"...to seek and to find the past, a lineage, a history, a family built on a flesh and bone foundation."

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Tombstone Tuesday: In a churchyard in Swords Village...

In St. Colmcille's Churchyard, Swords Village, Fingal, just north of Dublin City, lie many graves of those connected to the matrilineal side of my family tree. In the post entitled "The magic of research after midnight..."(*click to view the post), I shared my excitement over having documented these graves, and in particular this grave which lies at the back corner of the church in the oldest part of the cemetery. Within it are entombed the mortal remains of my maternal great-great-great grandparents, Thomas Kettle and Alice O'Kavanaugh Kettle, and their daughter, my maternal great-great grandmother, Mary Kettle Fitzpatrick.


Sacred
To the memory of
THOMAS KETTLE
of Drynam,
who died 22nd September 1871
 aged 72 years
And his beloved wife ALICE who died
24 September 1855 aged 55 years
  Also their beloved daughter
Mrs. MARY FITZPATRICK
who died 23rd April 1871 aged 39 years.
R.I.P.

To view the grave of Mary Fitzpatrick's very famous brother Andrew J. Kettle visit 'Over thy dead body'

*Click on the photographs to view a larger version.
All materials ©Copyright J. Geraghty-Gorman 2010

Friday, September 24, 2010

Fizzy Friday: A sunny day off in Dublin wandering around St. Stephen's Green

No doubt you've heard the saying "all work, and no play, makes Jack a dull boy"; well, I changed it a bit while I was in Dublin to "all work, and no play, makes Jenn a dull girl". I took the liberty of enjoying a Friday with no work, just strolling around, taking photos, and soaking up the sun in St. Stephen's Green.

Established in 1664 and redesigned in 1880, "the Green" offers a glorious respite in the center of Dublin at the foot of Grafton Street. At only 22 acres it is considerably smaller than its 1,750 acre sister, Phoenix Park, but if you need a break from the noise and bustle of the city center, it is the perfect spot. Here are a few shots to give you a sense of the place; I hope you enjoy them. As usual, click on the photos to view a larger version. Cheers! Jennifer

Street sign on the north side of the green
Approaching the west end of the lake
View from the Summer House
A park map (in the shade)
Fountain in the Victorian Floral Gardens
Victorian Floral Gardens
The stone bridge
A view from the stone bridge
On the north side of the green a spot to water your horse...
...or yourself
A horse and carriage, in case you need a lift

Friday, September 10, 2010

Fizzy Friday: Three of the best Irish movies (in my humble opinion)

A few weeks ago I posted a list of nominees for worst Irish themed movies, so I thought today I would look on the positive side of things and post a short list of three of my favourite Irish themed films. Judging films is such a subjective exercise, and some of you may not agree with my choices, but here goes.

1. "Michael Collins" starring Liam Neeson.
Although this film contains a number of historical inaccuracies, I like it because it gives a fairly good snapshot of Irish political history and struggle in the early part of the 20th century. It speaks to the fact that both the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil war were largely led by and fought by young people. In fact the main protagonist of the film, Michael Collins, was killed during the civil war at the age of 31, just two months before his 32nd birthday. The film also gives some insight into personal disagreements and divisions within the ranks of those leading the fight to free Ireland. As the ensuing Civil War demonstrated, not everyone agreed on the outcome of the Free State of Ireland.
2. "Once"
Shot in Dublin County, over a period of seventeen days with a budget of only $150,000, this is the tale of a short term, but nonetheless deep bond  that builds between a Dublin busker (Glen Hansard) and a Czech flower seller/piano player (Marketa Irglova). Over the course of only one week, these two form  a meaningful relationship based on their mutual love of music. I like this movie because of its feeling of authenticity. It was shot on the streets of Dublin, in its shops, and on the back roads of County Dublin. In particular, Grafton Street figures prominently; it is a pedestrian only shopping area where on any given day you can see all manner of buskers entertaining the shoppers.
3. "In America"
Although this film is not set in Ireland, it is the story of an Irish family. Led by a father who is an aspiring actor, the family illegally immigrates to the United States in search of the "American Dream". The father, played by English born actor Paddy Considine, dreams of getting his big break in the New York City theatre scene. Once they arrive in the big city, they move into an apartment in a building populated principally by drug addicts and thieves. They try to make it truly their home. Their struggles are many, including the personal struggle of dealing with the loss of a child who died. The role of the mother is beautifully portrayed by English born actor Samantha Morton, and the young daughters are brilliantly portrayed by Sarah and Emma Bolger. This film was written by Irish filmmaker Jim Sheridan, and his daughters Naomi and Kristen, and in many ways speaks to their personal experiences early on "in America" as struggling immigrants living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Wisdom & Wordless Wednesday: "A change is as good as a rest"

For me September has always signified new beginnings, the start of a new school and academic year, the onset of the change of seasons taking us into Autumn. It is a time which represents a fresh start; therefore, I thought this might be a good time to change the look of my blog.

The focus and content will remain dedicated to family history research and writing. The background and the colours are changed, and usually only the current post will appear. As my dad used to say, "a change is as good as a rest". Please let me know what you think of the new design; I'd really appreciate feedback.

In honour of the change this post features photos of one of my favourite places on earth, the Cliffs of Moher, County Clare, Ireland. So, with a little bit of wisdom from my dad, and photos which require no words here is my first post on the new background.

Back home, a little worse for wear, but with all technical problems ironed out

Hello Everyone,

I hope that life has been good for all of you over these last three weeks. I am back home, exhausted, but feeling as though my trip was a great success, for the most part. Unfortunately, I had major computer problems (my logic board died). Having two external hard drives, as well as a 'cloud', for backup is not of much comfort when you are 3500 miles away from home and you cannot get material onto your laptop at all.

Repairs have been done, and now when I reboot, happily I hear the purring of the hard drive and see the little Apple symbol instead of silence and a black screen. Today I was finally able to successfully download documents, and approximately 2300 photos from my cameras. All that is left to do is some major organizing. I'm ready to get back to work, and will make a fresh start tomorrow.

Cheers! Jennifer
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