Comments - Patrick White: A Clareman's Tragic Death on Spike Island - The Wild Geese2024-03-29T08:24:30Zhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/comment/feed?attachedTo=6442157%3ABlogPost%3A193929&xn_auth=noRTÉ's Colm Flynn visits the n…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2017-05-21:6442157:Comment:2175042017-05-21T17:13:01.036ZJoe Gannonhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/JoeGannon
<p>RTÉ's Colm Flynn visits the notorious 'Spike Island' prison just off the coast of Cobh in Co. Cork.</p>
<p>In the last 1300 years Spike Island has been host to a 6th century Monastery and a 24 acre Fortress that became the largest convict depot in the world in Victorian times! The island's rich history has included monks and monasteries, rioters and redcoats, captains and convicts and sinners and saints.</p>
<p>Today the island is dominated by the 200 year old Fort Mitchel, the star shaped…</p>
<p>RTÉ's Colm Flynn visits the notorious 'Spike Island' prison just off the coast of Cobh in Co. Cork.</p>
<p>In the last 1300 years Spike Island has been host to a 6th century Monastery and a 24 acre Fortress that became the largest convict depot in the world in Victorian times! The island's rich history has included monks and monasteries, rioters and redcoats, captains and convicts and sinners and saints.</p>
<p>Today the island is dominated by the 200 year old Fort Mitchel, the star shaped Fortress which became a prison holding over 2300 prisoners. Take the scenic ferry ride from Kennedy Pier, Cobh, and get captured in the history and mystery of this magical island.</p>
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</p> I managed to find out some mo…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2016-10-05:6442157:Comment:2011122016-10-05T18:45:22.136ZKieron Punchhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/KieronPunch
<div style="margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0;">I managed to find out some more information about Private Marshall Whitehead's family. His father, Harry, was born in 1871 and the census for that year shows that he had 3 sisters and 1 brother. One of the sisters was called Miranda, after whom Harry named his own daughter, and his brother was called Marshall, after whom Harry named his own son who would die during the fight with Kevin Barry.…</div>
<div style="margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0;">I managed to find out some more information about Private Marshall Whitehead's family. His father, Harry, was born in 1871 and the census for that year shows that he had 3 sisters and 1 brother. One of the sisters was called Miranda, after whom Harry named his own daughter, and his brother was called Marshall, after whom Harry named his own son who would die during the fight with Kevin Barry.</div>
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<div style="margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0;">This brother, Marshall, was the only one of Harry's siblings (other than himself) who could have passed on the Whitehead surname to his children, if he had any. It was only his children who could possibly have been 'Whitehead' cousin's of Private Marshall Whitehead, yet I found records which showed that Marshall senior, died when he was only 19 years old and before he had married and had had any children. The Private Whitehead involved in the murder on Spike Island could not, therefore, have been a cousin of Private Marshall Whitehead.</div>
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<div style="margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0;">The surname, Whitehead, does not originate from any particular area of England but is common throughout the whole country. The English and lowland Scots did not begin to adopt surnames until the 1200s-1300s as the population expanded (before the Black Death) and it became necessary to differentiate between the 4 or 5 people with the name John, or William, or Thomas living in the same village. Many surnames were derived from occupational descriptions, so one John would have become known as John the Baker, another as John the Fletcher (arrow maker), another as John the Cooper (barrel maker), and another as John the Smith etc, Some surnames were locational descriptions of a feature of the land where a person lived, such as Hill, Pond, Brook, Wood etc, while other surnames referred to a person's father, such as Johnson (the son of John), Davidson, Thomson, Robinson, Harrison etc. Nicknames were also used as surnames, with Robin Hood's sidekick, Little John (resulting in the surname Littlejohn) being a famous example, and other examples being Short, Long, Brown (referring to a dark complexion). The surname, Whitehead, would have referred to someone with either blond, or grey hair, or else having a fair complexion.</div> Might we look in and around M…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2016-07-08:6442157:Comment:1944542016-07-08T23:49:58.777ZGerry Reganhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/ger_regan
<p>Might we look in and around Marshall Whitehead's hometown -- recruits often came from the same neighborhood as well as the same families). We might also look over the rolls of Marshall's regiment(s) during the Great War as well as in October 1920. I remember the Pals regiments recruited early in the war, and imagine even though these units gave way to the exigencies of the war, many 'pals' and family members still managed to stay together. What does anyone know about the origin of the…</p>
<p>Might we look in and around Marshall Whitehead's hometown -- recruits often came from the same neighborhood as well as the same families). We might also look over the rolls of Marshall's regiment(s) during the Great War as well as in October 1920. I remember the Pals regiments recruited early in the war, and imagine even though these units gave way to the exigencies of the war, many 'pals' and family members still managed to stay together. What does anyone know about the origin of the surname Whitehead. Bradford, West Yorkshire -- wasn't Dowton Abbey set in Yorkshire? I gather Marshall was not from the aristocracy -- what'd he do for a living before duty called?</p> Hi Ger,
I've looked everywher…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2016-07-08:6442157:Comment:1945732016-07-08T13:03:46.513ZKieron Punchhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/KieronPunch
<p>Hi Ger,</p>
<p>I've looked everywhere I can think of to find some additional information about Private Whitehead but with no luck. Of the few contemporary newspapers which bother to mention the case several do not mention his name at all, and the few that do just provide his surname. There are several databases that provide lists of British military casualties but none that I know of that supply service records for soldiers who were not casualties - a limited number of WW1 service records…</p>
<p>Hi Ger,</p>
<p>I've looked everywhere I can think of to find some additional information about Private Whitehead but with no luck. Of the few contemporary newspapers which bother to mention the case several do not mention his name at all, and the few that do just provide his surname. There are several databases that provide lists of British military casualties but none that I know of that supply service records for soldiers who were not casualties - a limited number of WW1 service records and medal cards are available on databases such as Ancestry.com but the majority of such pre-WW2 records were destroyed during the Blitz in 1940. Besides which, without a first name it would be very difficult to establish which Private Whitehead was the correct one.</p>
<p>The Private Whitehead guilty of the Spike Island murder was not a brother of Marshall Whitehead. I found him listed in the census records for 1901 and 1911 and he only had a sister, Miranda. His mother's name was Alice, and she came from Kidderminster, in Worcestershire, and his father was Harry and he came from Bradford, West Yorkshire. I could not find any record of Alice and Harry's marriage, nor any other record's that might establish whether, or not, Harry had any brothers who may have had sons who could have been cousins of Private Whitehead. The death record for Marshall Whitehead mentions that he was the son of the LATE Harry Whitehead, so I looked for British casualties of the Easter Rising with that surname, but again found nothing.</p> That would indeed be a fascin…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2016-07-07:6442157:Comment:1945702016-07-07T05:41:50.209ZDJ Kellyhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/DJKelly
<p>That would indeed be a fascinating connection and would provide a strong motive for such a cowardly act.</p>
<p>That would indeed be a fascinating connection and would provide a strong motive for such a cowardly act.</p> Denise, you asked about Priva…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2016-07-06:6442157:Comment:1946482016-07-06T20:56:52.553ZGerry Reganhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/ger_regan
<div>Denise, you asked about Private Whitehead, the murderer of IRA Volunteer Patrick White.</div>
<p><span>Fascinating circumstances here when I consider Joe Gannon’s post about Patrick White’s murder.</span></p>
<div>I do recall, Kieron, that you identified an online database containing info about virtually each and every British soldier (or perhaps limited to those KIA). That was about 10 years ago, when you wrote the series on ‘The Forgotten Ten.” <br></br><br></br></div>
<div>Look at these search…</div>
<div>Denise, you asked about Private Whitehead, the murderer of IRA Volunteer Patrick White.</div>
<p><span>Fascinating circumstances here when I consider Joe Gannon’s post about Patrick White’s murder.</span></p>
<div>I do recall, Kieron, that you identified an online database containing info about virtually each and every British soldier (or perhaps limited to those KIA). That was about 10 years ago, when you wrote the series on ‘The Forgotten Ten.” <br/><br/></div>
<div>Look at these search results: <a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/main/search/search?q=Whitehead">http://thewildgeese.irish/main/search/search?q=Whitehead</a></div>
<div>Two stories on WG have references to “Private Whitehead,” one on Kevin Barry (<a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/kevin-barry-part-2-an-example-has-to-be-made">http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/kevin-barry-part-2-an-exam...</a>) and, of course, Joe’s post.<br/><br/></div>
<div>“<span>Although two soldiers stated that they had witnessed Barry shooting </span><a href="http://yard.ccta.gov.uk/cwgc/register.nsf/wwwcreateservicecertificate?openagent&378591" target="new">Private Harold Washington</a><span>, the soldier who had died at the scene of the ambush, Kevin was actually charged with the murder of </span><a href="http://yard.ccta.gov.uk/cwgc/register.nsf/wwwcreateservicecertificate?openagent&2751877" target="new"><b>Private Marshall Whitehead</b></a><span> who had died while undergoing surgery for stomach wounds at King George V Hospital. </span></div>
<div><span> </span></div>
<div><span>We don</span><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif">’t off-hand know the first name of the Private Whitehead who murdered Patrick White. Clearly it is not Private Marshall Whitehead, who died in the IRA’s ambush at Monk’s Bakery in September 1920.</font></div>
<div><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></div>
<div><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif">But what if Private Whitehead, the murderer of Patrick White, was a brother or cousin of Marshall Whitehead. The shooter’s motive may have been revenge. </font></div>
<div><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></div>
<div><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif">I further note that Kevin Barry won plaudits for his bravery and alacrity during a June 1, 1920, raid. A year later, Private Whitehead murders Patrick White. Coincidence? Likely, but a fascinating one all the same, I feel.</font></div>
<div><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></div>
<div><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif">"On <b><u>June 1s</u></b>t, 1920, the "picked-men" of the 1st Battalion raided the King's Inns, which was being used as an outpost of the British garrison based in the North Dublin Union. At a critical moment of the operation, it was Barry who led the rush into the guardroom, where the military was overpowered. This highly successful raid netted 25 rifles, two Lewis guns, a large quantity of ammunition and resulted in the capture of 25 British soldiers. It is worth noting that on this occasion, as on many previous IRA attacks, all of the prisoners were released unharmed. “ </font><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif">— </font><font color="#2E2F2F" face="Trebuchet MS, Helvetica, sans-serif">The Forgotten Ten: Kevin Barry: ‘Just a Lad of 18 Summers’ <a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/kevin-barry-just-a-lad-of-18-summers">http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/kevin-barry-just-a-lad-of-...</a></font></div>
<div><font color="#2E2F2F" face="Trebuchet MS, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </font></div>
<div><p>“On <b><u>June 1<span>st</span></u></b> (1921) Thomas Ringrose (right) was reading a two week old borrowed newspaper when Patrick came in asking about going for their daily walk. When Thomas said he wanted to finish reading the paper first, Patrick made what turned out to be a fatal decision, grabbing a hurley stick and went out to knock the sliotar (hurling ball) around with the Cork lads while waiting for Thomas. “I will go out and hurl,” he said, "come out after, with the news.</p>
<p><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif">"When the sliotar was accidentally hit into an area that was “off limits” to the prisoners, White asked a British sentry, <b><u>Private Whitehead, </u></b>to retrieve it. Whitehead told him to go and get it himself. When he did, the soldier shot and killed him. Thomas heard the shot and ran out of the building to find his friend lying in a pool of his own blood. As Ringrose held his dying friend in his arms, White looked up and weakly exclaimed, “What will my poor people do."<br/></font><font color="#454545" face="Arial, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, sans-serif"> — </font><font color="#2E2F2F" face="Trebuchet MS, Helvetica, sans-serif">Patrick White: A Clareman’s Tragic Death on Spike Island <a href="http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/patrick-white-a-tragic-death-on-spike-island" target="_blank">http://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/patrick-white-a-tragic-dea...</a></font></p>
</div> Does anyone know anything mor…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2016-07-03:6442157:Comment:1945342016-07-03T14:16:21.214ZDJ Kellyhttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/DJKelly
<p>Does anyone know anything more about Private Whitehead?</p>
<p>Does anyone know anything more about Private Whitehead?</p> Great piece! While holidayin…tag:thewildgeese.irish,2016-06-26:6442157:Comment:1940132016-06-26T16:23:49.420ZTotally Irish Giftshttps://thewildgeese.irish/profile/TotallyIrishGifts
<p>Great piece! While holidaying in East Cork in 2014 we went to Cobh for a day trip to discover boat trips to Spike Island and spent a very interesting afternoon there. Well worth the visit! When I was a child I knew of Spike Island but only as the place where the bold boys were sent for stealing cars and joyriding. I was amazed to learn the Island had such a long and varied history.</p>
<p>Thanks for posting,</p>
<p>Shauna</p>
<p>Great piece! While holidaying in East Cork in 2014 we went to Cobh for a day trip to discover boat trips to Spike Island and spent a very interesting afternoon there. Well worth the visit! When I was a child I knew of Spike Island but only as the place where the bold boys were sent for stealing cars and joyriding. I was amazed to learn the Island had such a long and varied history.</p>
<p>Thanks for posting,</p>
<p>Shauna</p>