No sooner had Kevin left us than the next presentation began. Dr. Gary Cavanaugh gave a talk on "Voices of the Wild Geese". In his introduction Gary echoed my feelings on genealogy. Too often people see the completion of a tree as an end in itself. I find the tree is just the beginning. It's knowing the people that comprise the tree and the lives they lead that I find the most interesting.

Gary had found a batch of letters sent back and forth between Kavanaghs who had been exiled or had chosen to serve in the army of the Austrian empire. Each letter brought to light the feelings and concerns of the author during a time that is distant and alien to us in the 20th century. He took us through the contents of some of the letters highlighting the interaction between mothers and sons, uncles and nephews.

Knowing the historical context in which the letters were written Gary was able to shed light on the significance of phrases, questions and promises contained in each. He touched on the worries of one young man hoping to achieve promotion and waiting for money from his mother that would help him achieve his goal. At the conclusion of his presentation we all realised that the more things change the more things stay the same. 

James (German Jim) Kavanagh "Of Kings and Things"

Up next was "German Jim" the Clann Genealogist. Jim's talk "Of Kings and Things" was a general discussion on queries and questions that come up again and again. He outlined the origin and importance of coats of arms. He gave tips on how to pursue apparent dead ends while tracking down relatives. Jim finished up with a talk on the twisted and tortuous routes he had travelled while researching the demise of a British warship called "Bredah" in Cork harbour.

With the conclusion of German Jims talk my time was up. Due to other engagements I had to return home. For the rest of the attendees however another night's craic lay ahead. An evening of story telling and song was scheduled to kick off around 7.30. No rest for the wicked.

I met many new faces  - all strangers and yet somehow I felt all of them to be family. The presentation of Kevin Whelan has made an impression on me. I regret not being able to stay for the rest of the weekend but all good things must come to and end. Still there's always the next one in 2002!

I highly recommend that you do all you can to joins us at the next event. Failing that contact the Clann Chaomhànach and find out if there is an event in your area. Even better - join the Clann organisation.

You can see a small selection of the people who attended here. The page may take a while to load......

The photographs in this section appear courtesy of Alena Sleptsova.