Highwaymen, Tories and Rapparees by

by Niall Ó Ciosáin There was a time when Irish boys were free to choose their own school readers … being sturdy lads, born into a heritage of suffering and persecution, the spirit of resistance burning in their veins, it is not surprising that the reading book they liked best was a cheap little work containing an account of the … Read more

A SCHOLAR AND A GENTLEMAN

HM: Could you tell us about your background?   ATQS: My father was a Belfastman. He had emigrated to Australia but in the middle of the first world war, he enlisted in the Australian Expeditionary Force and was brought back to Europe. When the war ended, there was a problem getting Australian troops home so … Read more

The Locke Family and the Distilling Industry in Kilbeggan

by Andy Bielenberg A distillery was first established in Kilbeggan in 1757 when there was a proliferation of small distillers setting up in the midlands. They were attracted by the quality and availability of barley in the region, which was (and still is) the distiller’s greatest cost, and of turf from the extensive local bogs. … Read more

Who was Molly Malone?

Sean Murphy It has been claimed that Molly Malone was a real person who lived in the late seventeenth century, and that records of her baptism in St Andrew’s Church and burial in St John’s Graveyard have been discovered. Accordingly, the Grafton Street statue of Molly is dressed in seventeenth- century style and is located … Read more