The Land League, under the guidance of Charles Stewart Parnell, who was imprisoned at Kilmainham Gaol, issued the "No Rent Manifesto" on this day in 1881. The manifesto called for a national tenant farmer rent strike in order to combat the Second Land Act of 1881. The Land League was immediately suppressed by the British upon the issue of this manifesto. This would eventually … [Read more...] about October 18, 1881
Today In History
May 14, 1881
Edward Augustine Walsh was born in Pennsylvania to a family of Irish immigrants. At age 12, he began working in the coal fields. He grew to be 6'.1" and at 193 lbs became known at "Big Ed." In 1902, urged on by a friend, he tried out for the Wilkes-Barre baseball team. He joined the Chicago White Sox in 1904, becoming one of the top pitchers in the American league. Walsh is … [Read more...] about May 14, 1881
April 9, 1881
On April 9, 1881, the infamous outlaw Billy the Kid was convicted of murder. Born Henry McCarthy in New York City, Billy had a long history of thefts and murders, but it wasn't until his 1878 revenge killing of Lincoln County, NM Sheriff William Brady, who had killed Billy's boss, John Tunstall, that Billy was actively pursued as a wanted man. After three years on the run, he … [Read more...] about April 9, 1881
September 19, 1880
The term "boycotting"- a form of non-violent protesting - entered the English language on this day in 1880. Coined by Charles Stewart Parnell in his speech on land tenants at Ennis, he said, "I wish to point out a better way, a more Christian way which will give the lost man an opportunity of repenting. When a man takes a farm from which another has been evicted, you must shun … [Read more...] about September 19, 1880
June 6, 1880
William "W.T." Cosgrave, the first President of the Executive Council or prime minister of the Irish Free State, was born on this day in 1880. After attending the first Sinn Fein convention in 1905, Cosgrave became politically active. He joined the Irish volunteers in 1913 and took part in the Easter Rising of 1916. He was arrested for his role and chose to serve a penal … [Read more...] about June 6, 1880