Dr. Mark McGowan commemorates the beginning of the Great Irish Famine

Dr. Mark McGowan commemorates the beginning of the Great Irish Famine

On May 15, 2022, at the invitation of Ireland’s Taoiseach (Prime Minister), Micheál Martin, University of St. Michael’s College Principal Mark McGowan was part of a small group commemorating the 175th Anniversary of the beginning of the Great Irish Famine.

All Hallows College, Maynooth, Ireland
L-R: Irish Folksinger Declan O’Rourke, Dr. Mark McGowan, and Taoiseach Micheál Martin.

The memorialization took place on the grounds of the National Famine Museum, Strokestown, County Roscommon, where Mark has focused his research since 2013. He served on the Historical Advisory Panel for the newly renovated museum, soon to re-open in June 2022.

Dr. McGowan is an historian renowned for his work on the Catholic Church in Canada and the Great Irish Famine, as well as the lasting impact that the Famine’s mass migration had on Canada.

He is currently doing research in the archives of the old St. Patrick’s College and the collections of All Hallows College in Maynooth, Ireland.

Photo credit: Jason King, Irish Heritage Trust.