History tells us that when the stakes were substantial, Pitch and Toss games could become extremely serious. In Dundalk in 1914 a man died following an altercation during a game of Pitch and Toss when an argument arose as to who was entitled to the winnings. Continue reading
Filed under Australian-Irish history …
St Patrick’s Day in South Australia
From the beginning of European settlement, St Patrick’s Day in South Australia has been commemorated annually as a rallying call to express Irish identity in a new land. Continue reading
Irish dust devils
My poem was written in English and in Irish, so I needed to find a suitable Irish term for a Dust Devil. Continue reading
From the Papers
There is an older generation in Ireland for whom the first Australian name they ever heard was that of John Landy. Ní bheidh a leithéid ann arís. Continue reading
A Tale of Two Malahides
Fortunately for Rose Talbot, there was a backup Malahide – in Tasmania, Australia – to which Rose now moved. Continue reading
Paul Strzelecki, Hero in Australia and Ireland
The highest peak of the Snowy Mountains. He named it after the Polish-Lithuanian statesman Tadeusz Kosciuszko, giving us Mount Kosciuszko. Continue reading
Keneally, A Man for the Ages
Still writing, still stirring, Keneally is a model for the ages. Continue reading
‘A very jolly spree’: Irish Contraceptive Laws in the 70s
I have never smuggled anything over borders before or since and I was extremely nervous, but our car was not searched on the way over. The return trip was a different matter. Continue reading
The Elusive Fenian
While his comrades John Devoy, John Boyle O’Reilly, and Michael Davitt achieved international renown over decades, Cody was so shadowy that historians lost track of him after the celebrated Catalpa rescue of 1876. Continue reading
Ghosts of Irish Australia: Mary Kirwan
My name is Mary Kirwan, from Wexford, Ireland. Hello to my newly-found descendants in South Australia. I would never have guessed that tragedy in my daughter’s early married life would have resulted in my DNA ending up at the bottom of the world. Continue reading