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Archiver > NY-TROY-IRISH-GENSOC > 2009-09 > 1252965899


From:
Subject: Re: [NY-TROY-IRISH-GENSOC] Great Famine
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 2009 18:04:59 -0400
References: <1DB46CCA57204D44B08D90547910463D@YOUR0D330DFBAF><5E749D4C-0A08-4C5E-BEB6-D1B660747F9E@jetbroadband.com><B35C264584B043AE8B7869B1398EB9FE@TBCFlapietra>
In-Reply-To: <B35C264584B043AE8B7869B1398EB9FE@TBCFlapietra>


I knew nothing of Irish history even though I am 100% of Irish descent.
Many of my ancestors came to America in the 1840s through 1860s...but we
don't know all of their stories. Some came in the 1820s to Canada. All, as
far as we know, were Irish Catholic. I only have one g-grandparent that was
actually born in Ireland. My ancestors mostly came to NY City...except my
Langton line that started in Troy, NY. I really don't know much about them
except what I've found on the TIGS site.

I've since read about the Penal Code with all it's restrictions and about
Hedge schools. One of my father's cousins kept an obituary of my g-g-g
grandmother who died in 1889 and was born probably in 1799. She arrived
first to Canada in the mid-1920s....definitely pre-famine but lots of
problems in Northern Ireland already.

Anyway....it's a snapshot of her own Irish history.
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nytigs/McKeohn-McCloskey.htm

Thanks for the book tip....it's on my list.

On Mon, Sep 14, 2009 at 5:11 PM, Amy La Pietra <> wrote:

> The book recommended by Pat Connors, Galway Bay, by Mary Pat Kelly, is just
> a fabulous story of a family during the Irish Potato Famine.I never fully
> appreciated the sheer death that went on for years or the role of the
> British landowners. It chronicles their emigration to "Amerikay" via New
> Orleans to Chicago. It is just wonderful. Maybe TIGS could get her to come
> to a meeting. Or we could teleconference. The book is great. Must read. Amy
> LaPietra
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From:
> [mailto:] On Behalf Of Marianne
> Arnold
> Sent: Monday, September 14, 2009 4:36 PM
> To:
> Subject: Re: [NY-TROY-IRISH-GENSOC] Great Famine
>
> Thanks Rich - in these instances silence is NOT golden. My Irish,
> with one exception, all fled the famine, but my grandparents "didn't
> know about that stuff" and my mother knew virtually nothing. It was
> the same with the holocaust victims of WWII. They just wouldn't talk
> about it. Fortunately the remaining survivors are finally telling
> their stories, for their own posterity and history. Marianne Arnold
> On Sep 14, 2009, at 4:21 PM, Rich Nichols wrote:
>
> > We all know by now about the Great Famine period in Ireland during
> > the mid-1800's. Many of you probably have ancestors who emigrated
> > from Ireland during this period. My mother's Wynne ancestors came
> > during this period from County Sligo. My purpose of writing all is
> > that some years ago I received a copy of the County Sligo Famine
> > Commeroation 1847-1997 booklet. Without going into much detail, I
> > want to write about a few things that were sort of new to me.
> >
> > 1. That most recent generation (1960's-90's) wrote that they were
> > not taught about this tragedy in school. They knew about it if
> > their older relatives would talk about it - otherwise it was a
> > mystery to them. How sad!
> >
> > 2. In Ireland it is not referred to as the Great Famine but the
> > Great Starvation.
> >
> > 3. In this booklet - three descriptions of this tragedy is depicted:
> >
> > A. "A priest witnesses a mother sending her five children to bed,
> > almost lifeless from hunger. Despairing of ever seeing them alive
> > again, she took her last leave of them. In the morning, her first
> > act was to touch their lips with her hand to see if the breat of
> > life still remained. ....the poor woman's fears were
> > realised.......that night she buried them......"
> >
> > B. " A priest meets a man on the road with......a cart. On the
> > cart are the remains of his wife and two children. On arrival in
> > the graveyard he is weakened and unable to bury his dead. The next
> > day when the priest came back he found ravenous dogs eating the
> > bodies." He hired someone to bury what was left of the man and his
> > family."
> >
> > 4. The Irish could not celebrate the 100th Anniversary has they
> > were struggling to recover from the war and the recent depression.
> >
> > C. An absentee landlord stored his potatoes in a "haggard" which
> > was watched by two keepers. One of his tenants had is possessions
> > "distrained" for non-payment. Despite pleas from the tenants they
> > were not given any potatoes. In desparation the family attacked
> > and killed the two keepers. "They were tried and hanged, but not
> > all at once. The father was hanged first, next the two sons; next
> > their mother was hanged and at last one of the daughters."
> >
> > These stories most likely were publised in the Sligo Champion
> > during this period. It only goes to show how and why silence about
> > this tragedy was the norm rather than the exception. I write this
> > to keep forever in our hearts the death and distruction that this
> > tragedy brought on these poor wretched and helpless people during
> > this period.
> >
> > Rich in Greer
> > ===NY-IRISH-GENSOC Mailing List===
> > Time for Society Members to pay up their 2009 Dues. See the
> > Website for details:
> > Troy Irish Genealogy Society
> > www.rootsweb.com/~nytigs/ <http://www.rootsweb.com/%7Enytigs/>;
> > Click ON - "JOIN TIGS NOW!" to get form.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > -------------------------------
> > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to NY-TROY-IRISH-
> > with the word 'unsubscribe' without the
> > quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>
> ===NY-IRISH-GENSOC Mailing List===
> Time for Society Members to pay up their 2009 Dues. See the Website for
> details:
> Troy Irish Genealogy Society
> www.rootsweb.com/~nytigs/ <http://www.rootsweb.com/%7Enytigs/>;
> Click ON - "JOIN TIGS NOW!" to get form.
>
>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
> with the word 'unsubscribe'
> without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>
> ===NY-IRISH-GENSOC Mailing List===
> Time for Society Members to pay up their 2009 Dues. See the Website for
> details:
> Troy Irish Genealogy Society
> www.rootsweb.com/~nytigs/ <http://www.rootsweb.com/%7Enytigs/>;
> Click ON - "JOIN TIGS NOW!" to get form.
>
>
>
>
>
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to
> with the word 'unsubscribe'
> without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>



--
Eileen Callahan Werth

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