Leitrim's Republican heritage remembered at John Joe McGirl commemoration
Leitrim's annual tribute to John Joe McGirl takes place in Ballinamore on 15 August, with a parade, music and an oration by TD Cathy Bennett.
People from Leitrim and the surrounding counties will gather in Ballinamore to remember John Joe McGirl, a legendary figure in Leitrim’s and Ireland’s Republican history on Saturday, 15 August.
This annual gathering is one of the highlights of Ballinamore’s festival week each year.
Leitrim’s greatest – Seán Mac Diarmada and John Joe McGirl
Leitrim people were prominent in the struggle for independence and unity throughout the centuries, as the horrors of British occupation impacted severely on the county.
It is generally accepted that the two most famous Leitrim men in this regard in the 19th century were Seán Mac Diarmada and John Joe McGirl.
Both men are appropriately remembered annually in Kiltyclogher and Ballinamore respectively.
John Joe dedicated his life to resisting British rule in Ireland. He was a leader locally and nationally.
In the process, he suffered severely, serving terms of imprisonment, mostly without trial, in the Curragh in the 1940s and 1950s and in Long Kesh in the 1970s.
He was also a TD and a County Councillor and was highly respected by people of all political persuasions. It is now almost 38 years since John Joe McGirl passed away in December 1988.
Fittingly, John Joe’s memory is commemorated in his home town of Ballinamore each year with a parade from the John McGahern Square to the McGirl monument at the other end of the town.
Oration by Cathy Bennett TD
This year’s parade will take place on Saturday, 15 August, starting at the Square at 8pm.
The parade will be led by the Mountain Road Pipe Band, and the oration will be delivered by Cavan/Monaghan TD, Cathy Bennett, who won her Dáil seat in last year’s General Election and has since established a reputation as a very efficient public representative.
There will be an Irish night in McGirl’s Pub immediately after the commemoration with Damien Quinn, well-known ballad singer from Newry.
In the case of inclement weather, the commemoration will be held in the Community Hall. Beidh fáilte roimh chuile dhuine a ghlacann páirt sa chomóradh stairiúil seo.