On 20 April 2020, we said farewell to a highly innovative Irishman who changed the world with his singular vision and desire to make the world a better place through the medium of music. His grandfather (The O'Rahilly) was an important figure in the quest for the independence of Ireland, a leader in the…

Like many women deserving of greater recognition, Kathleen Daly Clarke is often overshadowed by her famous husband, Thomas, one of the men who proclaimed the Irish Republic and was shot by the British for their role in the Dublin Rising of 1916; however, without his wife, Thomas Clarke would never have…

In school, if you ever looked at images of the surface of the Sun you would have seen what appeared to be dark areas dotted across the surface. These anomalies are known as sunspots and appear dark because they are cooler than other parts of the Sun’s surface. Occasionally you would also have seen…

Two miles east of Strokestown on Spy Wednesday at the dawn

These Gallant men assembled 'neath the crest of ol' Sliabh Bawn

T'was called the Scramogue Ambush where Captain Peek was shot

But Ashbrook was the venue, right well I know that spot

They conquered their oppressors and filled their hearts with…

Ever wonder who started the tradition of welcoming in the new year in Times Square? Well, it was a Famine Irish immigrant, Galway man Patrick Gilmore who was the most well-known Irish immigrant of his day and a famous person, but today sadly, Gilmore and his contributions to American music are…

The March equinox (this year Saturday, March 20, at 5:37 a.m. EDT) marks the moment the sun crosses the celestial equator, the imaginary line in the sky above the Earth's equator, from south to north. In simpler terms, it marks the official start of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere, a…

December 22nd, 2020, marked the 121st birthday of heroic women’s rights fighter Lucy Burns. Today, few remember Burns and take a woman’s right to vote for granted, forgetting that a century ago women were denied this basic American freedom. They also forget that women like Burns were imprisoned…

I have lived in Greenpoint, Brooklyn for decades, yet somehow I was oblivious to the fact that McCarren Park has a Nulty Square. Knowing that Nulty was an Irish name, I became curious about the person’s identity and uncovered a long-forgotten story of a family of Irish-American heroes and their grieving…

(Above: Celtic Park where Sheridan and other Irish American athletes trained.)

It is easy to think that we are in new territory with the pandemic, but a century ago, New York City was also gripped by a pandemic, the dreaded Spanish Influenza that killed 20 to 50 million people worldwide. Here in the U.S we lost by some…

Driving out of frenzied Manhattan heading out over the 59th Street Bridge and through the congested highway traffic east into Queens, the dense urban landscape is suddenly broken up by a jarring sight- an immense sea of green. Coming closer, the driver, who sees a vast number of gravestones and…

Ever since the early 1980s when I first discovered carrot cake, I’ve been intrigued by the many iterations the little sweetie assumes. I thought about it again recently and dug out my carrot cake “file” filled with recipes shared by friends, neighbors, and chefs — no two were…

by Bill McGimpsey

Alexander Hamilton died on the 12th of July, 1804. If he had not rowed his boat…

Friday, February 25, 1921, dawned cool and crisp with a crystal clear blue sky near Coolnacahera, County Cork. Seán O’Hegarty, commanding officer of the 1^st (East) Cork Brigade, stood on a high hill with numerous limestone outcroppings and peered off into the east, his right…

On Sunday April 16, 1865, Secretary of War Edwin McMasters Stanton was in his office dealing with the sudden blow of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln two nights earlier, at Ford’s Theater. He pondered how to hunt down and capture the conspirators, for in addition to…

By Pat Hickey

No textbook tells the story of James J. Shields, but his personal story and resume are among the most impressive of any American, in any era.

(Left: "Churubusco" by James Walker, 1819-1889. James Shields fought there during the Mexican War.)

Shields'…

Michael Brennan waved his arm and called out to the men of the East Clare Flying Column to abandon their positions along the road near Glenwood House in southeast County Clare, about 12 miles north of Limerick City. Like so many ambushes laid by members of the Irish Volunteers during the Irish War…

I think it is fair to say that a great many of us are wringing our hands in despair at the state the world is in now. It seems that we are in total disagreement with each other and cannot or will not find common ground on which to unite. It is a case of widespread ‘he said-she said’ and every other…

In Ireland, February 1 is the feast day of Saint Brigid, a woman whom many believe should be granted equal billing with Saint Patrick as Ireland’s female patron saint and that her feast day should be declared a national holiday. Saint Brigid’s…

Back in the mists of time, long before the Milesians arrived from Egypt, and even longer before the Celtic tribes came and settled, another ancient tribe inhabited the island of Ireland. The ‘Tuatha De Dannan,’ translated as ‘people of the Goddess Danu,’ were a supernatural race who came to Ireland with the intention of…

Did you know that January is celebrated as “National Hot Tea Month”? I didn’t! As a member of a tea-loving Facebook group, I discover all sorts of information that only passionate tea-lovers know and share. And as the author of Teatime in Ireland, I do know that tea plays…