The Gallaghers of Ballinrobe
IN MARCH 2020, Pat Gallagher had an idea. He asked his brother, Owen, what he thought of writing a book about the family of their father, James Gallagher, who grew up in the early decades of the 20th century in the West of Ireland in the small town of Ballinrobe, County Mayo. The shutdown from COVID-19 was just beginning, and the thinking was they would have more time on their hands than usual. What better way to spend quarantine than exploring the stories of our aunts, uncles and other relatives. The task turned out to be much more complicated (and rewarding) than anticipated. It involved sifting through ship manifests, census, birth and marriage records, newspaper archives, and, most enjoyable, sessions delving into the memories of extended-family members. Sorely missed was the chance to hear first-hand the tales from our deceased cousins John O'Brien and Pete Gallagher. This book's stories and more than 500 images are the result of the past year's journey. The goal was both simple and ambitious: making the memories of the Gallaghers of Ballinrobe ours forever.
IN MARCH 2020, Pat Gallagher had an idea. He asked his brother, Owen, what he thought of writing a book about the family of their father, James Gallagher, who grew up in the early decades of the 20th century in the West of Ireland in the small town of Ballinrobe, County Mayo. The shutdown from COVID-19 was just beginning, and the thinking was they would have more time on their hands than usual. What better way to spend quarantine than exploring the stories of our aunts, uncles and other relatives.
The task turned out to be much more complicated (and rewarding) than anticipated. It involved sifting through ship manifests, census, birth and marriage records, newspaper archives, and, most enjoyable, sessions delving into the memories of extended-family members. Sorely missed was the chance to hear first-hand the tales from our deceased cousins John O'Brien and Pete Gallagher. This book's stories and more than 500 images are the result of the past year's journey. The goal was both simple and ambitious: making the memories of the Gallaghers of Ballinrobe ours forever.
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Mary Juliana was the first grandchild for
Aunt Delia and Uncle Mike. There are
now eight grandchildren already raising
the next generation.
would have shared the joys as the Gallaghers of Ballinrobe
celebrated marriages, births and graduations in their
adopted homeland.
Simple things such as a favorite little tale from
Uncle Tom would always bring pleasure for Aunt Delia. It
was a story about an Irishman who, though he was only in
America for a short time, acts as though all things Irish are
but a distant memory. Everything in America is
exaggerated, and everything in Ireland is diminished. It was
Uncle Tom’s telling of the story that drew the laughs. “A
Yank came home to Ireland after visiting America for only
a few months,” Uncle Tom would recount, often at the
urging of Aunt Delia’s daughter. “He was in Ireland for the
planting and home again to help with the harvest. And as he
stepped into the house he said, ‘Well, Father, you look dang
old! Mother, is that the same old bonnet still?” (Even the
family cat was not spared.) “And who’s the long-tailed
bugger in the corner?” Things in America would be
exaggerated the other way, “Buildings in New York are so
tall, they have to lower the chimneys just to let the moon
pass by,” the story would continue. Each re-telling would
result in fits of laughter.
There would be plenty of shared family
experiences through the years. They ranged from Uncle
Jim getting into a precedent-setting legal predicament as a
juror due to his relationship with John O’Brien, then a
deputy attorney general in Delaware, to the unfortunate
demise of a duck named Gallagher in the driveway of the
DeAscanis home in New Castle.
A theme that is part of many a Gallagher story is
that no one in the family would tolerate being taken
advantage of. It violated their sense of justice, held
especially strong by Irish women. It’s a key part of a story
about a particular trip to Atlantic City. As part of the outing,
Aunt Ann, Aunt Delia and her daughter stopped at several
auction booths on the Boardwalk and noticed something
wasn’t quite right. Aunt Delia eventually was interested in
making an offer on an item. However, she noticed two
people had been bidding up prices but never actually
buying anything. Aunt Delia and Aunt Ann realized the pair
must be in cahoots with the auctioneer. The conspirators
unfortunately tried to bid up the price on the item Aunt
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