John Dillon, Irish nationalist and Home Rule activist, was born on September 4, 1851 in Dublin to the former "Young Irelander" John Black Dillon. After joining Isaac Butt's Home Rule League in 1873, he gained attention by criticizing Butt's mishandling of the Home Rule bill in parliament in 1879. He became an original member of the Irish National Land League. Dillon eventually … [Read more...] about September 4, 1851
Today In History
March 22, 1848
The artist Sarah Purser was born in Dun Laoghaire, County Dublin on this day in 1848. She was raised in Dungarvan, County Waterford and educated in Switzerland. She went on to study at the Metropolitan School of Art in Dublin, and in Paris at the Académie Julian. Working primarily as a portrait artist, she also became associated with the stained glass movement. Purser opened a … [Read more...] about March 22, 1848
November 8, 1847
Bram Stoker, the famous author of "Dracula," was born in Dublin on this day in 1847. Born Abraham Stoker, he was the third of seven children. He had a very sickly childhood and spent most of it bed-ridden, which allowed for his imagination to run wild. He recovered and attended Trinity College Dublin where he studied mathematics. Following Trinity, he found an interest in … [Read more...] about November 8, 1847
May 15, 1847
Daniel O'Connell died on this day in 1847. Often referred to as The Liberator or The Emancipator, O'Connell was a gifted orator. Born in County Kerry on August 6, 1775, he studied law and became a barrister in 1798. In 1811, he established the Catholic Board, championing Catholic emancipation. In 1841, he became the first Catholic Lord mayor of Dublin. He then led a series of … [Read more...] about May 15, 1847
May 4, 1847
New York State creates a Board of Commissioners of Emigration. Two-thirds of all emigration to America came through New York from the 1780s to the 1880s. With the onset of the Famine and thousands of Irish emigrants arriving in a constant stream, benevolent societies were established and lobbied New York State to set up a board of Commissioners of Emigration. The Board, which … [Read more...] about May 4, 1847