Rolling Around the Achill Sound (1999)

Ireland’s largest outlying island is also one of its most magical. Measuring 20 kms from east to west and 18 kms from north to south, Achill Island enjoys a coastline of about 120 kms and supports a community of about 2600 people (2011). If you’ve only got time to...

Murder in Roscommon – The Assassination of the Rev. John Lloyd, 1847

On Sunday 28 November 1847, the Rev. John Lloyd and his servant were making their way home in a horse-drawn gig from Aughrim Church where he had just preached a sermon. Approximately a mile from his residence at Smith-hill, the assassins struck. [1] Two men armed with...

The Sultan of Drogheda

Drogheda, 1847. The gas-lit harbour lights burned through the dusk as the tug-boat hauled the first of the three merchant ships alongside the handsome new wharfage. Out at sea, the other two ships awaited their turn, sails tight to the masts. Those gathered in the...
A History of Bishopscourt, Clones, Co. Monaghan

A History of Bishopscourt, Clones, Co. Monaghan

Built as a rectory for the Church of Ireland during the Napoleonic Wars, Bishopscourt was considered such a fine abode that two Bishops of Clogher opted to use it as their main place of residence during the first decades of the 20th century. This tale takes in the...