A TV documentary on the St. Louis World Fair mentioned how John Philip Sousa and his band dominated the entertainment, which included a young John McCormack singing at the Irish Pavilion. It brought to mind a forgotten era when American superstars were not individuals with a current hit record but band leaders – people with the ability to not only play, but…

The Pale (a word taken from the Latin meaning fence) was a strip of land along Ireland’s east coast, stretching from Dundalk, County Louth in the north to Dún Laoghaire, south of Dublin City. It was the base of English rule in Ireland since the Norman invasion of 1169. The Normans increasingly…

On October 30, 1963, Cahirsiveen, County Kerry, Ireland, saw the largest outpouring of grief in more than a century as Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty was laid to rest. Although born in County Cork, he grew up in Killarney, where his father was the steward of the old Killarney Golf Club. Hugh retired to…

Edward Hand was born in Clyduff, County Offaly, Ireland, on 31 December 1744 and was baptized in Shinrone.  His father was John Hand, a descendant of the Mag Fhlaithimh family which translates: Hand.  Edward completed his schooling with a medical certificate from Trinity College,…