By Seán Collins

An excellent podcast by Australia based Drogheda man Enda Murray brought back memories of his father, Sean, a great G.A.A. supporter and activist, who had made Drogheda his home.

As part of the Drogheda 800 celebrations in 1994, the Louth G.A.A., through the good offices of Sean Murray, brought Marcus de Burca the renowned G.A.A. historian to address the Drogheda G.A.A. members at the Droichead Arts Centre in Stockwell St.

Sean kindly invited me to respond to De Burca’s lecture. On the night Danny Nugent, Felix Hackett, Martin Judge, and a multitude of local G.A.A stalwarts attended.

In the course of a conversation after the event Marcus asked if I had ever heard of the Drogheda men who had been deported to Australia for their part in the Fenian Rebellion in 1867.

I told him that I had and he then amazed me by saying he had photographs of them. All the Fenian convicts had been photographed before their transportation to Australia, a new innovation of the British authorities at the time.

De Burca revealed that one of his ancestors, who had worked in the prison service and was a Fenian sympathiser, had acquired the pictures.

Before he passed away De Burca donated the collection of sixty-seven pictures to the National Archives. But in 1994 he gave me copies of the Drogheda men, brothers Luke and Laurence Fulham, Patrick Wall, Robert May and undoubtedly the best-known John Boyle O’Reilly.

John Boyle O’Reilly had been arrested and charged with sedition in 1865. He was detained in various prisons including Dartmoor until his deportation in 1867.

The four Drogheda men were arrested after the events of Shrove Tuesday 1867 when the Fenians gathered at the Potato Market (Bolton Square) in the town. The five ended being transported on board the ”Hougoumont”, the last ship to carry convicts to Australia on the 30th September 1867.

In February 1869 John Boyle O’Reilly escaped from captivity in Australia and made it successfully to the U.S.A., a cause of great celebration among the Clan na Gael movement there.

Barely three months later, in May 1869, 34 Fenians were granted free pardons, among them the four Drogheda men. They could continue to live and work in the colony if they wished or they could leave.

Subsequently Patrick Wall and Robert May sailed for Sydney on the 21st September. Wall went to San Francisco and it is believed Robert May returned to Drogheda but I have never been able to trace him. There was a Mayor of Drogheda in the 1880’s named Robert May but I do not know if it was the same person.

Luke and Lawrence Fulham stayed in Australia and returned to their trade as shoemakers. At the time of their deportation they were described as both being "middling stout".

Lawrence (37), was 5’6”, had dark hair, dark grey eyes, a long visage and sallow freckled complexion. Luke aged 45yrs was 5’8’, with balding light brown hair, light grey eyes, a long visage and healthy complexion. He had sported several cuts on his forehead, and a cut above the right ankle (do the pictures match the descriptions?).

Both were single, shoemakers by trade, literate and subscribed to the Roman Catholic religion. Though born at Agher near Summerhill in County Meath, at the time of their arrest they were living in James St, Drogheda. Elizabeth English, their sister and next of kin lived at Old Hill.

Luke died in 1870 and Lawrence in 1872 in Perth, they were both buried in Freemantle. Thanks Sean Murray for the opportunity, thanks Marcus de Burca for the pictures, well done and thanks Enda Murray for the reminder.