Boland’s Mills, green flag with harp; City Hall, tricolour; College of Surgeons, tricolour; Four Courts, a professionally made green flag with a plain gold harp; GPO, tricolour (flown on the Henry Street corner) and green flag with ‘Irish Republic’ in gold (flown on the Prince’s Street corner). The British returned the ‘Irish Republic’ flag to … Read more
In 1920 the Cork Fire and Ambulance Brigade had been in existence for 43 years, having been established as a municipal entity in 1877, and had been commanded since 1891 by Capt. Hutson. Operating out of the Central Fire Station on Sullivan’s Quay (on the south channel of the River Lee), and substations at Grattan … Read more
Born on 26 March 1856, the son of John Massey, a Limavady farmer who left for better fortunes in New Zealand in 1862, William remained behind with relatives to complete his education. Eight years later, aged fourteen, he joined his parents in New Zealand. A contemporary described Massey as ‘bluff and hearty, thick set, and … Read more
The military historian J.F.C. Fuller described Grant as ‘the greatest general of his age and one of the greatest strategists of any age’. If Abraham Lincoln was the Union’s political saviour, Ulysses S. Grant saved the Union militarily. Lincoln’s apt riposte to those who objected to Grant’s fondness for the bottle was: ‘I wish some … Read more
The 9th of April 2015 marked the 150th anniversary of the ending of the American Civil War, one of the major turning points in American history. It resolved the questions of slavery and nationhood that were lingering from the Revolutionary War of 1776–83. The Confederacy was destroyed, as the war to restore the Union gave … Read more