Letter Archive
Welcome to the letter archive page for the weekly "Letter from Ireland". We started to write these letters in 2013 covering Irish Genealogy & Family History, Irish Surnames, Irish Culture & Customs and Ireland Travel, here you'll find a link to all of them.
Browse the letters listed on this page and jump to one that interests you, or enter a placename, surname or other item in the search box below to see related letters.
All of our weekly letters to date
As I sit here in my hotel room in Limerick waiting for my ride to get to the Shannon airport, I can’t help thinking about the ten days I’ve been here. I saw so much of this beautiful island that my ancestors called home. I think I went through at least half of the counties…
Dear Grandma Margaret (or I guess Maggie as they used to call you!), I know I never got the chance to meet you, since you passed just before I was born, but I felt your love through my father, and I hope you have felt my love right back. After many years of researching my…
Dear Family, we boarded our Aer Lingus flight to Shannon At Baltimore Washington International Airport (a 65th birthday Present from our Six children). Ron and I are full of expectations of what we imagine Ireland to be. This is our dream come true. As we circle to land at Shannon Airport, a look below reveals…
I don’t have to tell you how beautiful Ireland is, all of us have been here. Just thinking about our first visit “home” in 1968. It had been 20 years since Mom and Dad had seen their relatives, and much had changed. Remember the differences between staying at Mamo’s in the West of Connemara and…
I am writing this letter for all the people who have not been to Ireland, and to the people who yearn to return to Ireland! I recently read a quote that said “kindness is not an act. It is a lifestyle.” I hope to give some examples of this quote in my letter. My grandparents…
Our first stop was in the town of Castletownbere. It’s one of Ireland’s main fishing ports and is a busy little town and the commercial hub of the Beara Peninsula. We had to stop for a quick drink at the famous McCarthy’s Bar – made famous by appearing on the cover of a book by…
These are our favourite castles in Ireland – but I must admit, we have limited our selection to Irish castles that we have been to, photographed and enjoyed. I’m sure you have your own – some may be on our list and others may only be on yours!
I can’t believe the weather we were having for a June weekend – hardly a cloud in the sky, only a light breeze and warming up nicely! It was early on a Saturday morning – the roads were quite empty and we stopped at the little village of Ahakista just to take in the views…
The small village of Rathbarry (guess which family that was named after) and the nearby Castlefreke overlooking Long strand are our first stops along the way. We called to Castlefreke many times over the years – it has been abandoned and falling into decay since the mid-20th century. Apparently the last title-holder was a nationalist…
We pick up on our next leg of the Wild Atlantic Way – travelling from Skibbereen to Mizen Head in County Cork – after leaving Cape Clear behind us. This leg feels like “home territory” for me as I know the area well – my own family of Collins’ came from outside the village of Ballydehob.