Do you have forebears who served in an Irish war for independence, the Irish Civil War, or during the First or Second World War? What about Irish American ancestors who fought in any of our various wars since the American Revolution? As Veterans Day falls in November, the Newsletter is planning to devote the November 2019 –January 2020 edition to our veteran ancestors. If you would like to submit a story about an ancestor who served their country in a time of war, read a book that helped in your research or have a research tip you have found to be helpful in finding information about a veteran, please send us an email at newsletter@ifhf.org.
NEWSLETTER WINS AGAIN
Tom Phelan Talks and Readings
Tom Phelan
will talk about his critically acclaimed memoir
We Were Rich and We Didn’t Know ItA Memoir of My Irish Boyhood
“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
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
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.
Family Tree Webinars
Legacy Family Tree Webinars has added closed captioning to many of its webinars
IFHF IN THE IRISH ECHO – 4th page of “TRACE YOUR IRISH ROOTS”
U.K. Celebrities Search For Their Irish Ancestors
Watch U.K. celebrities search for their Irish ancestors
on YouTube – Who do you think you are U.K. edition.
Links below. Hurry, sometimes the links disappear! They are delicious stories!
Chris Moyles
https://youtu.be/EGisUVYpFfc
Dervla Kirwan
https://youtu.be/k6KmaA9Xzfo
Mark Gatiss
https://youtu.be/l_JbBEunVEk
Ardal O’Hanlon
https://youtu.be/ziI1PuCfx20
Graham Norton
https://youtu.be/CELOqiTIlWo
Jeremy Irons
https://youtu.be/kQKiTT_hcC0
Julie Walters
https://youtu.be/LWpPks9NrYw
Amanda Redman
https://youtu.be/vREqSU-IP7Q
John Hurt
https://youtu.be/5iZb640ayGI
David Tennant
https://youtu.be/NUqBhb-w1To
Support Access to NYC Vital Records
In 2017 NYC Dept. of Heath and Mental Hygiene proposed a new rule that would affect when birth and death records are made available to the public. Rule goes into effect April 17, 2018 restricting access to birth records until 125 years after a birth and to death records 75 years after a death.
If this rule had been in effect when I applied for and received my Grandfather’s 1949 death certificate after 50 years, access could have been denied until 2024. Already reports have been made of people who have legal rights to records being denied due to inconsistent interpretations of rules by DOH employees.
Although the greater genealogical community fought hard against it, the rule recently passes. Thanks to overwhelming opposition to the plan, the NYDHMH proposed a new amendment allowing more relatives access to these records. However, its expansion only applies to a strict biological lineage that does not consider realities of family life today for adoptees or blended families.
We can let NYC know that the new amendment is an improvement, but greater access is desirable.
When: Monday, April 23 10:00 am to 12:00 pm.
Where: New York Dept. of Health and Public Hygiend
Gotham Center
42-09 28th Street, 3rd Floor, Room 3-32,
Long Island City, NY 11101
For information about the issues involved, please see D. Joshua Taylor, President at the NYG&B at https://www.facebook.com/nyfamilyhistory/videos/1699893130032829/UzpfSTQ5ODIwMDI0MzU4MzIxMDoxNjM0NTE4MjA2NjE4MDY5/
Irish-American Heritage Month
Proclamations
President Donald J. Trump Proclaims March 2018 as Irish-American Heritage Month
During the month of St. Patrick’s Day, we celebrate Irish‑American Heritage Month and the tremendous role Irish immigrants and their descendants have played in the development of our great Nation. Irish-American Heritage Month is a great opportunity to celebrate the nearly 33 million Americans with Irish ancestry and their tremendous contributions to the betterment of our country. This month, and every month, we appreciate their efforts in helping usher in a new era of American prosperity.
Irish Americans have distinguished themselves in every sector of American life. Many have been among the key architects of our country’s greatness. Nine of the men who signed our Declaration of Independence were of Irish origin. Presidents Andrew Jackson, John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and many others have traced their roots to the Emerald Isle. Businessman Henry Ford, founder of one of America’s most iconic companies, was the son of an Irish immigrant.
For centuries, the tenacious Irish spirit, paired with American self-reliance, has helped Irish immigrants and their descendants realize incredible dreams. With religious devotion, strength rooted in the love of family, and confidence in the promise of America, Irish Americans have engaged in the American experience in robust and meaningful ways. Their neighborhoods, schools, churches, and workplaces have affirmed the importance of faith, industry, and learning. It is, therefore, no wonder that American art, business, and public life are marked by Irish names and symbols.
This month, Americans across the country will don the traditional green garb as we celebrate the patron saint of Ireland in an annual tribute to our shared and cherished heritage with that great country. As we spend this month honoring Irish Americans, we also pledge to further strengthen our relationship with the Emerald Isle itself, as we look forward to a bright future of greater friendship, cooperation, and commerce for centuries to come.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 2018 as Irish-American Heritage Month. I call upon all Americans to celebrate the achievements and contributions of Irish Americans to our Nation with appropriate ceremonies, activities, and programs.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day of February, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-second.
DONALD J. TRUMP