School: Long an Inbhair

On this page

1. (no title)

   “General Phil Sheridan, the hero of the American Civil War was born in the townland of Beagh in the parish of Killenkere, Co Cavan.”

   

   Share Share Post

   General Phil Sheridan, the hero of the American Civil War was born in the townland of Beagh in the parish of Killenkere, Co Cavan. His father was John Sheridan and his mother's maiden name was Mary Meenagh or Mooney also a native of the parish. They lived on four acres of bad land, and being unable to support their young family they emigrated to America.

   When Pat, Rose, and Phil were born, a neighbour Jon Smith of Coradu took the whole family on his cart from Beagh to Drogheda on their way to Liverpool. He always maintained there were three little children, two of them the mother led by the hands, the third a baby, she carried in her arms. This was in 1830 or 1831. Therefore the conquering hero of 1863-64 was the little baby borne in the mother's arms that had been conveyed in the gennit's cart from Beagh to Drogheda. In Washington there is a splendid statue of General Sheridan seated on his famous black horse. Another statue of the general is erected in Somerset, still another in Chicago. Albanny claims him as the place of his birth, and in 1916 a magnificent equestrian statue was unveiled there, but the statue should be in Beagh, Co Cavan.

   Collected by Mollie Smith from cutting from the local paper

   7th January 1938

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. time
      1. historical periods by name (~25)
         1. the great famine (~4,013)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Mollie Smith

   Gender

   Female