200 Years Since my Great-Grandfather’s Birth

In mid-August 2025 I attended a conference in Glenmalure marking the 200th anniversary of the death of Michael Dwyer, one of the leaders of the 1798 Rebellion in Wicklow.  Two hundred years seems a very long time.  The world has changed so much during my lifetime.  In...

McAllister – a monument with history

At the age of 116, Sam McAllister is the oldest resident of Baltinglass.  He has stood at the centre of Main Street since his unveiling on 8 May 1904.  He has become a symbol of Baltinglass and even a minor place-name.  People often meet ‘at McAllister’.  Pop-up...

Derrynamuck and Cocoon: only four degrees of separation

On a cold February night in the Glen of Imaal, Co. Wicklow, in 1799 it would have seemed unimaginable luxurious to those trying to stay warm that people in the future would swim in heated man-made pools.  Rebels on the run hardly thought about such things.  Telling...

Sam McAllister: Our Oldest Resident

​If you were to take a photograph to capture the essence of Baltinglass you might think of a general view of the town from the Carlow Road, or one of the Abbey from across the river.  But you’re as likely to think of the McAllister monument as your symbol of...