Irish America

Rockaway

Rockaway 1953: The Irish Riviera

Rosemary Rogers
October 2, 2021 Newsletter

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The image above was taken at Rockaway Beach on 115th Street, what was then the heart of the Irish Riviera. Irish immigrants flocked to Rockaway for a day at the beach, followed by Playland and an evening on the boardwalk. Lucky Irish families came here to spend their summer vacations, staying in boarding houses, usually in one room sharing a communal kitchen, bathroom and … [Read more...] about Rockaway 1953: The Irish Riviera

Wounded Warriors in the Rockaways (Photos)

By Adam Farley, Deputy Editor
August / September 2014

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Now in its tenth year, the Wounded Warrior Project’s Adaptive Watersports Festival invites injured veterans to Rockaway Beach for a weekend of restorative mental and physical activity. Removed from the scaffolding of Manhattan in the middle of one of the country’s oldest and most vocally patriotic Irish neighborhoods, the Wounded Warrior Project’s Adaptive Watersports Festival … [Read more...] about Wounded Warriors in the Rockaways (Photos)

One Year After Sandy,
Rockaway Exhibition Grieves, Hopes

By Adam Farley, Editorial Assistant
November 5, 2013

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In many cases, the most lasting impact of tragedy is not the loss of possessions, but a loss of perception, a world view so utterly changed that it can be nearly impossible to remember what was once taken for granted. In the Rockaways, a new exhibition by local artists visualizes the three stages of such an occurrence. “Calm / Storm / Rebirth” is, as its title suggests, an … [Read more...] about One Year After Sandy,
Rockaway Exhibition Grieves, Hopes

Fighting Irish Coach Honored by Kelly Gang

By Patricia Harty, Editor-in-Chief
April / May 2013

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Brian Kelly, Notre Dame’s famed football coach, was honored by the Kelly Gang at Michael’s Restaurant in New York City on March 13. Earlier that day he visited Breezy Point, where he witnessed the destruction caused by Hurricane Sandy and met some of the people who were badly affected by the storm. In honoring Coach Kelly, the Kelly Gang raised over $60,000 for the Kelly Cares … [Read more...] about Fighting Irish Coach Honored by Kelly Gang

True Grit – Sandy Fails to Derail the Xavier Knights’ Run for Glory

By Keith J. Kelly, Contributor
April / May 2013

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All they wanted was a chance for ten more days of football. Just before the end of the season, a quarter of the players and one of the coaches on the Xavier High School Knights had been forced from their homes when Superstorm Sandy slammed into the East Coast. But when the displaced kids voted to play on, their courage inspired the team to go on to an improbable playoff rumble … [Read more...] about True Grit – Sandy Fails to Derail the Xavier Knights’ Run for Glory