Search Results for 'Browne'

Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water as a form of recreation, exercise or survival. It has numerous health benefits and is good for all ages and all levels of fitness. It is among the top public recreational activities. One can swim in the sea, the lake or river.

Boasting a new adventure park, multiple on-site eateries, guided tours and a leisure centre, the new and improved Westport House and Estate is a must visit destination this summer.

This year's 46th Clifden Arts Festival is set to uphold its tradition of nurturing artistic passion and fostering creative expression.

Organised water safety in Ireland really began in Milltown Malbay, Co Clare in the 1930s when a lady drowned there. This galvanised the local community into forming a Water Safety Association to help swimmers who got into trouble. The idea spread through Co Clare and eventually to the whole country. The national water safety section, set up by the government, was run by the Red Cross.

Professional boxer Kid Johnson, an American light-weight champion, was touring Ireland in 1902. In January, while at the Town Hall in Castlebar, he sparred with Darkie Barton. The Boxing World & Mirror of Life announced that Barton, an 'old man' in boxing circles, held his own, and afterwards, the pair agreed to a formal match. In September 1901, Barton had been knocked out in one minute and five seconds by Henry Brown, Liverpool's 'coloured champion'. Browne had also disposed of Johnson in four rounds.

Sixty six years ago this week, on June 16 1957, Pearse Stadium opened.

An auctioneer is described as an agent who accepts bids and sells goods at auction. The profession goes back thousands of years. In ancient Babylon, for instance, they used to hold auctions of women for marriage, indeed it was considered illegal to allow a daughter to be sold outside the auction process. In ancient Rome, they regularly held slave auctions. The idea of auctions as we know them today began in England in the late 17th century. They were referred to as English auctions where bids came in an ascending order.

I have been talking a lot recently about public or collective memory. The series of commemorations that began two years ago illustrates that while we may have different interpretations of the events that gave rise to the birth of our nation, it is clear that the happenings of 1919-1923 are firmly embedded in the collective conscience. We will never agree on the finer detail of the roles played by the principal protagonists involved in the Treaty negotiations of 1921.

It may be a cliché but the old adage that the happiest days of our lives were the ones we spent at school would be true for most people. When we were in school, we probably thought that it was all lies, but later we gradually realised it was true. Life changes with time but memories of our school days remain the same all the time, days of laughter, smiles, great friendships, games in the school yard, no worries of bills, taxes or finances, desks with flip-tops and inkwells in the middle, heavy school bags, the glantóir, headline copies, the poems we learned, the sheer joy of the last day before the holidays, the imaginative excuses for being late … “The two wheels fell off me bicycle, sir”.

“There is nothing as Galway as Our Lady's Boy’s Club,” was how our president Michael D Higgins described OLBC some years ago at a function in the Columban Hall. It is more than 80 years since it was founded and it is the longest-running youth club in the country. It was set up by Fr Leonard Shiel SJ at a time when there were was a lot of grinding poverty in Galway and no recreational facilities or extra-curricular activities for young people in areas like the Claddagh, Bohermore, Shantalla, and ‘The West’. The club provided these and has been a source of guidance and inspiration to thousands of young men and boys since, especially those from a working class background. From that first day of nervous membership, right through their teens, and even after they had taken up the challenges of adult life, the spirit and watchful eye of the Club is ever with them.