Great Blasket Island is the largest of a remote group of rugged and isolated islands off the coast of mainland County Kerry. For a long time, people living in Great Blasket Island struggled to make a living growing a small plot of potatoes and keeping a cow and maybe a few sheep. Residents of the island were so isolated that in order to reach a doctor, or even the shops, they had to travel three miles by boat and then five miles over land to the town.
When Great Blasket Island was most populated, it had about 150-200 people. Young people emigrated at a consistent rate over the years — most of them to Springfield, MA, USA. There were only 22 people living on the island when it was finally abandoned in 1953. One of them is Mike Carney, or Irish name: Mícheál Ó Cearna.
Mike Carney, now age 94, is the oldest living native Blasket Islander. He was born on the Great Blasket Island, an Blascaod Mór in Irish, in 1920. Raised in that unique, isolated Irish-speaking community, Mike left Great Blasket Island in 1937 to seek a better future in Dublin – and eventually in America. As mentioned above, not having a doctor caused many people to leave this island; his younger brother’s death on the island in 1947 was one of the events that instigated people to leave.
Mike eventually settled in Springfield, Massachusetts, with other former islanders. Even though he has been living in the States for a long time, he never let go of his love for the country of his birth. When he left his hometown to Dublin at the age of 16, where he first found work as a barman, he knew little English. However, not being able to speak English well didn’t really prevent him from settling down because he began writing columns as Gaeilge, Irish, for The Irish Press.
After emigrating to Springfield, MA, he worked as a grocery story manager, a security officer and became president of the John Boyle O'Reilly Club, which is dedicated to preserving and promoting Irish heritage; he held that position for 16 years.
He also played a pivotal role in the development of Ionad an Bhlascaoid, The Blasket Center, in Dún Chaoin. In 2009, he was awarded an honorary doctoral degree in Celtic literature from the National University of Ireland Maynooth.
He actually published a book titled, “From the Great Blasket to America: The Last Memoir by an Islander” in 2013. This is the story of his life and his memories of the Great Blasket to promote Irish culture in America. This book is written when Mike was turning 93, and it is assumed to be the last memoir that’s written by Blasket Islanders. There is a great news article that talks about how he has been living in details along with stories of his first and last visit home, Great Blasket, after leaving the island in 1937, in about 75 years, which happened last year.
Here is a video that shows him going to Great Blasket with interviews: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7gw78SWlNw
http://www.collinspress.ie/from-the-great-blasket-to-america.html
http://www.chooseireland.com/kerry/great-blasket-island/
When Great Blasket Island was most populated, it had about 150-200 people. Young people emigrated at a consistent rate over the years — most of them to Springfield, MA, USA. There were only 22 people living on the island when it was finally abandoned in 1953. One of them is Mike Carney, or Irish name: Mícheál Ó Cearna.
Mike Carney, now age 94, is the oldest living native Blasket Islander. He was born on the Great Blasket Island, an Blascaod Mór in Irish, in 1920. Raised in that unique, isolated Irish-speaking community, Mike left Great Blasket Island in 1937 to seek a better future in Dublin – and eventually in America. As mentioned above, not having a doctor caused many people to leave this island; his younger brother’s death on the island in 1947 was one of the events that instigated people to leave.
Mike eventually settled in Springfield, Massachusetts, with other former islanders. Even though he has been living in the States for a long time, he never let go of his love for the country of his birth. When he left his hometown to Dublin at the age of 16, where he first found work as a barman, he knew little English. However, not being able to speak English well didn’t really prevent him from settling down because he began writing columns as Gaeilge, Irish, for The Irish Press.
After emigrating to Springfield, MA, he worked as a grocery story manager, a security officer and became president of the John Boyle O'Reilly Club, which is dedicated to preserving and promoting Irish heritage; he held that position for 16 years.
He also played a pivotal role in the development of Ionad an Bhlascaoid, The Blasket Center, in Dún Chaoin. In 2009, he was awarded an honorary doctoral degree in Celtic literature from the National University of Ireland Maynooth.
He actually published a book titled, “From the Great Blasket to America: The Last Memoir by an Islander” in 2013. This is the story of his life and his memories of the Great Blasket to promote Irish culture in America. This book is written when Mike was turning 93, and it is assumed to be the last memoir that’s written by Blasket Islanders. There is a great news article that talks about how he has been living in details along with stories of his first and last visit home, Great Blasket, after leaving the island in 1937, in about 75 years, which happened last year.
Here is a video that shows him going to Great Blasket with interviews: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7gw78SWlNw
http://www.collinspress.ie/from-the-great-blasket-to-america.html
http://www.chooseireland.com/kerry/great-blasket-island/