The extraordinary life of Kathleen Kearney Behan, 1889 – 1984. History has cast Kathleen Behan in supporting roles, reducing her to the “sister of” or “mother of” someone important. But she deserves so much more – Kathleen was a political powerhouse, raconteur, and gifted singer who, in the course of her long and often tragic life, managed to have a bit of fun along the … [Read more...] about Wild Irish Women: Dancer in a Rough Field
Wild Irish Women
Witch or Healer? Biddy Early (1798 – 1872)
Healer, Herbalist, Clairvoyant… or Witch? Biddy Early was a true “alpha female” writes Rosemary Rogers in her latest exploration of “Wild Irish Women.” ℘℘℘ For as long as anyone can remember, herbal medicine offered a cure for the sick and a wellness regime for the healthy. Herbalists seek remedies in nature to create medicines from herbs, plants, seeds, berries, bark, … [Read more...] about Witch or Healer? Biddy Early (1798 – 1872)
The Mother of Orphans
“She was a mother to the motherless; she was a friend to those who had no friends; she had wisdom greater than schools can teach; we will not let her memory go.” Sara Cone Bryant, from "Margaret of New Orleans," in Stories to Tell Children(Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1908) There’s a small park in New Orleans, on the corner of Camp and Prytania Streets, which exists … [Read more...] about The Mother of Orphans
Constance Gore-Booth:
The Rebel Countess
Constance Gore-Booth may have married a Polish Count, but in her heart she was an Irish revolutionary who had an active part in the Easter Rising and in the formation of the new state.
Countess Markievicz, the fierce Irish revolutionary of the 1916 Rising, cultivated her romantic image by fusing a flair for theatrics with her great heart, earning forever a place in Ireland’s … [Read more...] about Constance Gore-Booth:
The Rebel Countess
Margaret Higgins Sanger Founder of Planned Parenthood
Continuing her series on Wild Irish Women, Rosemary Rogers profiles Margaret Sanger, who devoted her life to legalizing birth control, and with the help of her sister Ethel, opened the first birth control clinic in the U.S. On October 16, 1916, Margaret Sanger opened the doors to a Brooklyn storefront and Planned Parenthood began. The centennial will be celebrated with … [Read more...] about Margaret Higgins Sanger Founder of Planned Parenthood