For 13 years I had been looking for "The Cross of Ballysheen" County Wexford in historical records and on my journeys with Google streetview.  Finally I was here at 'The Lobster Pot' at Carnsore Point which sits right on the crossroads dividing the old townlands of Ballysheen and Ballyfane.  I had quickly set up a…

December 18, 2013, marked the 135^th anniversary of the execution of John Kehoe at Pottsville, Pennsylvania. On that day in 1878, newspapers country-wide reported the scheduled death of the “King of…

While yet a teenager, I collected most of these clay pipes around Loughrea, in county Galway, some from the lake shore, some from under the water using a snorkel and mask, the smallest ones from the bottom of a hole I was digging in Elephant and Castle, while working as a student in…

The Wild Atlantic Way will be Ireland’s first long-distance driving route, stretching from the Inishowen Peninsula in Donegal to Kinsale in west Cork.  With a launch date of March 2014, this route consists of existing roadways, but it will offer visitors an opportunity…

I’m not sure why so many people think history is boring. Sure, a dull teacher can ruin any good story, but history, in the right setting is not only intriguing, but it is alive. You’ll be amazed at the history you can discover during a driving tour of Ireland. The lens of history is…

Book Review

"In the Footsteps of Anne, Stories of Republican Women Ex-Prisoners"

Compiled by Evelyn Brady, Eva Patterson, Kate Mc Kinney, Rosie Hamill and Pauline Jackson

Shanway Press

$35 from…

Smithsonian Institute James Hoban and George Washington inspect the unfinished White House in 1798. Washington would never live in it.

DEARDAOIN -- On…

It is impossible to write the history of nineteenth century American politics without noting the overwhelming presence of the Irish in the affairs of state. In part this was due to mere numbers - in 1850, 43% of the immigrant population was Irish, and no politician…

Former South African President Nelson Mandela has drawn quite a bit of attention at The Wild Geese, and not only within the past 24 hours since this legendary leader's passing.

Here are some of the tributes members have posted:

*…

by Joseph E. Gannon

(Left: The final, tragic, moments of Patrick Cleburne, as painted by artist Don Troiani.)…

By Patrick Bonar

Irish folk lore is part of our heritage and the tradition of storytelling runs strongly through our veins. It would be difficult to find an Irish person who did not hear the stories of ‘Oisin in the Land of Youth’ or ‘The Children of King Lir’.…

Running with Crows: The Life and Death of a Black and tan

A novel by DJ Kelly

Published by PublishNation (6 Mar 2013)

Available from…

As we know from the ancient Celtic legends, our ancestors were very fond of a board game named Fidhcell by the Irish and Gwyddbvyll by the Welsh. It was like chess, often being proclaimed as one of the precursors of our modern chess game, and was reportedly…

The Wild Geese's Ryan O'Rourke recently paid a visit to Ó Máille's Original House of Style in Galway City to talk with its owner, Anne Ó Máille.  Anne has been called the "Guardian of…

On the Galway's Horrible Histories Walk, I weave the Brendan Voyage tale into the stories I tell, explaining how in 929 AD the Vikings raided the Priory Abbey of Annaghdown, 4 miles up the Corrib River from Galway city, which was founded by St. Brendan for his sister, Briga, and where he died in 577 AD.…

IRISH TO THE CORE

Zen and the Art of Knots

Celtic knotwork has fascinated me for over 30 years now. It has always been drawn, painted, etched and carved etc., so I set myself a completely new challenge to tie the longest Celtic knot I could. And to my…

Last Thursday, Israel’s Labor Party elected a new leader.  Isaac Herzog replaces Shelly Yacimovich as the party’s Chairman.

Herzog immediately called on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to move the peace process with the Palestinians forward.  In his victory speech, Herzog vowed to refocus the party’s agenda on diplomacy.  He said the Labor Party would offer a…

New Ross, County Wexford -- The JFK Trust announced an exciting new campaign with Irish emigrants and their families at its heart. The REUNITED AT THE EMIGRANT FLAME campaign will give participants a chance to win return flights to Ireland in time for Christmas and is sponsored by Connect Ireland and managed by the John F Kennedy Trust. The…

Today (November 22, 2013), the world commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Irish-American president John F. Kennedy.  You may not know that Belfast-born author and theologian, C.S. Lewis, passed on the very same day.  Fifty years after his death, Lewis is even more influential than he was during his lifetime.  His popular "Chronicles of Narnia"…