Joan Killian Gallagher FamilyNew Longford IFHF Centre!On June 20, 2023, The Irish Family History Foundation announced that "The Killian Homeplace Family History Centre has been appointed as the County Longford centre for the IFHF. The Killian Homeplace, winner of the 2013 All Ireland Pride of Place in the Diaspora category, is located in Fermoyle, just outside Lanesborough in County Longford.
"Founded in 1998 by Joan Killian Gallagher, the centre is housed in a meticulously restored cottage and is a sustainable tribute dedicated to the memory of her great, great grandmother, Anne Furey Killian, who against all odds, purchased the farm from the Land Commission in 1893. She was 82 years old and had been widowed for over 30 years. Joan reconnected with Killian cousins in Longford and Roscommon in 1996 when she took her father to the Notre Dame Navy game in Dublin. This was the beginning of a journey of joy and discovery that Joan hopes to share with those in search of their own family history and place of origin in County Longford. It is this life changing cultural and educational exchange that is the mission of The Killian Homeplace Family History Centre.
"The team of dedicated researchers and highly qualified genealogists at The Killian Homeplace are looking forward to working with members of the global diaspora as well as the local community in putting together their own County Longford family history and finding their place of origin. You can see what Longford records are online at Roots Ireland here and can learn more about our new centre here and here. "The County Longford Centre will be open initially on Friday afternoons from 1 to 4 pm, on Saturday mornings from 10 to 1 pm, in addition to hours by appointment. Opening hours will be extended as demand increases." Contact details are below: Website: www.thekillianhomeplace.com Email: longfordroots@thekillianhomeplace.com Phone: + 353 (0) 86 395 2557 The Story of the Killian Homeplace, Fermoyle, County Longford, Ireland
"In March 1998, I was the successful, mystery bidder at a packed land auction in the town of Longford, Ireland. The building boom had not yet hit, and it was the first sale of a family-held farmland in three years. My purchase included 24 lush acres of magnificent rolling hills and a derelict farmhouse that had been uninhabited for more than six decades. But, I had found my dream. "The magic for me flowed from the fact that it was a Killian farmhouse, the other half of the ancestral Killian Homeplace where my great-grandfather, Laurence Killian, was raised, the eldest of the nine children of Luke and Anne Furey Killian." - From "Going Home: An Ancestral HomePlace in Ireland," Enterprising Women In 2013, the Irish Tourist Board sponsored The Gathering to encourage those with irish ancestry to return to Ireland to be part of specially organised local gatherings and events during the year. The Navy v Notre Dame game helped launch The Gathering. The Killian homeplaceJ hosted Notre Dame students and professors for volunteering and reflection.
In 2015 a group of American students spent a weekend in Fermoyle under Notre Dame’s Irish Internship Program. Students work in Dublin alongside Irish employees and gain valuable pragmatic experience. But the program also immerses the students in Irish culture, including the Killian homeplace. See: Reflective Weekend in Longford, by intern Emily Fortner. In 2019 an updated story about the Killian Homeplace was done: "The Heart of Ireland," Enterprising Women. In May 2022, Niall Martin did a ten-minute interview about the Killian Homeplace for Nationwide, a prime-time program on RTÉ, the Irish TV station. See: Killian Homeplace Interview on RTÉ.
Ringfort. The Killian Homeplace includes a third home, Rita's Cottage. It is across the road from the Killian Home and Cottage in Townland of Formoyle (Farrell). Rita Shea Connolly, who was born there, sold it to Joan Killian Gallagher in 2000. It includes an ancient ringfort, or cashel, which is about 175 feet in diameter.
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