Monsignor Horan and the airport at Knock The exploits of the Mayo priest, Fr James Horan from the 1950s to the 19803 in developing an international ariport in county Mayo are the stuff of legend. In what was a busy life, Horan succeeded where membrs of the public doubted that he would succeed. Undobutedly, today, the success of Monsignor Horan is still felt in Mayo, despite the changing social and economic papers. The Ev...
A Mayo man in Kenya Irishmen and women have always found themselves in the most unusual of places across the world. Scattered by famine and economic hardship, the Irish resilience helped them pave new lives on all continents. Involvement in the empire also brought the Irish to exotic locations. Take for example this report in the Ballina Herald of December 1949 which reported on the return of one native of the county fro...
The Farmers March, 1966 The great farmers march of 1966 was a significant moment in the history of Irish agriculture in the mid 20th Century. Coming as it did in the year of the 50th anniversary of the 1916 rising, farmers across Ireland rose in opposition to the Department of Agriculture and its then Minister, Charles Haughey and walked for days to Dublin to protest. Amongst the many treasure throves which the INA holds is...
Another Irish Olympian- John Pius Boland The first modern Olympic games were held in Athens in 1896 and perhaps not widely known is that an Irishman enjoyed success. His name was John Pius Boland and in 1960 the Irish Press looked back on Boland’s exploits comparing them with the then recent success of Ronnie Delaney in Melbourne in 1956. Boland was also a politician and played an important role in Irish political life in...
Ireland’s greatest? Martin Sheridan from Mayo Who was the greatest Irish athlete is a question that is often asked. We have had our fair share of Olympic gold medallists and even those who never claimed that ultimate prize could be considered amongst the country’s greatest. What about the exploits of Martin Sheridan of Bohola in county Mayo? Can he be considered for the title? In 1934 the Kerry Reporter newspaper rep...
Strikes in the 1920s and the Irish Radical Newspapers Post Independent Ireland, in the early 1920s, was in many ways dominated by strikes and industrial action as workers clamoured for basis and proper working rights. The era saw the rise of trade unionism and others who sought to fight for and protect the worker. All across Ireland local branches sprung up fighting for the rights of various workers and professions. One...
Eddie Jordan The death was announced today of Eddie Jordan, an icon of Irish sport and Irish motorsport executive, broadcaster, racing driver, and businessman. From 1991 to 2005, Jordan served as founder and team principal of Jordan in Formula One. Born in 1948, Jordan was a well known figure in Irish sport since the early 1970s. Here we look back through the pages of the Irish Newspaper Archive for some early reports on hi...
Michael Dwyer Michael Dwyer was a prominent figure in the 1798 Rebellion and became known for his guerilla warfare tactics in the Wicklow Mountains afterwards. There he evade capture for a number of years. Dwyer who was born in Immal, Wicklow in 1772 served as captain of the Ballymanus Corps in 1798 and fought alongside General Joseph Holt at significant battles such as Arklow and Vinegar Hill. After the rebel defeat th...
The de Freyne evictions, 1902 This week and celebrate St Patricks Day new titles were added to the Irish Newspaper Archive. These titles include Roscommon Champion 1944 – 2010; the Roscommon Journal 1828 – 1927; the Roscommon Messenger 1849 – 1935; the Strokestown Democrat 1913-1948, and the Roscommon & Leitrim Gazette 1822 – 1882. Such a focus on one Irish county allows readers to pour into the past in such det...
Ireland and the American Civil War In the course of his speech during the visit of Michael Martin, Taoiseach to the White House today, US President Donal Trump made reference to the Irish who fought in the American Civil War in the 1860s. Fleeing Ireland from the Great Famine in the 1840s thousands of irish settled in some of the USA’s biggest cities. When the War broke out in 1861 more than 200,000 Irishmen joined bo...