Blog

Member Blog Submissions

February 20, 2017 by JG_admin

All members are invited to submit items for consideration.

They can be submitted in a Word document to blog@ifhf.org

Tracing Your First World War Ancestors: A Guide for Family Historians by Simon Fowler (Pen & Sword, 2013). Whether your military ancestors served at home or overseas during World War I, whether they were soldiers, sailors, or airmen, whether they were male or female, Fowler’s book can help you discover their wartime service records. The book discusses resources for Britain, Canada, Newfoundland, India, New Zealand, and South Africa.

Finding Your Father’s War: A Practical Guide to Researching and Understanding Service in the World War II US Army, 2^nd ed. by Jonathan Gawne (Casemate, 2013). Military historian Gawne discusses how to track down a World War II soldier’s service record by using archives, libraries, veterans associations, and other resources. According to APG Quarterly, Finding Your Father’s War is “a great read not only for genealogists wishing to research an ancestor, but also for those who simply have an interest in the United States Army during World War II…[It is] a must-read reference book for any professional genealogist or military historian.”

The Canal Bridge by Tom Phelan (Arcade, 2014). Many people are surprised to learn that close to a quarter of a million Irish men fought in the British army in World War I and tens of thousands died. Forum member Tom Phelan’s novel tells the story of two young Irish men who join the army in order to see the world but end up serving as stretcher bearers in the trenches instead. According to the Irish Independent, the novel is “Another First World War masterpiece…An ambitious, accomplished and deeply moving contribution to Ireland’s formidable corpus of fiction about the Great War.”—Jim Regan

Women of the Irish Revolution by Liz Gillis .(Mercier, 2014).Gillis describes the role women ……played, both directly and indirectly, in the Irish revolution. At a time when society saw their role as that of wife and mother, these women made a decision to stand up not only for their own rights, but also the rights of future generations. The independence movement would not have succeeded without their contribution, which saw them face significant danger in order to help free Ireland. The book also tells the story of the wives, mothers, sisters, and girlfriends of those who fought for Irish freedom; though not directly involved, they lost a great deal.

Atlas of the Irish Revolution by John Crowley, Mike Murphy, and Donal Ó Drisceoil, eds. (Cork University Press, 2017). Thisdefinitive resource brings to life a pivotal moment in Ireland’s history. Published to coincide with the centenary of the Easter Rising, it illuminates the effects of the revolution on Irish culture and politics. The book includes contributions by leading scholars and is illustrated with over 400 illustrations, maps, and photos. Irish Central calls it “the bible of this most important time in Irish history.”

Greatest Brigade: How the Irish Brigade Cleared the Way to Victory in the American Civil War

by Thomas J. Craughwell (Fair Winds Press, 2013).The Irish Brigade, an infantry brigade made up of mostly Irish Americans, served in the Union Army in the U.S. Civil War. The brigade, which suffered heavy casualties, was known for its war cry, “Faugh a Ballagh!” an anglicization of an Irish phrase that means “Clear the way!”

In his book, author Craughwell takes the readerthrough the major battles of the Civil War alongside the soldiers of the brigade. He tells the story of a group of heroes who covered the Yankee retreat at Bull Run, drove the Confederates from the Sunken Road at Antietam, and made charge after charge up Marye’s Heights at Fredericksburg. The brigade’s gallantry won it the admiration of the high command of both North and South, earned it seven Medals of Honor, and after the war, went a long way in helping the Irish assimilate into the American mainstream.

UPCOMING EVENTS

November 26, 2019 by peterk

THE IRISH AMERICAN HERITAGE & CULTURE COMMITTEE

Cordially invites EDUCATORS & NON-EDUCATORS to attend the

NEIL SHANAHAN EDUCATORS SEMINAR

Topic: Brexit – A Challenge to Peace in Ireland

Speaker: Ray O’Hanlon

Editor, Irish Echo

Date: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2020

at the

UFT HEADQUARTERS (This is a location change)

52 BROADWAY – 19^TH FLOOR

(WALL ST. SUBWAY STATION)

Registration at 5:30 p.m.

PROGRAM beginning at 6 p.m.

Pre-registration tax deductible donation: $15 (includes light refreshments)

Pre-register at: rmbks@aol.com or (917) 576-2560

A tax deductible donation of $20 at the event.

Make your check payable to: IAHCC (Irish American Heritage & Culture Committee)

* Mail to: K. Snow

414 Albemarle Road, Apt. 4F

Brooklyn, NY 11218

IAHCC is a 501(c)(3) tax deductible organization.

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Pre-Registration Form: Educators Seminar – February 3, 2020 Name(s): _________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Address: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________

New Law Gives Adoptees Access to Birth Records

November 17, 2019 by peterk

ALBANY — A new law will allow adoptees to obtain their full, original birth certificates, including health histories and the identity of their parents, ending a decades-old practice that blocked that

https://www.newsday.com/news/region-state/adoptees-birth-records-cuomo-1.38583472

NEWSLETTER WINS AGAIN

May 30, 2019 by peterk

Tom Phelan Book Review

April 29, 2019 by peterk

“A nimble exercise in storytelling in which Tom shapes his recollections into a series of richly detailed vignettes….Plain, honest, funny, occasionally sad and rich in material detail, this [is a] wonderful memoir….This is the real thing.”—Newsday “Phelan’s memoir of his boyhood is exceptional…Phelan’s prose has an unpretentious beauty…With rich detail and sensitivity, We Were Rich translates for us a rural world that has disappeared.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune
“A tender recollection of growing up on a farm in Ireland in the 1940s. In precise, vibrant prose, novelist Phelan creates…a captivating portrait of a bygone time.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review “At a time when we have so much and are satisfied with none of it, the story of We Were Rich and We Didn’t Know It is one of grace and beauty.”—For the Love of Books Tom Phelan’s We Were Rich and We Didn’t Know It: A Memoir of My Irish Boyhood is a heartfelt and masterfully written account of growing up in Ireland in the 1940s. Tom, who was born and reared in Mountmellick, County Laois, spent his formative years working with his wise and demanding father as he sought to wrest a livelihood from a farm that was often wet, muddy, and back-breaking. It wasa time before rural electrification, the telephone, and indoor plumbing; a time when the main modes of travel were bicycle and animal cart; a time when small farmers struggled to survive and turkey eggs were hatched in the kitchen cupboard; a time when the Church exerted enormous control over Ireland. We Were Rich and We Didn’t Know It recounts Tom’s upbringing in an isolated, rural community from the day he was delivered by the local midwife. With tears and laughter, it speaks to the strength of the human spirit in the face of life’s adversities.
Published by Gallery Books / Simon and Schuster
Available at Amazon and bookstoresin hardcover, ebook, and audiobook formats

Irish Women of Action

March 13, 2019 by peterk

The New York Irish History Roundtable presents:

Irish Women of Action

For years Irish New Yorkers supported struggles in Ireland for reform and independence. New research into the activities of Irish women in New York has revealed dramatic information about their activities on behalf of change in Ireland…and within the United States. This Roundtable program focuses on four of these Irish Women of Action – Dr. Gertrude Kelly, Marguerite Moore, Mary Jane Irwin, and Alice Comiskey.

This unique program brings together experts on the topic: Miriam Nyhan, William Rossa Cole, Elizabeth Lee Hodges, and Maureen Murphy.

Date: Saturday, April 13, 2019
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Place: McCloskey Meeting Room
Parish House of Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral
263 Mulberry Street
New York, NY
Website: http://www.irishnyhistory.org/
Email: roundtable@irishnyhistory.org

April 2 Tour of NY Archdiocesan Archives

January 21, 2019 by peterk

On Tuesday, April 2, at 11 a.m. the Forum will tour the NY Archdiocesan Archives. Archivist Kate Feigh-ery will show us the archdiocese’s library and its phys-ical, and digital, collections, including its sacramental records at FindMyPast. We’ll also see an exhibit on the Irish Mission at Watson House, a former home for immigrant girls. The archives are located on the grounds of St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoodie, 201 Seminary Ave., Yonkers, NY.
This event is free for Forum members, and each member is welcome to bring a guest. Please sign up for the tour at the February general meeting, or email Patricia Phelan at programs @ifhf.org.