You could be forgiven for thinking they had never left. But it was not the world-famous, stately edifice that stands on Fifth Avenue between East 50th and 51 st Streets that was the center of attention. No, it was the far more humble Old St. Patrick's Cathedral, located far downtown at the very unfashionable intersection of Mulberry and Prince Sts., right where what is left of … [Read more...] about Time Stands Still at Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral
Roots: The Brady Family
The Brady family name derives from the Gaelic McBradaigh which was originally anglicized as McBrady, but the "Mc" is very seldom used in modern times. The vast majority of this power clan of Breffny, now the County of Cavan, come from Ulster. A smaller group of Bradys (formally O'Brady) come from County Clare. The Bradys were a gentler sort and their prominent kinsmen have … [Read more...] about Roots: The Brady Family
Slainte! Celebrating The Feast of Epiphany
A word can mean many things. For millions, epiphany signifies a holy day on the church calendar, the Feast of Epiphany which commemorates the Magi's presentation of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to the newborn Christ child. As the Twelfth Day of Christmas, Epiphany also marks the last festive occasion of the holiday season. Finally, the American Heritage Dictionary defines … [Read more...] about Slainte! Celebrating The Feast of Epiphany
Irish Rebels, Confederate Tigers
From Bull Run to Appomattox, the 6th Louisiana's Irish Confederates fought proudly On April 28, 1861, two weeks after Confederate guns had fired the first shots of the Civil War against Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor, a notice appeared in the columns of The Daily Picayune, one of New Orleans' leading papers. It was a call to arms aimed at the thousands of Irish immigrants of … [Read more...] about Irish Rebels, Confederate Tigers
The First Word: Living Up to The Nobel Prize
Ireland is no stranger to the Nobel Prize. Indeed the prize awarded each year in memory of Alfred Nobel (the inventor of dynamite) has gone to citizens of the island a total of seven times. W.B. Yeats (1923), G.B. Shaw (1925), Samuel Beckett (1969) and Seamus Heaney (1995) all won the Nobel Prize for Literature. But good writers aside, the Nobel Committee has also focused on … [Read more...] about The First Word: Living Up to The Nobel Prize