These anecdotes are well known facts to us, Irish - but for general information they need to be re-told, and re-told, especially in our schools - and not just during St. Patrick's week celebrations - to the present-day children of the great unpublicised Diaspora. Carry on! ***** Reply to the LIST ONLY - Please ***** ***** Thanks for your consideration ***** Pádraig Mór, An Sean Gabhar ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mary Wilkinson" <delamary@rogers.com> To: <irl-cork@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, September 24, 2006 6:27 PM Subject: RE: [Cork] Irish Birth dates > Hedgerow schools>British oppression. > Thanks for recommending this book Chris. I've just returned from a month > in > Ireland, and learned what happened to my ancestors from Co. Clare. They > never talked about it, out of shame and because it hurt too much. I think > their story needs to be told, so that is what I am beginning to do. Their > absentee landlord ordered his agent to "tumble in" all of the houses in > their village and turn them out in late March 1847. This was because the > potato blight in 1845 and 1846 meant they were literally starving and > could > not afford to pay the rent. As a group they walked to Killaloe where the > priest blessed them and gave them the little help he could, then they > walked > to the pier head in Killaloe and got friends with boats to take them to > Limerick City. Those who were strong enough helped to row. There they > were > taken by fishing boats to Cobh Harbour in Cork where they bought passage > on > the first ship going west. The unscrupulous captain overburdened the > boat, > did not lay in supplies of bread sufficient for the number of passengers, > and the water he provided was foul and inadequate also. The passage was > 63 > days instead of the average 31 days. 40% of the passengers died at sea, > and > many more at Grosse Isle Quarantine Station and on the inland journey to > Ontario. My great-great grandparents had 6 children under 8. Twin > daughters > age 6 and a 2 year old son did not survive to see their destination. > Timothy is buried at Grosse Isle, one of the twins at Kingston, and > another > God alone knows where, perhaps at sea. Within 9 years the father and 9 > children were dead and buried. Eviction was a death sentence in many > cases. > It seems to me a clear and cruel case of Genocide, nothing less! How > terrible it must have been to be starving and at the same time to see > boatloads of food loaded under armed guard to go to England. I have > English, Scottish and Irish ancestors. I know my English ancestors being > ordinary folk did not make the governmental policies of that terrible > time, > but it has soured me to that part of my heritage! Mary Wilkinson, > Ontario, > Canada > > -----Original Message----- > From: irl-cork-bounces@rootsweb.com > [mailto:irl-cork-bounces@rootsweb.com]On Behalf Of kevin > Sent: Sunday, September 24, 2006 5:49 PM > To: irl-cork@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [Cork] Irish Birth dates > Hedgerow schools>British > oppression. > > > If anyone would like to read an excellent book on the famine in Muskerry > (mid -Cork) I can recommend Famine in Muskerry by Maire Mac Suibne 1997 > published by Litho press Midleton, Co Cork. Regards,Kevin. > >> >> Last night, I happened across a program called Moments in Time that >> covers > different historical events. This one happened to be the Irish Famine and > I > wish I'd seen all of it. Out of ignorance, I always thought the Irish > left > to escape the famine. I had no idea that they were actually forced out in > many cases. I didn't know about the deadly marches from the rural areas > to > the ports and I didn't know that the British yanked the Irish out of their > homes, destroying the house so that they couldn't return to it. I knew > about workhouses but not that they were, for all intents and purposes, a > means to work the Irish like slaves in exchange for watery soup. I didn't > know about the pestilance and disease that workhouses fostered and how > many > Irish men, women, and children died there. When I learned that a million > had died and another million had been forced by the need to survive to > seek > a new life away from Ireland, it gave me a whole new view of my ancestors. >> >> I'd been wondering why only the two brothers came to the States. Now I > know that it's possible they were the only survivors of their family. > I've > always been proud of my Irish heritage but never as much as I feel now. > Those two brothers created a legacy that they probably never realized they > had...pride in their courage, pride in their strength, pride in the fact > that I carry their name, pride in knowing that I...and the rest of you on > this list...are making certain that they won't be forgotten. >> >> Okay. Sunday sermon's over. Just had to put it out there. >> >> Chris