > says Och, aye. I read it in the paper. But they say Mr. Roosevelt is a > good > man and if you stayed you might have work by now. Dad shakes his head and > Grandma says, I don't know what you're going to do. Things are getting > worse > here than they are in America. No work here and, God knows, we don't have > room in this house for six more people. Dad says, I thought I might get > work > on some of the farms We could get a small place. Where would you stay in > the > meantime? says Grandma. And how would you support yourself and your > family? > Och, I could go on the dole, I suppose. You can't get off a ship from > America and go on the dole, says Grandpa. They make you wait a while and > what would you do while you're waiting? Dad says nothing and Mam looks > straight ahead at the wall. You'd be better off in the Free State, says > Grandma. Dublin is big and surely there's work there or on the farms > around. > You're entitled to money from the IRA, too, says Grandpa. You did your bit > and they've been handing out money to men all over the Free State. You > could > go to Dublin and ask for help. We can loan you the bus fare to Dublin. The > twins can sit on your lap and you won't have to pay for them. Dad says, > Och, > aye, and Mam stares at the wall with tears in her eyes." > > > Check out the Ireland GenWeb website at: http://www.irelandgenweb.com/ > > Great place to get help with your family research. > > County Clare has been adopted! > > Help wanted: County Coordinators > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > IRELANDGENWEB-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

THE HAUNTED INN My memory's a haunted inn Where ghosts foregather night and day, For arguments I didn't win And clever things I failed to say. I tell them tales; I tell them news; They share my jokes; they share my fears; I have important interviews With friends who have been dead for years. I keep the inn 'til closing time And then we all part company. To get back home they have to climb The mountains of Eternity. There is one thing that could go wrong, Some night they may take me along. -- Warren O'CONNELL "Extended Wings 4, " Rathmines Writers (Swan Press 1998)

SNIPPET: Per author Edward LAXTON's gripping book, "The Famine Ships" (NY/1996), on the first day aboard the "Washington" 900 passengers lined up on deck to receive their water ration of six pints each, as prescribed by law. Thirty filled up their cans at the barrels when suddenly the ship's mate who was supervising the operation ordered: 'That's all, no more.' Bewildered, 870 Irish emigrants turned away empty-handed and dry-mouthed until a few hours later when they were again called out for their water allowance. This time, 30 received water before the rest were again turned away and roughly herded back to their steerage accommodation by brutal and abusive mates who kicked and cursed the passengers without provocation. As it turned out, water was not the only commodity in drastic short supply on board the "Washington." She left Liverpool on October 27, 1850, bound for NY on what would become an infamous voyage. For, by a stroke of luck, an enterprising passenger, Vere FOSTER, kept a diary of events which he later published on his return to Ireland, provoking a public outcry and debate in Parliament. The "Washington" was one of the 18 big, fast packet ships operated by the Black Star Line, whose vessels from Liverpool carried emigrants of many nationalities: German, Polish, Russian, Scandinavian but in the main Irish and especially the slightly better-off Irish who could afford a cabin. At 200 feet long and with a wide beam, the "Washington" was quite spacious, compared to the much smaller English and Irish-owned converted cargo ships. Even in steerage, passengers could enjoy considerably more comfort as these American packets were built exclusively for the passenger trade, and their crews were generally superior. Vere FOSTER was a rich, well-connected and well-intentioned philanthropist who took a special interest in the plight of the Irish emigrants. He had already helped several reach America by paying their fares. Concerned about bad reports of emigrant travel, he resolved to discover for himself the quality of life aboard a Famine ship. On board the "Washington," he kept a meticulous diary of events which he sent, with a letter, to his relation, Lord HOBART, a minister at the Board of Trade in London .... On receiving this report in London, Lord HOBART immediately raised the matter in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, provoking a flurry of mail between civil servants, MPs, the Chief Emigration Officer in Liverpool, the British Consul in New York and American lawyers. Despite similar reports of injustice, only three previous complaints had been formally lodged during 1850, and none against an American master. When the 'Washington' returned to Liverpool, Captain PAGE was challenged but he denied all allegations. In the absence of evidence, it was impossible to take the matter any further under British law, for a British court had limited jurisdiction over acts done at sea on a foreign ship. Everyone expressed their regret that FOSTER and the other passengers had not taken proceedings to New York. Though FOSTER had campaigned valiantly, and taken positive steps to reform practices on board emigrant ships, the political and legal climate was unhelpful. Famine emigrants continued to suffer at the hands of corrupt captains, owners or agents. Prosecutions were rare and when made, were often quashed in the absence of evidence. Yet, on returning to Ireland, FOSTER did manage to publish a helpful guidebook for emigrants. Entitled 'Emigrants' Guide,' it offered many useful tips for surviving on board and on shore.