On This Day
One of the many things Dr Éamon was renowned for was his On This Day column in the Irish News.
Expertly chosen, the column chose a day in history and brought it in its significance to the modern reader.
The column was usually placed down the right-hand side of a news or features page, and the page number varied from edition to edition.
But wherever it was placed, the mix was variously enlightening, eclectic, sometimes sad, but always interesting.
Éamon loved doing the column, from the 1980s right up to late 2022. On This Day continues in the Irish News to this day under a new author.
These items are an invaluable historical record – old reports curated by an expert and brought to life again in modern media.
Over time we plan to greatly add to this collection of Éamon’s On This Day contributions. We are very thankful to Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and the Magill Trust for funding this project.
Please note:
The Foundation has worked hard to recreate Eamon’s distinctive voice through AI. Since this is an emerging technology, occasional imperfections may be audible.
On This Day – 14th October 1921
Publication date:
October 14, 2021
Reference date:
19211014
Stories Included:
1921: Truce disputes shadow the Irish Conference, Sinn Féin presses for the release of internees, the RIC faces possible disbandment and partition causes tensions in Silesia
Latest On This Day Posts
Published: January 26, 2021
On This Day – 26th January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: Edward Carson refused to head Northern Ireland’s new parliament, a dance raid by Specials in Tyrone left civilians wounded, and Derry leaders warned Partition would cripple the city’s economy
Published: January 23, 2021
On This Day – 23rd January 1971
Stories Included:
1971: Stormont and Westminster debates highlighted controversy over a Belfast curfew, the appointment of a Catholic chaplain, and fierce disagreement over Unionist plans to mark Northern Ireland’s 50th anniversary
Published: January 22, 2021
On This Day – 22nd January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: Police suffered major losses in Clare and Kerry, violence continued in South Armagh, Belfast’s Ulster Assizes closed, and Unionists predicted prosperity for the new Northern Parliament
Published: January 21, 2021
On This Day – 21st January 1971
Stories Included:
1971: Plans to redevelop Clifton Street graveyard sparked letters debating whether Henry Joy McCracken was truly buried there, or elsewhere in Belfast following his execution in 1798
Published: January 20, 2021
On This Day – 20th January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: Two internees were shot dead by a sentry at Ballykinlar camp, as a Labour investigation concluded Crown forces were responsible for the burning of Cork city
Published: January 19, 2021
On This Day – 19th January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: Wolfe Tone Precedent Invoked – A military court postponed the execution of a Cork prisoner after defence counsel cited the case of Wolfe Tone, arguing that precedent required civil rather than military jurisdiction
Published: January 18, 2021
On This Day – 18th January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: Partition’s impact became real as Derry No. 2 Rural District in Donegal was detached from Derry and annexed to Letterkenny – despite Unionist protests. A troop train was ambushed near Dungloe
Published: January 16, 2021
On This Day – 16th January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: Ulster Unionists urged Edward Carson to become Northern Ireland’s first PM — but the veteran unionist had never wanted partition. James Craig, not Carson, would shape the new state
Published: January 15, 2021
On This Day – 15th January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: Dublin was shocked by the assassination of William McGrath KC, a prominent barrister and former legal correspondent of the Irish News
Published: January 14, 2021
On This Day – 14th January 1921
Stories Included:
1921: The first Special Constabulary fatality, archaic laws revived and unexplained disappearances – 14 January 1921 showed how violence and fear were spreading across Ireland.
On This Day Posts by Year
Please select a year to see the series of articles written by Éamon.
Latest On This Day Posts
(384 Posts)
Published: November 24, 2020
On This Day – 24th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Tory cries of “Kill him” as Falls MP questions Dublin Croke Park massacre; Ireland Secretary defends Crown forces’ actions
Published: November 23, 2020
On This Day – 23rd November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Reports detail the aftermath of Dublin’s Bloody Sunday; IRA strikes Cairo Gang, British respond with Croke Park massacre
Published: November 21, 2020
On This Day – 21st November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Head Constable John Kearney gunned down in Newry; unionists advance plans for a new Ulster police force shorn of many RIC officers
Published: November 20, 2020
On This Day – 20th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: ‘Mrs Quinn was sitting on a road wall with a baby. She was shot and killed’
Published: November 19, 2020
On This Day – 19th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: British ministers challenged over shooting of prisoners; Greenwood’s ‘preposterous’ poison gas claim
Published: November 18, 2020
On This Day – 18th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Ireland’s growing tit-for-tat horror: priest abducted in Galway, three British military officers dragged from a Cork-bound train
Published: November 17, 2020
On This Day – 17th November 1970
Stories Included:
1970: ‘Unprecedented gangster-style double murder’ of two local men shocks west Belfast… and foretells the future
Published: November 16, 2020
On This Day – 16th November 1970
Stories Included:
1970: SDLP hailed their first electoral outing as an “honourable baptism”; Death of colourful nationalist intellectual Prof James Scott
Published: November 14, 2020
On This Day – 14th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Nationalist MPs accuse Ireland Secretary Sir Hamar Greenwood over British reprisals at Granard and Tralee
Published: November 13, 2020
On This Day – 13th November 1970
Stories Included:
1970: Stormont controversy over Ulster ’71 – come join the fun’ promotion as violence escalates
Published: November 12, 2020
On This Day – 12th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Lloyd George defends Partition, but ‘quintessential southern unionist’ Carson condemns the abandonment of southern Protestants
Published: November 11, 2020
On This Day – 11th November 1970
Stories Included:
1970: Arrests in Louth show IRA training camps are operating in the Republic