John Crawley: The Yank
The Irish Troubles were at a murderous fever pitch when US Marine John Crawley volunteered for the IRA. Bloody Friday, Bloody Sunday, the bombing of the British Houses of Parliament, and other deadly incidents had recently unfolded or were about to. Civilian casualties were common as British soldiers, Republican militants and Unionist police and militants, engaged in gun battles and car bombing throughout Northern Ireland. The death toll numbered over 1,000. The IRA split over how to react between the old-line IRA, and the new Provisional IRA — the Provos, mostly impassioned young men who were not hesitant to resort to violence.
Author of The Yank, John Crawley, will discuss the grueling challenges of his US Marine Corps training, how he put his skills to use back in Ireland in service of the Provos, and the notorious IRA figures he encountered along the way, including Martin McGuinness and Whitey Bulger.
Irish Traditions & Superstitions with Bairbre Ní Fhloinn, PhD
Bairbre Ní Fhloinn PhD lectures in Irish Folklore and Ethnology in the UCD Delargy Centre for Irish Folklore and the National Folklore Collection. She was Head of Subject from 2013 to 2019 and is Director of the recently established MA in Irish Folklore and Ethnology, which she initiated. The subject of Irish Folklore and Ethnology forms part of the UCD School of Irish, Celtic Studies and Folklore.
An Evening with Irish Poet Gabriel Fitzmaurice
Famine Irish in NYC with Tyler Anbinder, PhD
The Witches of Islandmagee with Andrew Sneddon, PhD.
During the 1840s more than 250,000 families, numbering over a million people, were forcibly removed from their homes. In this illustrated lecture, Dr. Ciaran Reilly explores who was evicted and why. Using estate rentals and newspaper reports, the talk will examine the nature of these evictions, depicting the awful spectacle that unfolded in every town and village in the Irish countryside.
Dr. Ciaran Reilly is an historian of 19th & 20th Century Irish History at Maynooth University, specializing in the Great Irish Famine. He is author of a number of books on the Famine including Strokestown and the Great Irish Famine & The Irish Land Agent. He is also co-editor of Dublin and the Great Irish Famine which will be published in September 2022
Irish Wise Guys
The newly released book, The Irish Wise Guys, tells the story of America’s most notorious Irish American gangsters- the men who rose from poverty, brutally created criminal empires and made millions before more often than not dying violently. In different circumstances, these men could have been captains of industry, politicians or union leaders; instead, they chose a path of crime that turned them into some of the most wanted men in America.
Join us for a talk with John Joe McGinley, author and podcast host (irishwiseguys.ie/podcasts) out of Glassagh, County Donegal. He will discuss the evolving role of Irish Americans gangs during the nativist era through prohibition and into the world of modern organized crime and its intersection with the labor union movement.
Government Relief and Private Charity during the Great Hunger with Karen Sonnelitter, PhD
Bread or Blood: The Great Hunger in a Typical Irish Town
Bread or Blood: The Great Hunger in a Typical Irish Town
0:23 / 1:09:15 Centenary Series April-August 1922
Our Centenary Series continues with Elizabeth Stack, PhD, with an in-depth look at the events of April to August 1922. Fighting did not officially break out until June, but there had been skirmishes since February, culminating in the failed election pact between Michael Collins and Eamon de Valera. However, it is the assassination in London of Henry Hughes Wilson by IRA men in retaliation for attacks on Catholics in Northern Ireland - ironically ordered by Michael Collins - which brings the threat of Great Britain re-involving itself in Irish affairs, which leads to the Four Courts being shelled by the Free State forces.
Abby Wise discusses the Orange Order at Celtic Hall
Dr. Ciarán Reilly and Danny Leavy: In Search of Cornelius Heeney
Dr Ciarán Reilly is a native of Edenderry, county Offaly and for many years has been researching Heeney’s career. An historian of 19th & 20th Century Irish history at Maynooth University, he is the author of a number of books including ‘Strokestown & the Great Irish Famine’ and the ‘The Irish Land Agent’. He is the co-editor of ‘Dublin and the Great Irish Famine’ which will be published later this year. Danny Leavy is a Building Manager in NYC, where he has lived for almost 30 years. He is originally from Rhode in County Offaly.
Emma DeSouza: Human Rights in a Post-Brexit Northern Ireland
Emma DeSouza is an Irish writer, political commentator, journalist and campaigner. DeSouza sued the British Home Secretary over her right under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement to be accepted as an Irish citizen for the purposes of European Union family reunion rights with her US husband. The case resulted in substantial changes to domestic UK immigration rules.
The First Kennedys: The Humble Roots of an American Dynasty
Neal Thompson is a journalist and the author of six highly acclaimed books, including A Curious Man, Driving with the Devil, and Kickflip Boys, and his latest, The First Kennedys: The Humble Roots of an American Dynasty.
Ulysses in Under 100 Words
Get ready for Bloomsday with this summarized depiction of Ulysses, with illustrations by Antje Hubold (www.antjehubold.de)
Tune in on June 16th at 1pm to our talk on with Dr. Anne Fogarty and Dr. Margaret Lasch Carroll as we celebrate Bloomsday, 100 years since the publication of Ulysses.
Cooking Demonstration: Seafood Chowder with Chef Michael Kiernan
Irish seafood chowder with chef Michael Kiernan
Bloomsday with Dr. Anne Fogarty
To celebrate Bloomsday, join Dr. Anne Fogarty in conversation with Dr. Margaret Lasch Carroll as they discuss the enduring popularity and conundrum that is Joyce's Ulysses.
Samantha Hall-Saladino: "A Little Bit of Heaven" Irish Immigration to Fulton County
Samantha Hall-Saladino: "A Little Bit of Heaven" Irish Immigration to Fulton County
Dr. Lindsay Earner-Byrne
Dr. Lindsay Earner-Byrne
Larry Kirwan - Paradise Square
Larry Kirwan – Paradise Square
Daniel Soyer: Left in the Center: The Liberal Party of New York
Daniel Soyer: Left in the Center: The Liberal Party of New York
The Eerie Canal: Open for Business
In 1820, the Middle Section of the Erie Canal opened for navigation between Montezuma and Utica, connecting the Seneca River to the Mohawk. This momentous event transformed the State of New York, marking the first tangible results of the massive infrastructure project it had begun undertaking three years earlier in 1817. This was especially true for the 96 miles this stretch of canal passed through, including the swampy crossroads community of Syracuse, now home of the Erie Canal Museum. This talk will examine the efforts to reach this point in the canal's story, the transforming effects it began to have, and what work was still left.
Derrick Pratt is the Museum Educator at the Erie Canal Museum in Syracuse, NY. A native of Chittenango, NY, Derrick received a B.A in Social Studies Education from SUNY Cortland and a M.A. in Museum Studies from Syracuse University. Prior to his job at the Erie Canal Museum, Derrick served as Director of Programs at Chittenango Landing Canal Boat Museum for 3 years
Ray McKenna - Famine Exodus from Monaghan & Tyrone
Writer Ray McKenna discusses his ancestors and other refugees who fled Monaghan and Tyrone during the Great Hunger. As if the loss of the potato crop was not enough, secular violence inflamed Clogher that same month. While men and women from every county in Ireland poured into Providence during the famine years, between a third and a half of those people originated close to the border of Monaghan and Tyrone. It began a chain of migration to Providence which fundamentally altered both the communities they were leaving and the new ones they embraced in Rhode Island. This is an intimate examination of a community sundered by famine and immigration through the experiences of his own family, their relatives and friends.
Live @ John B Keane's Bar!
Afternoon Tea with Margaret Johnson
Celebrate Mother's Day with writer Margaret Johnson as she discusses the sophisticated ritual of afternoon tea. From her first visit in 1984, Margaret forged an indelible bond with Ireland and Irish food, and she shares her continued passion in her latest cookbook devoted to the special relationship Irish people have with tea.
Empty Shoes by the Door: Living After My Son’s Suicide with Judi Merriam
Judi Merriam is a local author, singer, actor, director, wife, and mother. In December 2011, her eighteen-year-old son Jenson took his own life in an act that blindsided everyone who knew him, and which changed her life, and that of her family, forever.
The suicide of a loved one can be devastating for those left behind and bring deep despair and seemingly endless grief. Judi was forced to confront profound feelings of loss and guilt and a future so very different from what she thought it would be. In an honest and soul-searching memoir, Empty Shoes by the Door, Judi reflects with grace and courage on the fragile and amazing, terrifying and broken, glorious and painful experience of living life after an unfathomable loss.
Judi Merriam: Empty Shoes by the Dor
In an honest and soul-searching memoir, Empty Shoes by the Door, Judi Merriam reflects with grace and courage on the fragile and amazing, terrifying and broken, glorious and painful experience of living life after an unfathomable loss.
The Priest Hunters
Dr. Martin Lyden discusses the implications of the Reformation for Ireland, as various monarchs from Henry VIII to Queen Anne enacted more rigid, anti-Catholic laws, culminating in the Penal Laws. Priests were driven underground and hunted, as the faithful were hampered from practicing their religion. He will tell us the story of the infamous priest assassins, the Priest Hunters, who were paid a bounty for every cleric they murdered. He will also discuss the growing Catholic Emancipation movement.
Using Surprising Databases
Our resident genealogist is back, with an in-depth look at how different databases can give you a wealth of information. Tonight, she will take you through the records found in the Emigrant Savings Bank collection, as well as the Order of Foresters in Massachusetts.