A Life in Pieces: William Twiss of Castleisland
John Twiss of Castleisland, wrongfully convicted of the murder of James Donovan in 1894 and hanged in Cork Gaol the following year, was Posthumously Pardoned on 16 December 2021 by President Michael D Higgins following a campaign by Castleisland District Heritage. In the wake of the Pardon, Castleisland District Heritage entered into a correspondence […]
‘Returning Ghosts’: The Unsolved Murder of James Donovan
‘Was it not the fact that the evicted tenant and the caretaker were on extremely bad terms, the tenant having on one occasion struck the caretaker on the face?’ – Arthur Smith-Barry, 1st Baron Barrymore, House of Commons, 1894[1] Castleisland District Heritage has acquired a copy of the travelogue, Now and in Time to Be […]
Remember Poff and Barrett: A Journey towards Justice
Go máire ainmneacha James Barrett agus Sylvester Poff go deo May the names of James Barrett and Sylvester Poff live forever Castleisland District Heritage will celebrate its tenth anniversary this year. Among the many projects undertaken during this period, two are of particular note, the Posthumous Pardon of John Twiss of Cordal, Castleisland in 2021, […]
Search for family of Edward Victor Twiss, Captain of the Royal Munster Fusiliers
Castleisland District Heritage has been contacted by Liam Brophy who has in his possession a photograph of Edward Victor Twiss whose family descended from Kerry. Liam found the image among the papers of his great great grandfather ‘Jack,’ otherwise John Thomas Greeves O’Sullivan of the 6th Connaught Rangers. Information on the back of the photograph […]
John Twiss of Castleisland: Family Links to the ‘New World’
Castleisland District Heritage awaits the outcome of its application for the Presidential Pardon of John Twiss of Castleisland, wrongfully hanged in 1895 for a murder he did not commit.[1] In the meantime, research into the family of John Twiss is ongoing. Research shows that many in his extended family left Ireland for the ‘New World,’ […]
‘Where is Glenlara?’: John Twiss of Castleisland, from a Cork Perspective
‘The dogs in the street knew John Twiss was innocent’ As the descendants of John Twiss, and the Michael O’Donohoe Memorial Heritage Project, await the outcome of the application for the Presidential Pardon of Twiss, hanged in 1895 for a crime he maintained he did not commit, a space is given here to reflect on […]
The Twiss Family of Ballahantouragh, Co Kerry
Has justice been done? Well, a day shall come When a different judge shall try … Ballahantouragh, a townland in Kerry, lies near the village of Scartaglen, a few miles outside Castleisland.[1] John Twiss of Cordal, Castleisland, hanged in 1895 for the murder, in 1894, of James Donovan, was descended from a branch of Twiss […]
John Twiss: Blood of Gentlemen
In the wake of the hanging of John Twiss on 9 February 1895, the county of Kerry was described as in ‘a frenzy of rage.’ The comment came from the president of Sinn Féin, John Joseph O’Kelly, better known as Sceilg, as he recalled a football tournament played in Killarney which he […]
Poff and Barrett: Guilty Until Proven Innocent
The arrest of Sylvester Poff and James Barrett is not regarded by the public as being of any importance and it is looked upon as being in the ordinary course of matters[1] Thomas Browne was murdered at Dromultan, Co Kerry on 3 October 1882. As far as can be ascertained, the murder took place at […]
Poff’s Farm: Recollections of Michael Marshall, formerly of Mountnicholas
Sylvester Poff, who with James Barrett was hanged on 23 January 1883 for the murder of Thomas Browne, was evicted from his farm at Mountnicholas, Co Kerry, in 1881. The dwelling house was demolished at the time of the eviction but the foundations remained. About twenty years later, the farm was sold by the […]
