Irish Folk Videos: Sound the Pibroch

A history lesson accompanied by music from Tommy Makem's boys...

About this Blog

First and foremost, please leave me a comment if you enjoy this collection. I would love to know that there are folks out there who enjoy the fruit of my labor in putting this blog together!

Now about the blog...

I'm an American who lives in Atlanta, GA. My family can trace back its roots to a Scotsman who settled in GA in the late 1700s. (see the "Roots" section below)

I became enamoured with Irish Music when I lived with, served in the Marines with, drank with, got arrested with, and generally tagged along with 2 or 3 guys from South Boston in the late 1990s.

Later I became a regular at a small pub in Norfolk, VA called Mo and O'Malleys where Don Bunch played every Thursday.

This music appeals to me because of its upbeat tempo, its narrative lyrics, the crowd interaction, and it frequent reference to the juice of the barley (to be consumed in moderation only, of course)!

I hope you will find something on this page that brightens your day.

Slainte!

My Celtic Roots

James Wilson was born around 1711 in Scotland. He married a woman named Mildred Moore and they had a child about 1740 in Benholm, Scotland also named James Wilson. James the younger joined his parents and siblings on a voyage to Larne, County Antrim, Northern Ireland about age 16. From there, the family went on to board the Snow "James and Mary" and cross the Atlantic to Charleston, SC.

We know that James Wilson (b. circa 1740) was a Revolutionary War soldier who fought as a Captain in the 10th NC Regiment from April of 1977 to May of 1778. He was in Valley Forge in 1778. A short time later he resigned from the 10th NC and joined the 4th SC Artillery. He was made a Capt-LT in Captain James Mitchell's company and ended up as a POW in May of 1780 as the British sacked Charleston. He was eventually exchanged and served with the 4th SC until the end of the war, leaving service as a Captain.

He received a Military Certificate of Georgia as a refugee soldier and was awarded a bounty land grant of 287.5 acres in Washington County, GA on April of 1784. In 1793 he received a Revolutionary War Bounty Land Grant in Effingham County, GA and he thereby established Oak Lawn Plantation.

About 1784, Capt. Wilson married Eliza Ann Gordon Pace and fathered Luke Wilson on June 1st of 1785. Capt. Wilson died on March 1st of 1825 and has been honored by the county of Effingham with a proclamation of October 8th, 2009 as "Captain James Wilson Day."

Luke Wilson was a private in Captain Donehoo's Company of Georgia militia in the War of 1812. He was also the Justice of the Peace for the 13th District, Effingham County from 1818-1824 and county coroner from 1838-1840. Luke married Patience Crawford on March 6th of 1806. They had a girl named Harriet on January 25th of 1814. Luke Wilson died April 23rd of 1861.

Harriet Wilson married the Reverend Benjamin Blitch circa 1831. Rev. Blitch was the grandson of Thomas Blitch, a Revolutionary War soldier killed at the Battle of the Brandywine. Rev. Blitch was an esteemed Baptist minister and missionary. He and Harriet had a daughter April 11th of 1852, Emma Azalea Blitch. Rev. Blitch died April 22nd, 1887...10 years after Harriet passed on November 12th, 1877.

Emma Azalea Blitch was a renowned Sunday School teacher in Effingham County, GA and married Robert Thomas Wolfe on April 19th of 1885. Emma was the first woman in my lineage to have the right to vote. Robert and Emma had a boy named Robert Solomon Wolfe on May 28th, 1889. SEmma Azalea Wolfe died of pneumonia on March 29th of 1928.

Robert Solomon Wolfe was a teacher who taught for 35 years in Appling County, GA. He also served as the Postmaster in Surrency, GA. Robert wrote a weekly column on history for the Baxley News Banner and had a radio show Sunday afternoons on WHAB. He married Allie Lavencia Dubberly on the 23rd of December on 1916. They had a daughter named Gwendolyn Lee Wolfe on October 23rd, 1928. Robert Solomon died on February 10th of 1962. In 1999 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Appling County Heritage Center.

Gwen Wolfe married Eron Knotz Tillmam, a supervisor at Crown, Cork, and Seal. They lived in Forest Park, GA. Gwen and Eron had (4) children including Frances Lavencia Tillman. Eron passed away on February 2, 1980 and Gwen passed away on April 11, 2005.

My mother, Frances Tillman married Buddy Allen "Skip" Glover in 1973. I was born January 14th, 1978. I married Tiffany Anne Wilson on October 1st of 2005. Yes, we are probably distant cousins, although I have not traced that connection yet. We had three boys.

Thus, I can trace my family line (albiet indirectly) back in time 300 years to a man named James born in Scotland. I must admit that most of this info was compiled by my great aunt Betty. She married Charles Wolfe, my grandmother Gwen's brother. It is her hard work and effort that is primarily to credit. Additionally, I need to thank my employer, the National Archives and Records Administration. During a rotation at the regional Archives in 2011, I was able to take some time and research my genealogy as a way to understand how we can help our citizen customers do the same

Irish Folk Videos

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Sound the Pibroch

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