Council appoints Historian in Residence
As part of the Westmeath County Council Decade of Centenaries programme, Ian Kenneally has been appointed Historian in Residence for the period from August until November 2020.
The residency is supported by the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht’s Decade of Centenaries 2012-2023 initiative, in partnership with Westmeath County Council.
Ian, who lives near Mount Temple, has a master’s degree from UCC and is a doctoral student in NUI Galway.
He has studied and written about Westmeath during the War of Independence and he will ensure that, while the commemorative programme will align with national policy, it will focus on County Westmeath and its environs.
“Ultimately, the goal of the residency is to provide the public with a trustworthy and enlightening source of information on Westmeath during 1920,” says a spokesperson for Westmeath County Council.
Kenneally is an author, historian, and documentary maker. His publications include ‘The Paper Wall: Newspapers and Propaganda in Ireland, 1919-1921’, ‘From the Earth, a Cry: The Story of John Boyle O'Reilly’, and ‘Courage and Conflict: Forgotten Stories of the Irish at War’.
He has also contributed to a variety of books including the ‘Atlas of the Irish Revolution’. Ian was editor of the very popular weekly series, ‘The Revolution Papers’, and he has contributed articles to numerous newspapers and magazines.
He has researched and scripted many documentaries, which have been broadcast on stations such as Midlands 103 and RTÉ Radio One, among others in Ireland and abroad. Among his radio documentaries are ‘The Cry of the Dreamer’, ‘You are to be Shot at Daybreak’, ‘The Story of Custume Barracks’ and ‘A Tale of Fenian Dreams’. Recently, an American film production company purchased the movie rights to his work on John Boyle O’Reilly.
More details on his work can be found at www.iankenneally.com. Follow the historian in residence programme at https://www.westmeathcoco.ie/decadeofcentenaries/