Gaels Celebrate GAA Foundation Day
Gaels from across Ulster descended on the Cardinal Ó Fiaich Library and Archive, in Armagh on Sunday evening last, to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the GAA’s foundation.
Exactly 125 years on from the inaugural meeting of the GAA in Thurles, the event in Armagh, in conjunction with the Ulster Council, explored the Ulster connection to two GAA founders: Michael Cusack and John McKay.
The first of the two lectures kept the audience intrigued as Michael Anderson outlined Michael Cusack’s early career in Co. Down and the subsequent family tree of the Cusack and Woods families of Dromore to the present day.
Kieran McConville followed with his lecture, ‘The Search for John McKay’, an account of several recent important findings about a largely forgotten GAA founder and secretary. Kieran revealed how McKay’s unmarked grave was located in London in 2009 after many years of mystery, and how it emerged that he was actually a Co. Down native who worked as a journalist in four cities.
The special evening also featured a special reading of GAA patron Dr. Croke’s famous letter to Michael Cusack in 1884, which is often regarded as the founding charter of the association.
The evening, was part of the ongoing Heritage Lottery Funded Outreach programme at the Ó Fiaich Library, and Gaels of all ages enjoyed exploring the interesting GAA archives that were on display. The lectures certainly helped to bring the history of the last 125 years to life for the intrigued audience.
Photo Caption: Patrons of the Cardinal Ó Fiaich Library and Archive, in Armagh remember the importance of GAA Founders Michael Cusack and John McKay.
