Built between 1799 and 1809 by Ezra Weeks, Gracie Mansion is the mayoral residence in New York, and it’s likely that Irish builders, artisans, and tradespeople were numerous among the construction team, and the ballroom’s chandelier is Irish crystal, donated to the house by the descendants of William Russell Grace, the city’s first Catholic mayor, who was born in 1832 in County … [Read more...] about Surprising Irish Links in NYC’s Mayoral Mansion
History
1916 – 2016: Proclaiming the American Story
Leading historians reveal the American story behind Ireland’s 1916 Easter Rising with new books and exhibitions that explore America’s role in the Rising. “No people ever believed more deeply in the cause of Irish freedom than the people of the United States.” —President John F. Kennedy, Leinster House Dublin, June 1963 On April 24, 1916, carrying a new tricolor flag, a small … [Read more...] about 1916 – 2016: Proclaiming the American Story
The Bonds of a Nation,
100 Years On
With the centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising upon us, a curious piece of memorabilia printed 150 years ago reminds us that the Rising was not the only bid for Irish independence. In the possession of Patrick Doherty, a director in the state comptroller’s office for New York, is a Fenian bond dating from 1866. Doherty is an avid collector of Irish artifacts and a well informed … [Read more...] about The Bonds of a Nation,
100 Years On
Dear Julia: Personal Reflections on 1916 and its Aftermath
A grandmother’s letters, passed down through two generations, offer a fascinating, and at times intimate, glimpse into the period following the 1916 Rising. Dermot McEvoy talks to Rosemary Mahoney “My maternal grandmother, Julia Frances Rohan (née Fraher), and her five sisters who emigrated to Boston from Ballylanders, County Limerick, were fervid Sinn Féiners. My grandmother … [Read more...] about Dear Julia: Personal Reflections on 1916 and its Aftermath
Thomas Meagher: The Immortal Irishman
By Timothy Egan
In the following excerpt from Timothy Egan’s new book on Thomas Meagher, the legendary Irishman arrives in New York City having escaped from the Tasmanian prison colony where he had been banished for his part in the failed 1848 rebellion. He had seen half the world from a ship’s deck, and yet nothing prepared him for how many of the earth’s uprooted strivers had stuffed … [Read more...] about Thomas Meagher: The Immortal Irishman