Notes on Westport, County Mayo

Notes on Westport, County Mayo

Apr 3, 2026

From Achill’s trains of the dead to slave‑freeing marquesses, Botox barons, Nazi broadcasters and sabre-rattling generals, Westport’s small Atlantic stage has launched some of Mayo’s strangest tales … Become a member of Turtle’s History Library to access all...
O’Donovan Rossa’s Funeral, 1915

O’Donovan Rossa’s Funeral, 1915

Sep 9, 2021

Arguably the most important event for Irish republicanism before the 1916 Rising took place in August 1915, with the funeral in Dublin of the ‘unrepentant Fenian’ Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa, a veteran of the 1867 Rising who had died in New York. Including a superb...
Sam Maguire & Liam MacCarthy – For Whom the Cups are Named

Sam Maguire & Liam MacCarthy – For Whom the Cups are Named

Aug 11, 2021

MacCarthy and Maguire are household names on account of the All-Ireland cups for hurling and football which are named in their honour. But few know just how intricately both men were linked with the Irish Republican Brotherhood, the assassination of Sir Henry Wilson...
Honest Tom Steele (1788-1848) – Landlord and Repealer

Honest Tom Steele (1788-1848) – Landlord and Repealer

Aug 11, 2021

The story of a graduate of Cambridge, a landed proprietor of Clare, an inventor of diving bells and a veteran of the Spanish Republican army who served as Daniel O’Connell’s right-hand man for 24 years. Become a member of Turtle’s History Library to access...
The Life & Death of Kevin Barry (1902-1920)

The Life & Death of Kevin Barry (1902-1920)

Aug 11, 2021

Kevin Barry’s short life was full of firsts. He was the first person executed since the Easter Rising of 1916 and, as such, the 18-year-old medical student was the first person to be executed in the War of Independence. This story looks at his upbringing between...