Coolkenno History

Anyone on here who remembers where they were when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on November 22nd 1963? Kennedy was the symbol of a new America and an example of how an immigrant family could become successful. His great grandfather had travelled to Boston in 1847 aboard 'The Dunbrody', a ship that also carried emigrants from the Coolattin Estate during the Famine period. During his visit to Ireland, some five months before his death, Kennedy witnessed a euphoria, possibly never witnessed to such an extent in this country beforehand. His image adorned walls of many Irish homes and his pleasant speeches adored and remembered by many. His helicopter journey from Dublin to New Ross is recalled by Coolkenno people as flying from across the mountains, over Captain's Hill in Munny in the direction of Wexford, where he would receive his homecoming in New Ross. Another interesting Kennedy connection to our area is that of Rev. Father John Joseph Cavanaugh, whose ancestors all hailed from the Coolkenno area. Cavanaugh was the Kennedy Family Chaplain and Dean of Notre Dame University. He was present at the Kennedy Compound at Hyannis Port when news trickled in about the assassination of the President. Cavanaugh was one of the priests who orchestrated the mass service of Kennedy in the White House before the burial at Arlington Cemetery.