• From County Cork to the Bright Lights of Broadway and Chicago (#833)

  • Aug 17 2023
  • Length: 24 mins
  • Podcast

From County Cork to the Bright Lights of Broadway and Chicago (#833)

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  • Summary

  • In this episode we tell the story of not one, but two, Irish families that came out of the area surrounding the town of Bantry in West Cork, Ireland.

    The first story shares the story of Francis O'Neill who emigrated to the USA and Chicago - eventually becoming a chief of police. More importantly, he became an avid collector and preserver of traditional Irish music. The healthy state of Irish traditional music today owes a lot to the efforts of this one man.

    We then follow the Keohane family who left the area in the early 1800s. On arrival in the USA, their name changed to "Cohan" and their grandson is the broadway composer we know today as "George M. Cohan".

    We also have lots of wonderful Irish songs and music to help us along the way - so do enjoy!

    Music featured in this episode:
    • "Chief O'Neill's Favourite Hornpipe" performed by Willie Clancy.
    • "City of Chicago" performed by Christy Moore.
    • "Yankee Doodle Dandy" performed by Jimmy Cagney and Bob Hope.

    Support the Letter from Ireland Show:

    Thank you for listening to the Letter from Ireland show. To support the podcast, get lots of member-only features and follow Mike and Carina behind the scenes as they travel around Ireland go to ALetterfromIreland.com/plus .
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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.