Fr Louis O’Kane Collection Recordings

Between 1963 and 1970 Fr Louis O’Kane interviewed and recorded more than 80 veterans of the War of Independence, exploring their experiences up until the truce of 1921. The majority of those interviews were of people from Ulster, primarily from counties Antrim, Armagh, Derry and Tyrone. However, O’Kane also travelled to various parts of Ireland to speak with those who had left the north and settled elsewhere. He also interviewed some who had emigrated to the United States of America. Their stories add greatly to the narrow scope of witness statements and pension claims undertaken by the Free State government and provide a unique series of northern voices that would otherwise have been lost. Here those recordings are made available thanks to support from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Dublin and National Lottery Heritage Fund.