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Tag: Irish

1929 Cassidy wedding
The honeymoon letter

The honeymoon letter

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There was never any question about Joseph Malachy Regan: He was the family patriarch. One glance at this photo says it all: The newly married couple is Cecelia Margaret Regan Cassidy and Francis Raymond Cassidy, my maternal grandparents. The setting is New Haven, Connecticut, on June 24, 1929. And who is that white-haired gentleman sitting between the newlyweds? That’s Grandma’s beloved father, Joe Regan, called “Pop” by his descendants. I guess the seating plan makes sense, as Grandma’s attendants (Grandpa’s…

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Rot, the story of the Irish potato famine
A month of reading Rot

A month of reading Rot

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Another month comes to a close, a month of Rot. By this I mean one book in particular was so disturbing, I had to keep putting it down during the month. Finished it a few days ago, thankfully, even though I knew what the ending would bring. Book 1: Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild I enjoyed this children’s novel as an adult, but would have loved it (and, apparently, the entire series) as a grade schooler. In short, three non-related…

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1970 Willie Kelly letter to Grandma Cassidy
‘Poor old Ireland …’

‘Poor old Ireland …’

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For weeks now, I’ve had a hunch that there was at least one more letter from Granda Willie to Grandma Cassidy in the great stacks of letters that still await me in boxes and baskets. Sure enough, Grandma‘s distinctive penmanship caught my eye. She had tucked several letters into an envelope and then written a “Keep This!” command to the future on the envelope itself. The envelope contained one letter from her father, one from her mother, and one-and-a-half letters…

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1929 Robert Vayo cemetery receipt
The folded paper

The folded paper

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I’m not sure any one piece of paper ever made me as sad as this. It’s the receipt from my Uncle Robert’s grave: The receipt’s date is June 3, 1929. The amount of $2.00 would cover the care of the infant’s grave. Another $10 was paid the next day to Edward McCarthy, who dug the tiny grave. If that’s not sad enough, there was a note from one of Dad’s sisters in his wooden keepsake box. It explained that Grandpa…

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Bill, Bunny, Cady
Love, Bunny

Love, Bunny

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“Bunny, I wish you were my godmother.” I’ll never forget the look on Bunny’s face. We were standing at the bottom of the stairs in my parents’ home. It must have been around Christmas and I was home from college. Indiana to Connecticut didn’t happen too often; it was good to be around family. My Mom’s younger sister’s face brightened into a beautiful smile. She told me she’d have been glad to be my godmother. (For some reason, my parents…

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RMS Caronia public domain
Aboard the RMS Caronia

Aboard the RMS Caronia

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Her first crossing of the Atlantic was in 1905. At that time, the RMS (Royal Mail Ship) Caronia was the largest ship in the Cunard Line fleet. Caronia’s maiden voyage departed Liverpool on February 25th of that year, destined for New York. On April 14th seven years later, Caronia transmitted the first ice warning to the Titanic, reporting “bergs, growlers and field ice.” It was more than a decade later that Irishman William John Kelly stepped onboard Caronia. Willie was…

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1980s Granda Willie Kelly
Granda Willie Kelly

Granda Willie Kelly

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As I sat down to write this story, it seemed fitting to tune in to one of the Irish music channels on my satellite-radio app. The first song? Molly Malone. That was one of Dad‘s favorites. When I’d gingerly play it on the piano as a kid, he’d burst in from wherever he was in the house or yard, singing: In Dublin’s fair city … Pardon me while I wipe my eyes. What have we here? Another letter to Grandma…

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newspaper masthead with 444 address for school
Her favorite number

Her favorite number

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Do you have a favorite number? (I don’t …) Mom sure did. She loved the number four. And so when I saw this was TooMuchBrudders Blog Post Number 444, it was time to pause. Mom was born in April, the fourth month. She married Dad on the fourth of November, 1952. She had four children. For the heck of it, I looked up the number 444. According to Dictionary.com, it’s an “angel number,” with lots of positive attributes attached. Checking…

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1963 My dear Mrs Cassidy
My Dear Mrs. Cassidy

My Dear Mrs. Cassidy

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How charming is that? Inside an Air Mail envelope, a handwritten letter. From Irish cousin to American cousin, yet with a rather formal salutation. Grandma must have loved it! Of course she did; she saved it. Then Mom saved it. And now I’ll share it: My Dear Mrs. Cassidy, You must forgive me for not answering your letters, I do trust this note will make up for my mistacks. I was sorry to hear of your mother’s death. R.I.P., too…

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1933 Ginny Cassidy's yearbook photo
‘Fleshing the Bones’

‘Fleshing the Bones’

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Mom dearly loved her aunt Ginny. The youngest of Grandpa Cassidy‘s siblings, Ginny lived her entire life on Lombard Street in New Haven. Virginia Anne Cassidy came into this world on December 11, 1915. This was a full 22 years after her oldest brother, John, was born. Grandpa was 15 years older than Ginny. After all these years, it’s only now coming to me that Mom must have been named for her. Virginia was Mom‘s middle name. This is the…

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