| “I Heard They Went To New York”
 By the 1930s,
an influx of Irish immigrants from Monaghan to New York had brought with
them a great deal of the cultural and social traditions of their homeland.
In the Monaghan County Museum, Ireland, a photographic exhibit opened
on April 17, 2008, which tells the tales of many of these families and
their lives in New York.
The exhibit, which runs through July, represents the strong connection
these immigrants had to their heritage and their dedication to maintain
a sense of Irish culture for their children.
The distance from the land that was once home resulted in many lost connections
and open-ended stories of relatives who had gone abroad. But thanks to
Terri Cook, the story of how the Monaghan Society helped keep Irish culture
alive in New York has been revealed through the medium of photographs.
 The Society, which
is still in operation, was founded in 1891as a social and cultural organization,
and grew to include a Gaelic football team and fife and drum band. Cook
began to research the continuation of the Monaghan Society in America,
after contacting the Monaghan Museum Curator, Liam Bradley, about old
photographs her cousins had discovered.
“In the 1930’s, members of the Monaghan Society created a
magical circle and immersed their children in their culture and traditions.
They kept all the traditions established in the 1890’s when the
society was first established – the annual Communion Breakfast,
the November Ball and the grandest celebration of all – St. Patrick’s
Day,” Cook told Irish America recently. “The exhibition holds
many of these images along with press clippings reflecting their assimilation
into New York Society. But the reality was they never really left Monaghan,
and I thought the best way to thank them for our cultural inheritance
was to bring them home. Their spirit – indomitable and courageous
– never ceased to inspire us and it can be felt as visitors stroll
among images looking for familiar faces.”
– By Tara Dougherty |
