Win a free gift if you can name these men  from the 1916 Easter Rising. The first one is Padraic Pearse…(hint: they were all executed)

In  commemorating the Easter Rising of 1916  in Ireland, here are just a few of some less known facts, for all my Irish History Buffs out there.

FACT 1:. Did you know that the ‘Easter Rising of 1916′ which catapulted Ireland to its dream of Freedom from England , did not happen on Easter Sunday, but on the day after,  Monday in fact?. Do you know why?.

Arms were to be delivered from Germany to aid the Rebellion,  but the English got wind of the whole thing and the Royal navy sunk the ship, thus losing the cargo of arms..

A counter command, ordered by Eoin MacNeill cancelled what was supposed to be a non-military parade by the Irish Volunteers on Easter Sunday, This threw all those involved into confusion. MacNeill had not yet joined the Military Council of the IRB and was not aware that the parade was just a ruse for an actual  Rising until Bulmer Hobson informed him of such. When he found out he was completely uncooperative and wanted nothing to do with it.

When the Rebels in the outlying counties of Ireland heard of the counter command, and with no modern-day communications, they were not aware that the IRB planned to ignore the command and  forge ahead with the Rising, after all. This left Dublin in a less than advantageous state of affairs.

Constance Markievicz was the only woman arrested who was put into solitary confinement in Kilmainham Gaol. She was sentenced to death but then was  not executed because she was a woman. She was  quoted as saying, “I do wish your lot would have the decency to shoot me!”

In the beginning of the Rising, women in black capes called ‘Shawlees’ threw bottles and anything they could get their hands on at the GPO, where the Rebels had taken up residence. The women were angry and vengeful because they were convinced that the Rebels were trying to keep them from obtaining their checks from husbands and sons whom were fighting in WWI. After all it was a Post Office.

Grace Gifford married Joseph Mary Plunkett in Kilmainham Gaol only hours before Plunkett’s execution. They had originally planned to have a double wedding on Easter Sunday with Plunkett’s sister Geraldine and Thomas Dillon.

A boyhood friend of Plunkett’s was one of the guards in Kilmainham Gaol and as Grace cried in her husband’s arms, the friend assured her Joseph would probably not be shot. He was dying already from TB. She was misinformed, however.

Win a free gift if you can name all the men of the Easter Rising  in the picture at the top of this post or leave a comment or story below. (deadline April 30th)

Thanks from Brighid O’Sullivan

In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is a Catholic holy day of obligation.  Patrick, the boy slave who became a saint and bishop, wasn’t even Irish, yet St. Patrick’s Day is all about Ireland and its culture. Why is it so huge in the United States?

It’s true the Irish have made contributions to the America, almost since our country’s inception, but did you know when Christopher Columbus made his claim to  the New World the first one of his crew to step on North American soil was an Irishman by the name of Patrick Maguire?

Henry Ford’s father, William Ford, immigrated to the United States in 1847, an era in history referred to as “the Great Hunger”. One of Ford’s most successful cars, the Fairlane, was named for his Irish heritage. On the last night in Ireland, his then twenty one year old father and family spent the night in a cottage in Fair Lane, off Fair Hill in County Cork. William’s mother, Thomasina, is listed as being born in one of those cottages.  Unfortunately like many of the Irish seeking a better life in America, she did not survive her journey and died in the crossing from Ireland to the United States.  Her grandson Henry is credited with revolutionizing industry by creating the first mass produced automobile.

As America grew, she needed strong men to build bridges, canals and railroads. Many Irishmen threw themselves into this back-breaking work. Some paid with their lives in one of the most dangerous of occupations of the time, railroad worker.  A common expression of the day was “an Irishman is buried under every tie.”

Irish soldiers fought alongside Americans in the Revolutionary War, both sides of the Civil War, indeed in every war of the United States.

In 1780, George Washington commanded Irish soldiers in the War of Independence. In gratitude for their service, he granted them a holiday on March 17^th..  This became known as The St. Patrick’s Day Encampment.  So George Washington, who was English, invented St. Patrick’s Day.

When the Declaration of Independence was signed, eight men were of Irish descent. Matthew Thornton, George Taylor and James Smith were born in Ireland and George Read, Thomas McKean, Thomas Lynch Jr. Edward Rutledge and Charles Carroll were sons or grandsons of Irish immigrants. The Irish American secretary Charles Thompson also signed.

Irish Americans also signed the Constitution of the United States.

The Irish Brigade, so called the “Fighting 69^th” fought in the Civil War in some of the bloodiest battles ever fought. They never gave up their tattered flag, leading Abraham Lincoln to visit General Thomas Francis Meagher, known as “Meager of the Sword” and kiss the Second Colors in appreciation.

Both Meager and Patrick Kennedy, (great grandfather of President, John F. Kennedy) were from County Waterford.  John F. Kennedy also served in the military before becoming president.

And speaking of presidents, ten of our U. S presidents had Irish roots. They are Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk, James Buchanan, Ulysses S. Grant, William McKinley, Woodrow Wilson, John F Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton.

While it’s true St. Patrick’s Day may be a beer drinking, parade walking, shamrock float and balloon festival, we cannot forget the Irish Americans who helped build America and in the Gaelic words of the Irish Fusiliers of 1798 and many Irish Brigades after them, “Faugh A Ballagh.” In English it means, “Clear the Way,” for that is what they did for all of us.

Were the Irish Head Hunters? Not exactly though they did think mystical powers resided in the head. When I first began reading Irish History in order to research my novel, ‘The Sun Palace’ which is set in sixth century Ireland, I was astonished to find that the Celts actually coveted and revered their enemies severed heads as well as those of people they admired, with one difference they did NOT go about looking for victims to decapitate. They only took heads from corpses.

The Celts  believed that the head was a vessel to all knowledge and power and the druids may have kept their heads clean shaven in order to gain access to the sun, ironically similar to the christian tonsure of  monks. (Monks who were often former druids) . The severed head held the spirit of the dead and could give those who possessed it, protection in this world, knowledge of the Otherworld, or  perhaps simply luck.

So what did they do with the heads once they acquired them? Peter Berresford Ellis in  his book ‘The Celts‘ gives several sources: Strabo, a geographer and philosopher around the time of the Roman Empire tells us that some embalmed the heads in cedar oil while others displayed them in temples and Dr. Simon James, an archeologist in London stated “by keeping the head of an enemy, they may have thought the spirit could be controlled.” They also nailed the heads above doorways or on top of posts driven into the earth.

Archeological and other Evidence An artifact showing the head as being revered is the Gundestrup Cauldron uncovered in Denmark and a large number of skulls from the Celtic period have been found in the Thames in London, but my most interesting discovery goes back to Hallstatt, Austria where some of the original Celts first resided. Even today in the chapel basement of St. Mikael’s church, is the ” Bone House.” Partially carved into bedrock and windowless, the only light comes from candles. Hundreds of skulls are lined up neatly on three walls and some intricately painted ones on a wooden shelf below a crucifix  The inhabitants of Hallstatt explain this as ancient Celtic tradition.

Hallstatt Bone Church

And the Irish?   In  research,  I often uncover evidence of Pagan undertones weaved magically through Christianity.  Clonfert Abbey in County Galway is an example. The sandstone arched doorway is carved with five severed heads

But where we Irish most find our historical evidence, is in our stories. Written in mythological tradition, references are loaded with the importance of the head.  Cuchulain, took the heads of his enemies and hung them from his chariot.  In The Book of Leinster reads: A hag abode in the great house with three heads on her thin neck. and Nine heads from the other side of the iron couch horridly screeched.  And how could I forget my father’s favorite tale, The Headless Horseman’.  The horseman had no power over his victims as he had no head!

Perhaps you know more stories?

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When I walked through the narrow corridors of Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin, Ireland, the first thing I noticed was how cold my feet were. As I walked,down a narrow corridor I felt  the damp air snake up through the hard stone floor,  like spikes  through my shoes,  sending a frigid chill into the  bones of my blood and bones and traveling up into my shins. And this was early October!

Imagine, if you will, what it would have been like as a prisoner and you’ve been sent to one of the most horrible jails in all of Europe!

You’re scantily clothed, perhaps a thin linen dress or knickers with no stockings, perhaps you have no  shoes. You could be very old or very young or even sick. During hard times and especially during the famine years, people committed crimes  just to get arrested  so  they would be fed.  You might have stolen a loaf of bread to fee yourself or your family. The youngest prisoner in Kilmainham Gaol was only eight years old!!!!

Kilmainham Gaol Door
Not very inviting is it?

Walking single file for that is all that can be managed, you look up. The next floor is made up of metal grates and iron railings, the echo of British boots hard over your head.

As you pass each cell, the gaslights flicker above and all around you like fireflies in hell. The fast encroaching walls of thick limestone seem to grow thicker with every step, robbing you of oxygen. Smells of vomit, rotting flesh and feces  drift past from each cell,  punctuated by muffled sobs  and cries of despair. Each cell holds 5-6 people. They have no toilet, no sink, no electricity, with only a small window, high off the ground with bars. Each heavy metal door is recessed into the dark yellow or green wall, which is painted grey around the door like a picture frame. There are 2 holes in each door: one about the height of a man. Guards often would watch prisoners in solitary confinement through a hole shaped like a human eye. The constant surveillance by the enemy drove them mad . A  long metal hinge  covers the door horizontally; at the edge hangs a heavy padlock like the tongue of a dragon.

Painting in Kilmainham Gaol cell by nee  Grace Gifford, wife of Joseph Plunkett.                Joe  was executed after the 1916 East Rising.

Many of the women were kept in cells off  the Victorian Room which is large and spacious to accommodate exercise.The kitchen is below the floor and the heat  flows up through large metal gridded manholes, similar to road man holes here in America. In one cell, a painting by Grace Gifford/ Plunkett can be seen from the eye hole in the door. Grace was the bride of Joseph Plunkett, one of the Easter Rising Rebels of 1916. They were married in Kilmainham Gaol  just hours before he was executed. Joseph was already dying of tuberculosis but was shot by firing squad just the same, thus making him a martyr to the Irish people, something the British didn’t count on.

The Victorian Room at Kilmainham Gaol.

Chapel in Kilmainham Gaol

Before the British decided firing squads were much easier, hanging was the preferred execution and the gallows was right behind the altar of the chapel.  How convenient eh?

Beware of the Risen People
And Held Ye
Ye that have, bullied and Bribed, By P. Pearce

Patrick Pearce was one of the leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916. He was a teacher and a poet. He believed a blood sacrifice needed to be made by his generation in order to free Ireland from British Rule. He was right. Before and during the Easter Rising, there was little support from the local Irish. In fact it was actually supposed to happen on Easter Sunday with a load of munitions coming from Germany. The ship sunk and the Rising was canceled but not everyone was in agreement and the Rising of 1916 happened on Easter Monday.

There was not much support of the Rising at first. Shawlies, (ladies in black shawls) demonstrated outside the GPO. They were convinced they were being deprived of their support checks coming from sons and husbands fighting in WWI and they were furious! When it was all over, people jeered and threw vegetables at the Rebels as they were marched through the streets on their way to Kilmainham Gaol. But the Irish bitter taste  for their countrymen didn’t last long.  With the executions of the Irish Rebels,  the Irish were completely stunned.especially when several of the men were already dying. James Connolly had suffered gangrene in his leg during the fighting and had to be strapped into a chair to be shot!  Public opinion drastically changed, siding with the demand to end British rule and enforce an Irish Republic.

Please comment if you have something to add or if you like this post. You are welcome to add your name to the email list so you don’t miss any future posts on Irish history.

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, a lot of Americans are still without power and I am reminded of a  young Irish woman with four children under the age of four that I met in Ireland this past month when I was traveling there.. Although they don’t usually get snow, they get what they call “frost.”  I imagine the roads can be very slippery and she told me the Irish do not salt or sand the roads as we do in America. They just stay put.  On rare occasions when they get snow, I was told there is one snow plow in the whole country and it is in Dublin. Two winters past, my Irish friend told me her pipes froze and people had to wait for the Spring thaw. Her family was without power, water, and electricity for six weeks!!!  I cannot even imagine what that must have been like but the Irish seem to take this in stride. Never knowing how bad a coming winter will be, they stock up on food, water, and make preparations beforehand. I’m in awe at their resilience and willingness to just take charge of their own situations. But that’s not really what this post is about.

 Americans like to travel but we also prefer the same luxuries we had at home. I call them luxuries because not everyone lives the way we do, with Starbucks on every corner,  a Walmart with every available item  under the sun and 1-2 cars in every garage filled to the brim with gas no less. In Ireland gas is about $9.00 a gallon so they don’t drive far.

Here are some tips to make your trip to Ireland , a bit more hassle-free and American friendly. Often these tips carry a cheaper price tag as well, so listen up!

1. Do your homework. Scope out where you want to go and how you will get there. Decide the places you want to see and make your own itinerary. Don’t rely on a tour group or scheduled itinerary from some outside source. There are several reasons for this. A.  tour packages can be as much as $1000.00  higher per person than renting a car and traveling on your own. Also, we were able to add three more days  than is often allowed in a tour package. There are other reasons such as seeing what you want, taking your time, not being on some tour operator schedule etc. The  photo of the Moone High Cross was a rare treat we stumbled upon while going from one place to the other. It was not easy to find, hidden away behind a stone wall in the back of a

Moone High Cross County Kildare

farmer’s private property. We had to squeeze through a small opening to get inside the area where it was kept, another advantage of driving on your own. What fun that was finding it!

2. Rent a car and take out the extra ins. too. Driving in Ireland is not as scarey as you may think. Although there are few street signs and there will be places where the roads are very narrow. Everything takes twice as much time to get to than it appears on a map so allow for this. Rent your car before you leave the states and rent an automatic (if that is what you prefer) way ahead of time. Rent or buy a GPS with voice activation. I’ve driven with a map and I’ve used the GPS both. I survived both times but the GPS added so  much ease to the trip that it greatly added to my enjoyment. note: An advantage of buying  the GPS in the states and loading the European maps ahead of time, will allow you  get to know how the gizmo works before you get into a foreign country.

3. Stay at a bed and breakfast. Many tour companies stick with the few hotels available because they need to accommodate a larger group of people. B@Bs often have about four rooms  to a dwelling. The advantage of a bed and breakfast is Great Value!  and the personal attention. The last time I traveled in Oct. I payed 60 Eu which is about $75 a night  including a full Irish breakfast. (Irish Breakfast: porridge, bacon, eggs, toast, sausage, fruit, coffee, tea, juice, etc etc) We were greeted at the door and offered tea and scones, when we got there. Here’s a tip: Look for the Shamrock. Ireland has a great advantage over America when it comes to accommodations. Every place with a shamrock on the sign is guaranteed by the Irish Tourist Board to be good and I’ve never been disappointed.. One place even washed our clothes for an added fee. Another note: book your Dublin accommodation for the night you fly in and the night you fly out. (over the internet)  It also is a good idea to pay for the night before you arrive as most places won’t let you in the room before 3pm otherwise and since  you’ll have major jet lag and you’ll arrive early a.m you may want to sleep. ( the time change will mean you lose most of a nights sleep before you arrive) Its; ok to book the rest as you go as there are plenty of b@bs all over the country and most are not filled up at this point in time because tourism is down.

4. So you’re getting your breakfast included in your b@b. Now how about lunch? Just about every pub, restaurant, tourist stop I can think of serves homemade soup and fresh baked bread. This is  your best value and nutrition. It’s cheap and healthy. No McDonalds here, lads and lasses.

5. Nine to twelve months ahead of your trip watch for cheap flights! Every couple of days or so pop on the internet and search flight prices on as many sights as you can find.. I’ve found May and Oct. to be pretty cheap but I’m sure if you look you could find other months as well. If possible do not fly in the summer as those flights are usually double what you would find in other months of the year. My last flight to Ireland from Roc to DUB was under $600 round trip. If you live in NY or Boston its may be cheaper as that is the connection from where I live. Also fly in and out of Dublin. Shannon and Belfast will make you connect there any way and charge you for that connection. Besides there are lots of     things to see in Dublin.

These are the major points to make your trip to Ireland American friendly. I would add , invest in a Ireland Tour book by Frommers It can be any edition but be sure to get a paper map with it. They also have a website. This is by far the best traveling tour book out there and will help you with your itinerary.. Its also good just to flip through if you have no real destination. That’s how we found the Moone High Cross.

I welcome any other suggestions.

I welcome any other tips on how you can save money, time and  have as much “crack” as ever while touring Ireland.  Please leave a comment or add your name to the email list for monthly posts on Irish history.

Bunratty Castle/ County Clare

The toy, green, double Decker bus on my desk have the Irish words, Cead Mile Failte written across it which means One Hundred Thousand Welcomes. It’s how I feel every time  I travel to Ireland. I love that bus!

Ever wonder why the Irish are considered one of the  friendliest  people on the planet? Talk to any  American who has traveled  there or who  have Irish relatives, and see what they tell you about it. Comments I’ve heard are: “they leave their doors open, they get upset if they know you are in the neighborhood and didn’t stop by for tea, if you don’t initiate a conversation while visiting  a pub you are considered rude. I can ‘t get in the last word, everyone knows his neighbors, stop anywhere for directions and you may get invited in for dinner, the bed and breakfast  locals greet us with tea and scones and those flight attendants never stop serving us food!”

In ancient Celtic times, Brehon law mandated hospitality in Ireland and for good reason. It encouraged trade and travel and made alliances between tribes. Everyone, no matter what their social standing was expected to take in a stranger at any time of day or night  They were required to provide a bed, nourishment, and sometimes entertainment, never asking for payment in return. It was considered a privilege and an honor to receive guests and wealth was determined by what one gave, not what one owned.The only people exempt from this law were young children, the very old, and the sick.

Once a traveler was accepted into someone’s household they were protected from any violence or quarrels too. The Irish seemed to have been a trusting lot,. In later history this would prove to be one of their frailties and an easy way for their enemies such as the Normans, Vikings or English to gain control but that’s another story.

In my novel, The Sun Palace, which takes place in 6th century Ireland, the heroine visits a hospitality house called a bruidean. as she travels from what is now West Meath to Donegal to meet the father she never knew.

Bruideans were public houses of welcome, usually placed at major intersections or crossroads all over Ireland. A door was left open facing each road, torches lighting the way, and an appointed official  called a Briugu or brughaid stood in the doorway, ready to welcome any weary traveler. These greeters were of high social standing and had many of the same privileges as a king. They owned large plots of land (actually the land would have been in trust) and enough cattle and crops which kept the bruidean supplied at all times. There were bruideans in Ireland up until the sixteenth century.

Brehon law had specific rules as to what a bruigu was supposed to serve. For example, three uncooked meats and three cooked meats had to be stocked at all times, fattened livestock read to be slaughtered, and a full kettle boiled at the hearth side.

And what would happen if a person was turned away, not fed, not entertained, treated with disrespect? The bards would recite a satire naming the offending person and extreme disgrace would follow. Early manuscripts tell of King Bres who received a humiliating satire that ruined his political career and forced him to flee for his life. Another example is the story of Grace O’Malley, the pirate queen.  One day, having landed with her crew on the shores near Dublin,  Grace approached Howth Castle for lodging and refreshment.  The castle gates were locked and she was told to go away. She was so furious that she kidnapped the son of Christopher St.Lawrence, the lord of Howth Castle who pleaded for his return and offered a hefty ransom which Grace refused, In fact it probably made her more angry. She only returned him when St. Lawrence apologized and agreed to keep his door open to strangers for ever more. To this day Howth Castle is never locked.

Please leave a comment if you have something to add or add your name to the email list at the right so you don’t miss any further posts on Irish history.

Marriage Customs of the Ancient Irish

Before Christianity was prevalent in Ireland, the country was very liberal in her view of sex and marriage with everything being governed by Brehon Law: the ancient laws of Ireland.

In medieval times, polygamy was an accepted practice though it is not clear from the texts how common that seemed to be. It may have been more common with the upper classes, for a husband would need to have considerable wealth to take care of all of his wives or at the very least the children from those unions.

Early on, women had considerable rights too; rights that would be stripped from them later by the Catholic Church. If the couple divorced, both parties kept whatever possessions they brought into the marriage, and either party could initiate that divorce. A fashionable marriage of the time was the hand-fast marriage that lasted for one year and a day, a sort of trial marriage. If either party did not want to stay together, the day after their first anniversary they could be released from their vow. This would all change by the late sixteenth century, with the death of Queen Elizabeth I, the completed Reformation and surrender of the last Gaelic chieftains. Replacing Brehon law with Canon law was one of the first things the English did to gain control over the Irish.

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In my novel ‘The Sun Palace’ which takes place in 6^th Century Ireland, a woman discovers that her husband fathered another woman’s child. She is angry of course, but not for reasons one might expect. Her misplaced anger with her husband is because he did not ask her permission to take another wife. Having sex with a woman constituted a type of marriage, specifically a marriage of the fifth degree. Though taking another wife was acceptable, the husband was required to get his first wife’s permission. In one of the oldest surviving law texts, Crith Gablach states, “To his wife belongs the right to be consulted on all every subject.”

Here’s a list of Marriage Contracts

A 1^st degree marriage is a union between a man and woman of equal rank and property.

A 2^nd degree marriage is when the woman has less property than the man.

A 3^rd degree marriage is when the man has less property than the woman.

A 4^th degree marriage is when there is no property involved, though the children’s rights are safeguarded.

A 5^th degree marriage is when two people share their bodies but live under separate roofs.

A 6^th degree marriage is when an enemies’ wife is abducted. The marriage is only valid as long as the man can keep the woman with him.

A 7^th degree marriage is called a soldier’s marriage and is temporary.

An 8^th degree marriage is when a man seduces a woman through lying or deception. In this case she is entitled to a divorce.

A 9^th degree union is one by rape.

A 10^th degree union is between insane people.

Marriage was a contract and each degree of marriage had specific guidelines which predetermined everything in the case of divorce.

At first thought one might think polygamy a terrible arrangement. To be considered married in the case of rape or abduction seems outrageous, but consider this. Marriage in medieval Ireland was a business contract and thus children of those parties were protected. Brehon law stated that children were cared and provided for and considered legal heirs to their parent’s property whether their parents stayed together or not. How many illegitimate children in today’s society are without any legal, economic, or social support? Perhaps the Celts of Ireland had the right idea.

When we think of the Irish people, we think of Catholicism or Protestantism. But Judaism? I certainly didn’t think of Jews as being Irish until recently and its cleared up a huge misconception in my own personal ancestry which had always confused me.  It confused my father as well. I’ll tell you why.

The name I was born with is Kaplan, my father’s name, naturally. My father was fiercely proud of his Irish heritage. His grandparents were both straight from County Kerry, Ireland with the names Sullivan and Geoghegan. But was the Kaplan name Irish? He explained to me the Irish pronunciation with the little mark over the second ‘a’ and swore up and down to everyone Kaplan was an Irish name. My mother said it was Polish. When I looked it up I found that in German it means monk. When my father would introduce himself people would say to him, “Oh, you’re Jewish huh?” That remark would  burn his britches since we were also very Catholic.

Then I learned that 19th and 20th century Dublin had an influx of Jews who escaped anti-Jew Russian pogroms in Poland, It started to make sense. I also had a great uncle who was Russian.

  Judaism is not  foreign to Ireland although they didn’t always reside in the greatest numbers in the census. The Annals of Innis, 11th century,  mention Jewish traders, and there is  evidence that Strongbow’s Norman invasion of Ireland 1169 was financed by Jews. Several mayors have been Jewish, including most recently., Lord Mayor of Dublin, Ben Briscoe who is working on reviving a Jewish museum in Dublin.  Irish American magazine, (Aug/Sept. 12 issue)See article ‘In Dublin’s Little Jerusalem’. And get this! Some of Ireland’s road signs will soon be in Polish. According to the 2011 census, there are more than 120,000 Polish citizens who have moved to Ireland to live and work since the European Union of 2004

But why do we care where we came from? People define themselves, in part, by their lineage. It’s why so many people delve into their genealogies and travel thousands of miles to see where their grandparents were born. In my novel, The Sun Palace, a sixteen year old girl travels across 6th century Ireland to meet the father she never knew. My father never visited Ireland but I’m sure it would have been a dream come true if he had. Perhaps the dream lives in me as I will be traveling to Ireland soon for the second time. I wonder how many more Irish Americans have Jewish roots?

Christ Cathedral, Dublin

In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is a Catholic holy day of obligation.  Patrick, the boy slave who became a saint and bishop, wasn’t even Irish, yet St. Patrick’s Day is all about Ireland and its culture. Why is it so huge in the United States?

It’s true the Irish have made contributions to the United States almost since our country’s inception, but did you know when Christopher Columbus made his claim to the New World, the first one of his crew to step on North American soil was an Irishman by the name of Patrick Maguire?

Henry Ford was the son of an Irish emigrant father. Henry Ford’s father, William, immigrated to the United States in 1847, an era in history referred to as ‘the great famine years.’ One of Ford’s most successful cars, the Ford Fairlane, was named for his Irish heritage. On the last night in Ireland his then twenty one year old father and family spent the night in a cottage in Fair Lane, off Fair Hill in County Cork. William’s mother, Thomasina is listed as being born in one of those cottages.  Unfortunately like many of the Irish seeking a better life in America, she did not survive her journey and died in the crossing from Ireland to the United States.  Her grandson Henry is credited with revolutionizing industry by creating the first mass produced automobile.

As America grew, she needed strong men to build bridges, canals and railroads. Many Irishmen threw themselves into this back-breaking work. Some paid with their lives in one of the most dangerous of occupations of the time, railroad worker.  A common expression of the day was “an Irishman is buried under every tie.”

Irish soldiers fought alongside Americans in the Revolutionary War, both sides of the Civil War, and every war after that.

In 1780 George Washington commanded Irish soldiers in the War of Independence. In gratitude for their service he granted them a holiday on March 17^th.  This became known as The St. Patrick’s Day Encampment of 1780.

When the Declaration of Independence was signed eight men were of Irish descent. Matthew Thornton, George Taylor and James Smith were born in Ireland and George Read, Thomas McKean, Thomas Lynch Jr. Edward Rutledge and Charles Carroll were sons or grandsons of Irish immigrants. The Irish American secretary Charles Thompson also signed.

Irish Americans also signed the Constitution of the United States.

The Irish Brigade, so called the “Fighting 69^th” fought in the Civil War in some of the bloodiest battles ever fought. They never gave up their tattered flag, leading Abraham Lincoln to visit General Thomas Francis Meagher, known as “Meager of the Sword” and kiss the Second Colors in appreciation.

Both Meager and Patrick Kennedy, (great grandfather of United States President, John F. Kennedy) were from County Waterford, Ireland.  John F. Kennedy also served in the military before becoming president.

And speaking of presidents, ten of our U. S presidents had Irish roots. They are Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk, James Buchanan, Ulysses S. Grant, William McKinley, Woodrow Wilson, John F Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton.

While it’s true St. Patrick’s Day may be a beer drinking, parade walking, shamrock float and balloon festival we cannot forget the Irish Americans who helped build America and in the Gaelic words of the Irish Fusiliers of 1798 and many Irish Brigades after them, “Faugh A Ballagh.” In English it means, “Clear the Way,” for that is what they did for all of us.