Mary Rohan (part 1)

The home of Mary Rohan was the venue for the compilation of this wonderful recording. She has an outstanding recall of past events and a great ability to articulate her story, at the grand age of 101. The recording was made in four sections. This first section deals with the circumstances surrounding her father’s emigration to America, where he took up a job as a longshoreman. He emigrated from Bere Island. His name was Michael Martin Sullivan, and Mary discusses how he acquired the surname of Martin. Her mother’s maiden name was Harrington, and she was also from Bere Island. They met and married in Boston, and returned home to Castletownbere, where they reared a family. Mary remembers being brought to Cork city on the train, before 1916, and visiting the wholesalers where they would buy merchandise for their grocery business in Castletownbere. The family made great sacrifices for their three children in order to send them to boarding school. It is remarkable to listen to Mary as she describes her memories of the outbreak of the Great War.