Skibbereen Heritage Centre

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Diaspora Story Project

Leah Fitzgerald

Family tree: story of how girl left lights off as afraid of Black & Tans

Lara O’Donovan

IRA kidnaps local RM; burns Killeena House; judge held captive and forced to pulp beet

Kayla Scully

Great great grandfather soldier in WW1; retired in 1918 due to war wound; came home to run family farm

Katie Scannell

Family stories about the Burning of Cork; Kilmichael Ambush aftermath; Hiding guns on farm; Spike Island prison & WW1

Kate Coppinger

Great great grandfather made a dummy bomb with tin bucket and fooled Black and Tans

Grace Gallagher

Great great grandfather in IRA; hid secret messages in shoe; blocked road for ambush

Ellie McCarthy

Great gran uncle had arms dump on family farm; collected money & ammunition; burned Skibb Workhouse & Courthouse & Ballyalla Coastguard Station; involved in last shooting of RIC Officer Clark

Ellen O’Donovan

Guncle petty officer on HMS Renown during WW2; vessel history from 1914

Ellen Marks

Great great grandfather & twin brother took part in 1916 Rising in Wexford

Elaine O’Donovan

Story of Daniel O’Connell’s life & his Monster Meeting in Skibbereen

Claire Griffin

Man smuggles suit as disguise for Tom Barry & arrested; men hiding under potato stalks Rosscarbery before escaping; house raid stopped when Colonel Hudson recognised family photo as someone he knew from WW1

Ava Minihane

Woman asked sons to kill man visiting pub near her house

Aoife Hurley

Great granduncle jailed in Spike for being in IRA; other Ggreat granduncles emigrated to New York

Ayleasha Brosnan

Story of grandmother’s life from emigration, WW2 & marriage

Amy McCarthy

Great great grandfather got ill himself while helping others & didn’t survive

Amie O’Driscoll

GGfather was explosives expert; in charge of TNT used to widen roads

Aisling Collins

Cattle stolen from ‘Big Houses’ to fund IRA and sold in Dunmanway market

Lisa O’Donovan

Use of daily items one hundred years ago, eg. iron, jug, cast iron pot