Category: Events-now

A Celebration of the life of Pte. Terence Joseph McMahon 1944-1997

On Saturday July 15th 2017 Balbriggan & District Historical Society hosted a Commemoration in honour of Pte. Terence Mc Mahon from Balbriggan who took part in the Siege of Jadotville in the Congo in 1961 at the age of just 16. The heroic efforts of the 155 soldiers of A Company 35th Battalion UN forces who held out against an opposition force of more than 3000 has been used as a case study for foreign armies but has only recently been acknowledged at home.

The really moving occasion, attended by a large crowd, commenced with a Commemorative Mass at St. Peter & Paul’s Church celebrated by Fr. Eugene Taaffe PP assisted by Fr. Anthony Gill and Fr. Liam Cuffe, son of Jadotville veteran Sgt Geoffrey Cuffe. with Irish United Nations Veterans Association Colour party in attendance. After Mass there was a parade to George’s Square where a Commemorative Plaque was unveiled by Mayor of Fingal Cllr Mary McCamley with Irish Defence Forces in attendance.

May McKeon spoke about her own memories of Terry as a boy growing up in Balbriggan and of her amazement when she heard the story of his involvement at Jadotville from his brother Anthony. When Terry returned home he never spoke about these events as they were ordered not to and even his own family didn’t know of his heroic past until recent years. Anthony praised the work of Jadotville Veteran John Gorman in campaigning to get their story told and Cmmt Leo Quinlan, son of Cmmt Pat Quinlan who commanded the troops at Jadotville gave an excellent talk on the Siege and on the campaign for recognition. It was poignant that among the many Defence Forces and UN veterans in attendance was Mick Dunne who himself was Veteran of Jadotville. Balbriggan & District Historical Society would particularly thank George Kirwan from the United Nations Veterans Association who spoke on the day, for all his help leading up to the event.

Before unveiling the plaque, Mayor of Fingal Mary McCamley said “It’s fitting that we have come together today to remember Terry, here in George’s Square where he was born and raised. It’s so important that we remember the contribution of Irish soldiers who have served with UN missions across the world.”
This was a fitting tribute to Terence and an important day for his native Balbriggan and his extended family, particularly his brothers John and Anthony and sister Julia, who travelled from America for the occasion. Balbriggan & District Historical Society would like to thank everyone, too numerous to mention who attended and assisted on the day to make this such a great occasion and acknowledge the generous support for this project from Fingal County Council and Heritage Officer Gerry Clabby.

For further information check out the film The Siege of Jadotville on Netflix which tells the story. Or check out the many links on YouTube that show actual footage or interviews in relation to the Siege.

Some samples:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vU7P7-zxEMI

Irish Troops in the Congo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9ZAAxeXk8s&t=226s
The Siege of Jadotville Trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_JHsiQTTmg

Day Trip – June 24

A great day was had on our day trip on June 24th. Thanks to Brian Howley snd Caitriona Chuinneagain for all their organisation.

Our first stop was in Dowth where we heard all about this historic area from our guide for the day Colin Byrne and visited the grave of John Boyle O’Reilly. We then visited Oldbridge House and the Battle of the Boyne site including the beautiful gardens where we were given an excellent talk on this historic battle. This is well worth a visit. On our walking tour of Drogheda we discovered some unique memorials in St Peters Graveyard and visited the impressive St Laurence Gate while Colin shared the facinaring history of Drogheda. The day finished with a beautiful meal in The Glenside.

Historical Walkabouts

We were delighted to welcome the Old Dublin Society to Balbriggan on May 20th  Jim Walsh led them on a very informative and enjoyable Historical walkabout. Then we finished up the day with some beautiful cakes in The Brick Room. We also had our usual walkabout as part of the Summerfest on Saturday 3rd June. A torrential downpour just before we were due to start didn’t deter the hardy historians and an enjoyable walk was led as usual by Jim Walsh, this year starting from the Sinéad Ní Fhlannagáin plaque which we helped organise as part of the 2016 commemoration. Looking forward to 2067 we contributed some memorabilia to the Time Capsule which was buried as part of the Summerfest and will be opened in that year.

Brian Howley, accompanied by Bernie Kelly and Anne Collins led a very enjoyable Historical walk with the enthusiastic young members of the Balbriggan Scouts 34th/161st cubs group on September 19th. Their were plenty of questions as Gaeilge as well as in English and they were delighted with our bilingual answers.

 

Fingal Heritage Network Local History Exhibition at The Atrium, County Hall, Swords

Members of heritage groups and historical societies from across Fingal gathered on Wednesday 19th April at County Hall to launch a Local History Exhibition. The exhibition presents a snapshot of heritage across the county and showcases the work of local heritage groups and societies. Groups and societies are active in holding annual lecture series, in running museums, in documenting oral history, in undertaking original research and publishing books, to mention just some of the many activities undertaken. Balbriggan & District Historical Society were delighted to showcase our Society at this exhibiton with photographs of the Sack of Balbriggan and also the commemoration of it’s 50th anniversary. Our exhibition also contained some memorabilia in relation to Terence McMahon who was a hero of the Siege of Jadotville and also some photographs from our activities in 2016.