Liam Mac Piarais (William "Willie" Pearse) was born on the 15th of November in 1881 and was the younger brother Patrick Pearse, the well documented iconic figure of the 1916 Easter Rising.  It has been said that, to some extent, Willie lived in the shadow of his famous older…

"That's Just How It Was" is a tribute to my grandmother.  It is a true story set against the background of the Famine (1844 -1847) the 1916 Easter Rising, and the War of Independence (1919-1921).…

Before Columbus, Europe had never tasted potatoes, tomatoes, red peppers, chocolate, pumpkins, coconuts, pineapples, strawberries, and much more.  All these food items are native to the Americas.  Although explorers brought potatoes back from the New World in the early 1500s,…

by Dr. Laura Kelley

The Irish of New Orleans today can be found in many places, some familiar and others less so. Pauline Patterson’s much loved pub, …

Mary Quaile, the Irish Trade Union Activist, was born in Dublin to parents who were themselves very active in equality for all people. Her father was secretary for the Irish Brick & Stonemasons Union. Her mother encouraged and supported him in his endeavors. The young Mary…

Check out our past quizzes here.

How can we spend all this time discussing the Irish in New Orleans without talking about food?

To fill that lack, Pauline Patterson of New Orleans' own Finn McCool’s Irish Pub has passed on…

What was life like in New Orleans' Irish Channel in the early to mid 20th-century?

The Works Project Administration (WPA) conducted a series of interviews with the people of the Channel in 1941.  Many of those…

by Dr. Laura Kelley

Street-fighting man, bare-knuckles, and hard-fisted: Why do the Irish like to fight? Is there more…

Tomás Séamus Ó Cléirigh (Thomas James Clarke) was born on the 11th day of March in 1858.  He was  one of the oldest members of the 1916 Rising.  Clarke was also known as Henry Wilson, an alias he used to counteract any publicity that his own name may attract in his role as…

by Dr. Laura Kelley

At the onset of the Civil war, New Orleans was protected in part by Fort Jackson, located sixty-five miles down the Mississippi River. On April 27, 1862, confederate soldiers, a majority of whom were German and Irish immigrants mutinied…

The good people of Ireland's County Kerry call their land "The Kingdom," and if that's so, then the Lakes of Killarney must be the Crown Jewels.

Killarney's lovely lakes have been immortalized in song and story for their breathtaking beauty. Indeed, Queen Victoria and her…

http://www.buzzsprout.com/16863/245292-windy-city-irish-radio-february-11-2015

Anne O'Brien who runs the Beloved Margaret Haughery of New Orleans was kind enough to share some additional tidbits about Margaret and her…

By Dr. Laura Kelley

“No work was too menial, no venture too unprofitable, for her.”

Without question, among the Irish…

Maureen Murphy’s book "Compassionate Stranger" was 44 years in the birthing.  Her biography of Asenath Hatch Nicholson brings back to life a heroine of the Great Hunger, a story of the Famine little known but…

Some historians have been obliged to play down Michael Collin’s fiancé, Kitty Kiernan, in order to support their theories about his death.  However, Ms Kiernan merits a few choice words on her own account.  ( Below is an excerpt from the book "The Assassination of Michael Collins: What Happened at Béal na mBláth?"  www.amazon.com/dp/1493784714): 

“There is no basis for the erroneous…

By Dr. Laura Kelley

Usually, when we speak about the Irish Diaspora in the USA, New Orleans is not among the cities that first come to mind as centers of Irish population and…

Book Review

"Belfast Days: A 1972 Teenage Diary," by Eimear O’Callaghan

Merrion Press

Copyright 2014

"Belfast Days: A 1972…