SNIPPET: Oliver GOLDSMITH (c.1730-1774) was a marvelously-talented Irish writer who produced a variety of works marked by a charming, lively style. He was born in or around Ballymahon, Co. Longford, Ireland, studied medicine, but was never a serious student. In 1756, he went to London and tried unsuccessfully to establish himself as a doctor and began writing for magazines to support himself. Goldsmith won his first recognition for "The Traveller" (1764), a philosophical poem. (See excerpt below). He became a successful author, but he was careless with money and owed many debts when he died. He belonged to the famous Literary Club, which centered around Samuel JOHNSON. GOLDSMITH believed that comedy should make people laugh and attacked the tearful comedies then popular on the London stage in an essay "A Comparison between the Laughing and Sentimental Comedy" (1773). His play "She Stoops to Conquer" (1773) ranks among the finest comedies every written. Its hero is a bashful young man who mistakes a country mansion for an inn. He treats the master of the house as an innkeeper and the master's beautiful daughter as a servant. The most amusing character is the daughter's brother, a brat whose antics add to the confusion. Goldsmith's comedy "The Good-Natur'd Man" (1768) was less successful. ''The Vicar of Wakefield (1766), his only novel, is a story about the simple life of the Primrose family and their misfortunes. The father, a vicar (country clergyman), is an idealized figure with a wise philosophy The novel is filled with kindly emotions, and teaches the value of humility and courage. Goldsmith's wonderful poem "The Deserted Village" (1770) is a long poem about the English countryside. It shows the evil that results when people place too much importance on money and luxury. It also paints a tender picture of a happy farm village before commercial considerations destroyed it. "The Citizen of the World" (1762) is a collection of Goldsmith's essays. From "The Traveller" Eternal blessings crown my earliest friend And round his dwelling guardian saints attend Blest be that spot, where cheerful guests retire To pause from toil, and trim their evening fire; Blest that abode, where want and pain repair And every stranger finds a ready chair; Blest be those feasts with simple plenty crown'd, Where all the ruddy family around Laugh at the jests and pranks that never fail, Or sigh with pity at some mournful tale, Or press the bashful stranger to his food, And learn the luxury of doing good.

OBJECTIVE REPORTING They are casually beating a man to death passers-by glance in his direction the beaters achieve their object the beaten is past objecting to the passers-by he is an object they are objecting to a rage within it may be relived but it is not dead they go on beating they go on beating they go on beating they will go on beating. -- Anne Le Marquand HARTIGAN was born in England, her mother Irish and her father from the Channel Islands. Plays "Beds" and "La Corbiere" premiered at Dublin Theatre Festival. New poetry collection "Immortal Sins" published by Salmon Poetry 1993. Has won awards and bursaries for poetry, plays and batik.

The IGW County Tipperary website has been updated. The following civil parish webpages have either been added or updated: Cullen, Glenbane, Clonbeg and Dolla. The following town(land) pages have either been added or updated: Addane, Ballycarn, Barnagore, Boherlody, Cooneen, Cooneen South, Coumnagillagh, Curraghleigh, Curreeny Commons, Clonmore, Cullen, Glenbane, Tipperary, Cordangan, Holycross, Nenagh, Cashel, Mullinhone, Newport, Ballintogher, Foilnamuck, Glenduff, Grallagh, Kerane, Kilnashannally, Kilriffet, Knockmeale, Lisgarriff, Lisgarriff East & West, Pollanorman, Tooreen, Traverston, Turtulla, Windygap, Ballinulty, Ballybrunoge, Boherduff, Cloonmanagh, Fortyacres, Garryheakin, Gortakilleen, Gortnabarnan, Illaunmeen, Longstone, Milltown, Monearmore, Rathduff, Rathcabban, The Pike, Cappaghrattin Other items added this month include new civil parish maps with townlands deliniated, Hearth Money Rolls for Iffa and Offa baronies, new Griffith Valuations, and new surname links. You can find this website at: http://www.rootsweb.com/~irltip/tipperary.htm If you have suggestions, corrections and additions for this website, please write me off list. -- Pat Connors, Sacramento CA http://www.connorsgenealogy.com

Just thought that I'd tell you about a new site which is developing a large section on the Irish in especially Liverpool, Manchester and Wales and Ireland of course! www.originsuk.com Cheers Gill

Please copy and paste if link doesn't work _http://www.eakles.com/74newyearpg.htm_ (http://www.eakles.com/74newyearpg.htm) Denise in / Puerto Rico researching my families again for another year. Craven / McKeegan /Tierney /Morrison / Murray /Ryan / Johnson /O'Hare Bertrand /Gouin (Guynn) / Cotuan /Cutway This year I'll be starting on my husband's side of the family too,the Spanish.Oh,if only I had paid more attention in history class. Happy New Year evryone.

In the summer of 1847, some 2,000 of LORD PALMERSTON's tenants were sailing from Sligo and others being routed through Liverpool, all bound for Canada. Henry John TEMPLE, the Third Viscount Palmerston, was very much an absentee landlord. As a career politician, he was forced to spend all his time in London. He became a cabinet minister in the British government as early as 1809, serving 15 years as Foreign Secretary, and later still, served two periods as Prime Minister. The nine vessels carrying his former tenants were destined to join the ranks of the coffin ships. When the first, the "Eliza Liddell," arrived at Saint John, New Brunswick in July, the Canadian authorities were enraged. There were few men of employable age on board, mainly widows with young children and elderly men and women who were unfit or too old to work. PALMERSTON was one of many who acted in much the same way; no one sought to deny that landlord emigration meant sending out of Ireland the tenants who were not wanted because they were too old for work or unfit or lazy or of bad character. Good tenants who were young and healthy, who gave no trouble, who worked the land and paid their rent were welcome to stay. Late sailings to Canada were always dangerous; ports on the St. Lawrence were forced to close as soon as the ice built up in the autumn, and as the weather declined, new arrivals were bound to suffer. One of the Palmerston vessels, the "Lord Ashburton," arrived at Saint John on October 30th. On the voyage, 107 had died and 60 were seriously ill along with many of the crew which had to be supplemented by passengers to complete the journey! Three days later, the "Aeolus" arrived with more of Lord Palmerston's tenants; more deaths, more sickness and even more poverty accompanied them. The captain was forced to pay a one-pound-per head bond to allow his passengers to land at Saint John. They were so ill and so poorly prepared for the voyage that the chief surgeon of the quarantine station reported that "many are almost in a state of nudity, 99 percent of the passengers on this ship must become a public charge immediately." Later, the "Richard Watson" arrived. Although fewer deaths had occurred at sea the account of this voyage was none the less horrifying. The passengers had been kept waiting for several days in Sligo and finally went on board on August 10th, but differences between Emigration officials and the ship's broker kept her at quayside until the 26th. Contrary winds were blamed for her remaining in Sligo Bay until September 8th when the brig was put to sea. Adverse weather forced her back to Sligo, and her final departure was delayed until the 22nd. After 43 days, the passengers were no nearer their destination! The voyage ended on November 8th, fully three months since they had gone on board and many were in a very poor state. All of this caused an uproar in Canada and protests were sent to the Colonial Secretary in London; despite his high position in government, LORD PALMERSTON was officially asked for an explanation. He tended to blame his Irish agents, Messrs. KINCAID and STEWART. Their response, in a letter of February 1, 1848 concluded: "The emigrants were unfortunately poor and without any means of support except what they could obtain by their labour, but that was their misfortune and not their fault, and they were both able and willing to work for their bread and for the support of their families. Notwithstanding the reports from the authorities in Saint John and Quebec...very favourable accounts arrive almost daily to their friends in this country from those who emigrated last year from Lord Palmerston's estate, and that already some of them have been able to send home money to their friends out of their earnings..." Other papers relative to emigration paint a different picture. Alarming cholera statistics from Dr. G. M. DOUGLAS, Medical Superintendent at Grosse Isle, were debated by politicians in Quebec, Montreal, London and Dublin, with little result. In 1848, Dr. DOUGLAS wrote: "I have the honour to report, for the information of the Excellency, the Governor-General, the arrival since my last report of 22 passenger vessels having on board on leaving port an aggregate of 7,629 souls; among these were three vessels from Bremen, three from Scotland, having no sick on board or deaths on the voyage. All the others being from Liverpool and ports in Ireland have more or less sickness and deaths...have arrived in a very sickly condition, the few that remain healthy I have ordered to land at the tents at the East End." He mentions the "Sir Henry Pottinger" left Cork on May 29th with 399 steerage passengers with fever appearing almost immediately on board, 98 having died and 100 more ill. Also mentioned was the "The Virginius" which sailed from Liverpool on May 28th with fever and dysentery coming aboard with the 476 passengers and deaths occurring even before they left the Mersey! Dr. DOUGLAS said that on examining the patients aboard the ship on arrival he found 106 ill with fever including nine of the crew, that 158 had died on the voyage, among them the first and second officers and seven of the crew including the master and the steward. He said, "The few that were able to come on deck were ghastly yellow looking spectres, unshaven and hollow cheeked...not more than six or eight were really healthy and able to exert themselves." A third vessel, the "Yorkshire," had sailed from Liverpool on June 9th with 392 passengers, of whom 45 had died and another 40 were ill. The doctor stated, "I am convinced that six days after the passengers of these three vessels are landed at the tents, and when they have eaten of fresh bread and meat, from 25 to 30 will die, and from 150 to 180 required to be admitted to the hospital. The exposure to atmospheric changes in the tents is very trying to weak and debilitated people, especially young children and aged people. Since writing the above, another plague-ship has just dropped in, the "Naomi," from Liverpool, this vessel sailed on the 15th June with 334 passengers, 78 have died on the voyage and 104 are now sick. The filth and dirt in this vessel's hold creates such an effluvium as to make it difficult to breathe."

IT FELL UPON A SUMMER DAY It fell upon a summer day, When Jesus walked in Galilee, The mothers from a village brought Their children to His knee. He took them in His arms, and laid His hands on each remembered head; "Suffer these little ones to come To Me," He gently said. "Forbid them not. Unless ye bear The childlike heart your hearts within, Unto My kingdom ye may come, But may not enter in." Master, I fain would enter there; O let me follow Thee and share Thy meek and lowly heart, and be Freed from all worldly care. Of innocence, and love, and trust, Of quiet work, and simple word, Of joy, and thoughtlessness of self, Build up my life, good Lord. All happy thoughts, and gentle ways, And lovingkindness daily given, And freedom through obedience gained, Make in my heart Thy heaven. O happy thus to live and move! And sweet this world, where I shall find God's beauty everywhere, His love, His good in all mankind. O Father, grant this childlike heart, That I may come to Christ, and feel His hands on me in blessing laid, Love-giving, strong to heal. -- Stopford A. Brooke

SNIPPET: To mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Evie HONE, an in-focus exhibition of her work began December 2005 and continues until 4 June 2006 at the National Gallery of Ireland. Each aspect of her career is highlighted from her early abstract work through to her later stained glass pieces. Born in Dublin, Evie HONE's first art lessons were with the British artist, Walter SICKERT at the Westminster school of Art, London in 1914. It was here she met her lifelong friend and fellow Irish artist Mainie JELLETT. Six years later, she went to Paris, to be joined by JELLETT. Together they studied there for a year with the semi-cubist painter and writer Andre LHOTE and then with Albert GLEIZES, the well-known abstract cubist painter and theorist. The influence of these artists is evident in HONE's work, which reflects not only the Continental avant-garde ideas of her teachers, but draws interesting parallels with Irish Christian art In the 1930s the style of her com! positions developed and became more figurative in their representation. Of these, her landscape scenes are noted for their marvellous freshness and vitality. Today, her reputation rests largely on the expressive intensity of her stained glass output. She first worked in this media in 1931 and from then, until her death in 1955, she produced a series of splendid windows including the huge, eighteen-light 'Crucifixion and the Last Supper,' at Eton College Chapel and 'My Four Green Fields' now in Government Buildings, Dublin. The exhibition is curated by Dr. Sighle BHREATHNACH-LYNCH, Curator of Irish Art, per Jan-Feb 2006 issue, Dublin's "Ireland of the Welcomes" magazine.

Sorry this is a couple of days late, I've been enjoying the warm sun in Mexico for the past week. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. This is from the Irish Heritage Newsletter, thanks to George Steeler for keeping this service up year after year. St. Stephen's Day in Ireland December 26 St. Stephen's Day honors the first Christian martyr, stoned to death shortly after the Crucifixion. St. Stephen's Day is a national holiday in Ireland, but the celebrations have little connection to the Saint. In Ireland, St. Stephen's Day is the day for "Hunting the Wren" or "Going on the Wren." Originally, groups of small boys would hunt for a wren, and then chase the bird until they either caught it or it died from exhaustion. The dead bird was tied to the top of a pole or holly bush, which was decorated with ribbons or colored paper. Early in the morning of St. Stephen's Day, the wren was carried from house to house by the boys, who wore straw masks or blackened their faces with burnt cork, and dressed in old clothes (often women's dresses.) At each house, the boys sing the Wren Boys' song. There are many versions and variations of this song, including the following: The wren, the wren, the king of all birds, On St. Stephen's Day was caught in the furze, Although he is little, his family is great, I pray you, good landlady, give us a treat. My box would speak, if it had but a tongue, And two or three shillings, would do it not wrong, Sing holly, sing ivy--sing ivy, sing holly, A drop just to drink, it would drown melancholy. And if you draw it of the best, I hope in heaven your soul will rest; But if you draw it of the small, It won't agree with these wren boys at all. Sometimes those who gave money were given a feather from the wren for good luck. The money collected by the Wren Boys was used to hold a dance for the whole village. There are different legends about the origin of this custom. One is that St. Stephen, hiding from his enemies in a bush, was betrayed by a chattering wren. The wren, like St. Stephen, should be hunted down and stoned to death. Another legend holds that during the Viking raids of the 700's, Irish soldiers were betrayed by a wren as they were sneaking up on a Viking camp in the dead of night. A wren began to eat breadcrumbs left on the head of a drum, and the rat-a-tat-tat of its beak woke the drummer, who sounded the alarm and woke the camp, leading to the defeat of the Irish soldiers and the continuing persecution of the wren. The pursuit and capture of the wren is also related to the pagan custom of sacrificing a sacred symbol at year's end. In contrast to the legends of the wren as betrayer, the wren has also been revered in Ireland as the "king of the birds." An Irish folktale tells of a contest held among birds to see which could fly the highest and should be accorded this title. The eagle soared higher than any other bird, but lost the contest when a clever wren, who had been hiding on the back of the eagle, flew off the eagle and soared higher in the sky. The custom of going on the wren fell into disfavor around the turn of the century, and died out completely in most parts of Ireland, but has been revived throughout much of the country. Wrens are no longer killed-- an artificial wren may be used, or a real wren may be carried about in a cage.The "Wren Boys" now include girls, and adults often accompany the young people. Folk costumes and traditional music and dancing are often part of going on the wren, and the money collected is often used for community or school projects. For more information: "Christmas in Ireland," a book produced by the World Book Encyclopedia (Chicago, 1985; LCCN 85-51171) includes more information in St. Stephen's Day in Ireland, including several illustrations. "The Christmas Revels Songbooks," compiled by Nancy and John Langstaff, Boston: David R. Godine, 1985; LCCN 85-70140) includes words and music for the Wren Boys Song. The same version of the song can be heard on "The Christmas Revels" compact disc, Revels Records, 1988, CD 1078. -- Pat Connors, Sacramento CA, list admin http://www.connorsgenealogy.com

'The Record Shelf', a classical music radio program out of USC did a show on McCormack not long ago. In it the host mentioned that 'The Irish Tenor' was the best selling recording artist of the century until overtaken by the Beatles! My mother saw him several times in NYC and loved him. He became her standard for all male singers. Perhaps that's why Ol' blue Eyes left her cold! Margaret On Dec 24, 2005, at 12:00 PM, IRISH-IN-UK-D-request@rootsweb.com wrote: > To: IRISH-IN-UK-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: Co. Westmeath Tenor John McCORMACK (1884-1945) -- Guest of > Honor/Pres. Woodrow WILSON 1918 - FOLEY >

Conclusion - "All over England the same thing was happening. Nine of the main roads out of London were turned into one-way evacuation arteries. A continuous stream of buses, trucks and automobiles crammed with singing children reached as far as one could see. So precise were the plans of the railroads that the incoming army of London commuters was not delayed more than half an hour. What the arriving commuters saw, they will never forget. Not that the children were particularly tearful - for most of them it was something like the promise of an extended picnic. But implicit in that first tense day was the all-encompassing tragedy about to be played upon the European stage. An unseen force was already disrupting homes and families, suddenly propelling multitudes into strange places, among strange people. A burly bobby, eyeing the long lines of children trooping to their trains, hand in hand, observed: 'One of them kids is mine. God knows when I'll see him again. It may be years.! And some of 'em, he added, 'are going to have a bad time of it.' Some of them have had a bad time of it, although competent inspectors tried to send children to homes that would make them most comfortable - the poorer children to the simpler homes, those acustomedo to luxury to the more pretentious. When lack of room made compulsory billeting necessary, they tried to choose the families who would resent it least. The vicar of the village near Reading took two of 1017's tough little cockneys. Tommy's mother keeps a pub in London's East End; Jimmy's father is a dock worker. Adjustment has not been easy. To the vicar's mystification, the boys scrupulously avoided walking on the grass and insisted on playing in the road. Jimmy was appalled at the thought of a bath and Tommy refused to use his handkerchief. Both complained at having rooms to themselves, saying: 'We gets frightened, we do.' They were disturbed at the idea of climbing into a bed with sheets .... One chi! ld, seeing a tree laden with plums, exclaimed: 'Blimey, I thought the y came in boxes!' ... Children used to margarine complained of country butter. To some of England it had been a revelation - one which may have long-range repercussions for the better. It was a shock to find that for some slum-dwellers lice are an accepted condition of life .... In one ultrafashionable district, when a contingent arrived from the toughest part of Birmingham, neither the aristocratic ladies nor the butlers could control the children who quickly formed gangs, scoured the countryside, beat up the village boys, closed railroad-crossing gates, threw stones at policemen, pillaged orchards and chased cows... Most difficult to handle have been the mothers. In the village where the 1017's were quartered there arrived a family from London's East End - Granny SMITHERS, huge and raucous, and three daughters with three children apiece. They were timidly polite at first ... but when they discovered that there was no pub in the village, they brooded disconsolately. 'If I cawn't 'ave me drop of port, I wants to go back to London,' Granny announc! ed. 'To 'ell with the bombs! I cawn't stand this plice,' a daughter chimed in. The vicar did his best, but finally the SMITHERS family returned to London, loudly vowing that they never come again into such a holy wilderness. Local welfare organizations and schools, trying desperately to overcome these difficulties, are doing a titanic job. New quarters are being found for classes. Sports and excursions are being organized to keep the children busy. Communal kitchens where the mothers can work will relieve the burden on householders - because two women at the same stove do not make for peace. The owners of large houses have responded nobly with facilities for maternity wards to relieve the overcrowded hospitals; country squires with big estates have turned parts of their houses into schools. The poorer families are only too willing to take evacuee's because they can make a small profit off the weekly government allowance. It is too early to tell yet how the Government Evacuation Scheme will turn out. In any case, underprivileged hundreds of thousands will have good food and clean beds for one, two, three years, perhaps more. They will then, just as suddenly as they left, be expected to re! turn. The second adjustment will be harder than the first, and it may have to be made with metropolitan England in the throes of postwar depression and unemployment. As the bobby said, 'Some of them are going to have a bad time of it.'" -- Frederic SONDERN, JR., "Reader's Digest" Dec. 1939, condensed from "Life" magazine, Oct. 16, 1939

MEMORY LANE: 1939 -- "London is now a childless city. A hush lies over the parks. The lawns where primly starched nannies pushed their prams, where children played and dogs raced, are almost deserted. It is as though a modern Pied Piper had swept the city from end to end. And this is true also of other large cities in England and Scotland. Under the Government Evacuation Scheme, about 2,000,000 children and mothers were taken from their homes in congested metropolitan areas and scattered over the countryside into new homes and new environments. This, the greatest rearrangement of population in modern times, was completed in four days. Already it has cost half a billion dollars. In reception areas the influx has on an average upped the population 25%. That increase, in terms of extra water and food, sanitation, medical care and schooling, is a formidable burden for any community ...Britain's crowded cities present some of the world's likeliest and most vulnerable bo! mbing targets. Unless millions are to be trapped, evacuation had to be treated as a national necessity, to be solved in an organized, almost compulsory manner. Neville CHAMBERLAIN called it "the greatest social experiment which England has ever undertaken." It cast 2,000,000 city people, most of them poor, many from the slums, into a rural life which they did not understand. Lower-class English are not used to being told by their government what is best for their children. Upper-class English families, many of whom have taken children into their homes, are not used to rubbing elbows with strangers from different walks of life. In addition to its social problems, evacuation disrupted the nation's transport system for four days when every wheel was needed to concentrate men and arms. But the children, England's future, must come first. Sudden as evacuation was, plans for it had been drawn up immediately after Mr. CHAMBERLAIN's return from Munich. England, Scotland and Wales were divided into areas of three types: dangerous areas, from which all children up to 16 and mothers with children under 5 should be removed; neutral areas, moderately dangerous but not congested, which should be left as they were; reception areas in rural districts. Local health authorities, making a house-to-house canvass, figured the capacity of every home on the basis of one person per habitable room. With 100,000 social workers, the gigantic survey was completed in six weeks. Menwhile, every school in evacuation areas registered children, the workers struggling against such arguments as: 'Wot! Let my Tommy stie with strynge people? Garn, I needs 'im in the pub!' The plan was not compulsory but the teacher is highly respected by the poorer English citizens, and the roster was soon complete. Meanwhile, for three months the! railroads and other transport agencies wrestled with the problem. Timetables for thousands of special trains had to be made; 300,000 children would have to be cleared from London alone on the first day. When evacuation started, the machinery functioned with incredible precision. Take, for instance, the little boys of Junior school on Commercial Road, East London. At 5:30 a.m. on September 1, they assembled in the school yard. Each child had a tag on his coat lapel with his name, address and evacuation number of the school, 1017. On his schoolroom desk he found his haversack, also marked, containing a change of underwear, toothbrush, towel, handkerchiefs, night clothes, and a 48-hour ration of bully beef, biscuits and chocolate. After inspection of gas masks, the urchins marched off to Aldgate subway station. Seventy-two subway stations in London were closed to normal traffic that day. The rest of the city stood still while School 1017 was whisked, a hundred strong, to Waterloo Station. The teacher in charge and his assistants, each with ten boys, had instructions on a printed card: '1017, Waterloo platform 12, 6:45 a.m.' Punctually, School 1017 marched two by two ! through the gate, scrambled for window seats on the train. The youngsters, excited at the idea of going to the country, pressed their noses to the windows and grinned as they left London. Two hours later they were decanted at Reading, 40 miles away, where the city council was ready with buses. Twenty children and two teachers climbed into each. One group, assigned to a nearby village, half an hour later drew up to the vicarage. Theo vicar and his helpers were ready with piles of sandwiches and hot tea. Villagers who had volunteered to take children chose the ones they liked best. Every little boy of 1017 found a new home within five hours." -- to be concluded

SNIPPET: John McCORMACK (1884-1945), one of the finest and most popular tenor singers of the first quarter of the 20th century, was born into a tough working-class family in Athlone, in Co. Westmeath, the fourth of eleven children born to Andrew and Hannah McCORMACK, at a time when Ireland was one of the poorest countries in Europe. Nonetheless, John was full of determination to make a name for himself, and according to those who knew him, was possessed of "language so earthy, a docker might blush to hear him." Mc CORMACK's success was phenomenal. The subsequent publicized "rivalry" between McCORMACK and singer Enrico CARUSO was friendly, each tenor deferring to the other as the greatest of the day. Both became millionaires and both became mainstays of the RCA Victor recording company. CARUSO, who was also an actor and artist, drew affectionate caricatures of his friend, McCORMACK, in pen and ink. McCORMACK was the first mega-star of music and this success led to a mansion in Hollywood and a grand estate in Ireland which was once the seat of the earls of Drogheda. He was made a Count of the Papal court, and for a great part of his life was known as "John, Count McCormack." He was lionized in America, being the guest of honor at President WILSON's Fourth of July concert in 1918, having a year previously renounced "all previous allegiances" to the UK (which included Ireland) to become an American citizen. This act was virtually ignored in Ireland, but officially, England took offense, as his change of nationality had taken place a few months before America had entered the "Great War." There was an irony here, too, for it was in England, after his voice and his fortune failed (he had a weakness for slow race-horses), that McCORMACK's most loyal audiences remained. McCORMACK's wife was Lily FOLEY, a Dublin soprano. They were married in 1906 and had two children, a son, Cyril, and a daughter, Gwen. In 1920 having spent several years in the USA, he returned to Dublin with his family where he lived until his death on 16 Sept 1945. Today the "John McCormack Golden Voice Competition," which is held every year in Athlone in his memory, attracts top-grade singers from Britain and Ireland.

Pat, My father loved his turnips. It was a big purple and yellow ball of wax, which I refused to eat. It was years before I found out that it was indeed a rutabaga. I still did not eat it. I did not care what you called it. Bill Karr in Peoria, IL., USA > thanks to George Steeler from the Ireland Heritage Newsletter... > > Turnip Candleholder > > In Ireland, it is a Christmas tradition to place lighted candles in the > front windows of the house. In the past, many families did not own > enough candleholders, so they improvised. Turnips were plentiful and > both large and heavy enough to hold a candle. What the Irish refer to as > a turnip is a rutabaga in America. > > Assemble: > > rutabaga > paring knife > candle (preferably a drip candle) > small plate or plastic lid > holly and greens > > To view step by step directions please go to > http://www2.worldbook.com/features/holidays/html/candle.htm > > -- > Pat Connors, Sacramento CA > http://www.connorsgenealogy.com > > > > ==== IRISH-IN-UK Mailing List ==== > The Irish-In-UK Mailing List Website: > http://www.connorsgenealogy.com/IrishUK/ > > ============================== > Search the US Census Collection. Over 140 million records added in the > last 12 months. Largest online collection in the world. Learn more: > http://www.ancestry.com/s13965/rd.ashx >

again, thanks to the Irish Heritage Newsletter for sharing this recipe.... Irish Triffle Makes about 8 servings Triffle Loaf: 1 stale spongecake 4 tablespoons raspberry jam 1/2 to 2/3 cup sherry 1/3 cup irish whiskey, optional (see note) *custard (recipe follows) 1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar **few drops vanilla 1/2 cup almonds, blanched and slivered, optional **slices of kiwifruit and strawberries for garnish, opional Custartd 1 egg 2 egg yolks 1 tablespoon granulated sugar 2 cups milk To make triffle: Split the spongecake into three or four layers and spread each layer with raspberry jam. Put the pieces in a pretty glass bowl. Pour the sherry (mixed with the whiskey, if desired) over the spongecake and let it soak an hour To make the custard: Beat the egg and egg yolks together with the sugar. Heat the milk to just below boiling point and pour over the eggs, beating constantly. Cook the custartd in the top of a double boiler over simmering hot, not boiling, water until it's thick and creamy. Pour the custard over the cake and cool. Meanwhile, whip the cream with the sugar, fold in the vanilla. Pile the whipped cream over the top of the triffle. Decorate with the almonds, kiwi and strawberries if desired. Note: The whiskey, when added to the sherry, gives the triffle a more pungent flavor. It's not for all tastes. If in doubt, leave it out! -- Pat Connors, Sacramento CA http://www.connorsgenealogy.com

thanks to George Steeler from the Ireland Heritage Newsletter... Turnip Candleholder In Ireland, it is a Christmas tradition to place lighted candles in the front windows of the house. In the past, many families did not own enough candleholders, so they improvised. Turnips were plentiful and both large and heavy enough to hold a candle. What the Irish refer to as a turnip is a rutabaga in America. Assemble: rutabaga paring knife candle (preferably a drip candle) small plate or plastic lid holly and greens To view step by step directions please go to http://www2.worldbook.com/features/holidays/html/candle.htm -- Pat Connors, Sacramento CA http://www.connorsgenealogy.com

Pat, on the question of Blogs..perhaps listers who have connections in the Abbeyside, Dungarvan, Co Waterford area might like to check out our Reference Archive blog, hey might find some info about their ancestors www.abbeysidereferencearchive.blogspot.com regards Eddie Cantwell ----- Original Message ----- From: "Pat Connors" <nymets11@pacbell.net> To: <IRISH-IN-UK-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, December 19, 2005 5:48 PM Subject: Re: [UK-Irish] Admin Msg: Website addition > > I don't know what a 'BLOG' is!! > > > It is like a bulletin board. There are topics posted and you can post a > comment to the topic. On my new blog, I only have three topics: one > about the blog, another with Irish Christmas recipes, and one I just > started on New York City. Eventually, I would like a topic to cover all > the sections of my website. If you can think of a topic you would like > added, just let me know. > > -- > Pat Connors, Sacramento CA > http://www.connorsgenealogy.com > > > > ==== IRISH-IN-UK Mailing List ==== > The Irish-In-UK Mailing List Website: > http://www.connorsgenealogy.com/IrishUK/ > > ============================== > Search the US Census Collection. Over 140 million records added in the > last 12 months. Largest online collection in the world. Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13965/rd.ashx > > > > -- > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.1.371 / Virus Database: 267.14.1/206 - Release Date: 16/12/2005 > >

> > >on the question of Blogs..perhaps listers who have connections in the >Abbeyside, Dungarvan, Co Waterford area might like to check out our >Reference Archive blog, hey might find some info about their ancestors >www.abbeysidereferencearchive.blogspot.com > Eddie's blog is a wonderful blog and resource. All should just check it out and see what surprises it has. My blog is not so fancy, I am still learning how they work :-) -- Pat Connors, Sacramento CA http://www.connorsgenealogy.com

> I don't know what a 'BLOG' is!! It is like a bulletin board. There are topics posted and you can post a comment to the topic. On my new blog, I only have three topics: one about the blog, another with Irish Christmas recipes, and one I just started on New York City. Eventually, I would like a topic to cover all the sections of my website. If you can think of a topic you would like added, just let me know. -- Pat Connors, Sacramento CA http://www.connorsgenealogy.com

Dear Pat. I don't know what a 'BLOG' is!!