Irish America
In honor of Father's Day, a collection of remembrances from Irish and Irish-American daughters on their fathers, many of which came from Irish America interviews. Eileen Murray, co-chair of Bridgewater Associates “My dad was in WWII, and Korea. He wanted to go to Vietnam, but did not. He felt that when the country needed you, you better stand up and go serve it, and … [Read more...] about Fathers of Influence
In the 1950s, the Bronx was a melting pot of immigrants and first-generation families: Jewish, Italian, and Irish alike. Peter Quinn shares his story of what it was like to be a Bronx Irish Catholic, commonly referred to as a B.I.C. “Breathes there the man, with soul so dead, / Who never to himself hath said, / This is my own, my native land! / Whose heart hath ne’er within … [Read more...] about Recollections of a Bronx Irish Catholic
MILKMAN Anna Burns I didn't know much about Northern Ireland before I left home in 1972. There was one shopping trip to Belfast on the train. I bought a purple and black maxi coat that looked like a woolen dressing gown. I had it for years and I can't think why I gave it away. I don't remember much about Belfast, or much else about the trip, except that on the return … [Read more...] about Your Summer Reading List
Traveling Exhibition: American Visionary: John F. Kennedy’s Life and Times, which commemorates the birth of J.F.K. on May 29, 1917, is currently touring the country, and should it pass through a city near you, don’t miss out. The primary display of the exhibition is a series of 77 images – “some iconic, some rarely seen,” according to the society’s description of the show – as … [Read more...] about American Visionary: John F. Kennedy’s Life and Times A Traveling Exhibition
My father Cyril DeFever grew up on a dairy farm near Detroit, Michigan. His parents had immigrated to the U.S. from Belgium. My mother, Marie Clancy, the daughter of an insurance man, was Irish. Her grandfather grew up on Turbot Island off Connemara. Her uncle Robert Clancy was a U.S. senator. Dad boxed as a young man (Joe Louis’s manager wanted to manage him). He won the … [Read more...] about Photo Album: Dad and JFK
