Search Results for 'Delia'

Annie Kelly was just 19 when all her dreams appeared to be coming true. Annie was one of 11 children living with her widowed mother at Newgrove, Mountbellew, Co Galway. Her boyfriend, William Murphy, and her brother Thomas had earlier emigrated to Boston. Annie and William were pledged to be married just as soon as Annie got the money to follow him there. Full of excitement the young woman later sailed from Liverpool on the Cunard liner the Lusitania arriving in New York on April 24 1915.

A memorial seat in honour of two local men was unveiled last Thursday on Linenhall Street, Castlebar. The seat was erected opposite the home of Jack and Tommy Blaine from New Antrim Street, who both died in tragic circumstances in July 2013.

The title of this photograph is ‘Old Building, Market Street’ and it was taken about 100 years ago. The building in the foreground was at one time occupied by the Augustinian nuns who were based in Galway (where the Mechanics is today in Middle Street) before 1651. The last Augustinian nun to die in Ireland is buried in Forthill. These sisters formed part of the same Augustinian Order as the friars, as do their contemplative successors today in countries like Spain and Italy. Continuing persecutions and other historical pressures saw to the end of these nuns in Ireland, though some lingered on in Galway up to the middle of the 19th century.

Pake Crehan of Rushestown Newbridge has seen a lot in his 88 years. “A little stiff but otherwise in good nick” was how he described his state of health when we spoke about old times in the company of his wife Delia and some of the extended family in their comfortable home recently.

Nora Barnacle left Galway early in 1904. She was 20 years old, a strong-willed girl running from a tyrannical uncle who disapproved of her latest boy friend. Within weeks of her arrival in Dublin she would become the muse and lover of James Joyce and the inspiration of some and his greatest works — Greta Conroy in The Dead, Bertha the common law wife in Exiles and Molly Bloom in Ulysses — all share some of Nora’s character and experiences. In October of that same year Nora and Jim would elope to Europe and in due course step on to the pages of literary history. She would return to her native city only twice during her 47 years of exile before dying in Zurich in 1951, having lived 67 tumultuous years.

Sir Roger Casement was a notable humanitarian and a British consul by profession but, ironically, an anti -Imperialist by nature. He over-stepped his diplomatic role to fiercely condemn Belgium for its brutalisation of the people of Congo*. His report, published in 1904, was however, well received by the British establishment, perhaps because it feared that little Belgium was getting too big for its boots, and too wealthy from its African ventures. Casement received a knighthood.

Puss in Boots is bringing down the Community Hall in Castlecomer this week as the Deenside Players delight the audience with their annual pantomime.