Mayo features among Last Voices of the Irish Revolution

THE Irish Civil War ended in 1923. Eighty years on, author and documentary-maker Tom Hurley wondered if there were many civilians and combatants left from across Ireland who had experienced the years 1919 to 1923, their prelude and their aftermath. What memories had they, what were their stories and how did they reflect on those turbulent times?

In early 2003, he recorded the experiences of 18 people, conducting two further interviews abroad in 2004. Tom spoke to a cross-section (Catholic, Protestant, Unionist and Nationalist) who were in their teens or early twenties during the civil war. The chronological approach he has taken to his book spans 50 years, beginning with the oldest interviewee's birth in 1899 and ending when the Free State became a republic in 1949.

Although none of the interviewees were natives of Co. Mayo, some did have connections to the county which they discuss in the book. The names of those they mentioned may also ring a bell for some readers.

For example, Kerry native Margaret Power (née Cahill) (interviewed in the United States) was aged 98 at the time she spoke to the author. The topics she discusses include her early life, joining Cumann na mBan, her encounter with the black and tans, carrying dispatches, IRA men and women she knew, her brother Mick being shot, her arrest and emigration to America in 1926.

Interestingly, Margaret also discusses her sister's wedding which took place in Ballina in 1916. Ellen Cahill married Patrick Farmer, a solicitor’s clerk, who was a native of the town and played football for Ballina Stephenites GAA Club. One of his sisters, Maggie, was also a nurse in the local hospital. Ellen Farmer had given birth to at least six children by 1924; a son named Patrick died after 16 days in 1923.

Dan Keating, also from Co. Kerry, was aged 101 when he was interviewed. He took the anti-treaty side during the civil war and for a brief period was based in Limerick city. He speaks about a man on the pro-treaty side from Co. Mayo named Commandant-General Dermot MacManus. He had fought in Gallipoli during World War I and at the battle of the Four Courts in Dublin at the opening of the civil war. Dan pointed the finger at him for the outbreak of fighting in Limerick in July 1922.

Another interviewee was William Geary who was born in 1899 in Co. Limerick. He was also interviewed in the United States. He joined An Garda Síochána in 1922 and quickly rose through the ranks. Among the men he mentions in a wide ranging interview was his driver John McGlynn from Co. Mayo.

Seán Clancy, born in 1901 in Co. Clare, also spoke to the author. He joined the Free State Army in 1922 and in later years was posted to the Military Barracks in Castlebar. In 1926 he married Agnes Creagh who hailed from Castle Street in the town.

One hundred years after the Civil War ended, these 20 interviews recorded by Tom Hurley come together to create a unique oral account of the revolutionary period and the tensions that were brewing in the run-up and aftermath. Together, theirs are the Last Voices of the Irish Revolution.

Last Voices of the Irish Revolution by Tom Hurley is available in bookshops throughout the country and can also be ordered online. It is published by Gill Books.