During my research phase for information, I've relied heavily on the writings of Michael O'Cleary, a Franciscan monk, who, with three other scholars, compiled what has collectively become known as the "Annals of The Four Masters." They were…

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I'll Sing You All Home With Me

It's Christmas in Montana, to be sure, draped in her mantle of white

Though I am here with the rest of the crew, my heart is lonely tonight

The rancher & his wife they take good care of the rest of the crew & me

The wife, she prepared a great feast &…

One of the saddest tales in Hamilton’s history is that of the Irish cholera epidemic victims who came here on the immigrant ships of the 1800s, looking for new life -- only to find death on our shores. It’s the story of people of great religious faith, left to die without benefit…

This beloved carol, believed to be originally of Welsh origin, had already been around for quite a while when Mozart used it for a piano duet in the 18th century. You can read more about its interesting history in …

My first big memory of my Uncle Charlie Clarke is when he arrived home from Naval duty after World War II. I was seven years old. Soon after, my granduncle, Patrick Joseph Clarke, appointed Uncle Charlie to be the manager at his saloon, P. J. Clarke’s, at 55th Street and Third…

With apologies to my mother for the headline.

I met a new friend last year. He once had a good job in the private sector but fell into trouble, lost his job and put his home in jeopardy. His newfound interest in debt propelled him into a filmic…

In 1587, the English inside the Pale (a fortified district around Dublin) were concerned about the Irish whom they had not yet brought under their control – especially in Ulster. The Ulster clans were an independent lot, and something had to be done to insure their non-interference…

Excerpts from- That’s Just How it was

Happy day’s I spent in Bray

The Town below the hill

And thought tonight I am far away

I am dreaming of it still 

[Below is a link to a recording of an interactive broadcast of Irish Christmas songs and stories, part of TheWildGeese.Irish Sibin series of discussions and…

Are you planning a trip to Ireland, and do you hope to carry out some family history research during your visit?  If you happen to have an Irish born ancestor who emigrated to the United States, and are planning a visit to Ireland in the near future and hope to do some family…

The Irish have only a few Christmas traditions that stand out as traditionally Irish and not borrowed from other cultures in recent times. Perhaps the oldest of these traditions is ... housecleaning!  And it may, too, have been borrowed from other cultures, although it was as long ago as before the birth of Christ.

This is not your typical housecleaning. Traditional Irish "whitewashing the…

Book Review

Christmas at the House on an Irish Hillside (available only in e-book format) by Felicity…

With its trademark rotating turret and .303” Vickers machine-gun the Rolls-Royce Armoured Car is probably the most well known Armoured Fighting Vehicle (AFV) ever produced. Its simple yet robust design would set the trend for AFV’s for generations to come. Making…

There are more than just Christmas lights illuminating the darkness as the sun rises on the Winter Solstice in Ireland. On December 21, a marvelous event occurs at Bru na Boinne. On a hill in the Boyne Valley of County Meath stands a complex of three monuments to the early…

'stories about the banshee would come poring out ; and she would have to smell the tobacco smoke as well, as the pipe was handed from neighbor to another' .................................

I wonder who she is coming for tonight'-'did you hear her last night ; keening and wailing '---

Christmas Eve was always’s a hive of activity as it dawned  with crispy white show on the trees and on the hills surrounding Wolf Tone . Granny O’Rourke was always up early on Christmas Eve as there was always a lot to do. The fire grate would have to be cleaned out and the fire…

Wild Geese Irish Heritage Partner Margaret Johnson recently shared recipes from her latest cookbook,…