Beannachtaí na Nollaig daoibh go léir !
Merry Christmas to all the Power, Powers, Poor, Poore, Pauer, de Paor and de le Poer families out there – and to everyone else who is a Power by blood, by kin or by affection !
We hope you all have a Happy and Peaceful Christmas and we’ll see you in June 2013 !
What are your Power Family Christmas traditions or do you celebrate the Christmas period at all, wherever you are in the world ?
Here in Waterford, we’ll be gazing out the window at the lashing rain (probably) while having friends and family around for a Christmas dinner of turkey and ham.
Christmas Eve traditions in Ireland involve visits to one another’s houses to wish each other well for the coming year (and maybe a small drink), attending midnight church services (now mostly at 9pm !) and ensuring the kids are in bed before Santa Claus comes !
Please let us know your Power Family Christmas traditions and wherever you are in the world, have a Happy and Peaceful Christmas time.
Samantha Power, originally from Castleknock in Dublin, is now Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs in US President Barack Obama’s administration. She is also a journalist and a Pulitzer Prize winning author. Power is also a graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law School.
Alongside her ardent support for Barack Obama, Power is a tireless worker in her efforts to increase public awareness of genocide and human rights abuses, particularly in the Darfur conflict. No Irish-born person in recent history has had such influence on a president. Power, now 40, moved to the US from Ireland at aged 10 and there is speculation that she could be the next US Secretary of State.
You can read Samantha’s own blog here and/or check out her White House profile here.
‘The Legend of the Gunner and the Buttermilk’ is a famous piece of local folklore that is associated with the seat of the Power Clan in Waterford, Ireland. Nobody really knows the origins of the tale that follows but it is certainly very entertaining to think on it and the events that happened to bring the villain Oliver Cromwell another lot of illgotten loot.
The legend goes that as Cromwell was attacking the castle in 1649, having pillaged his way across the entire country en route to safe havens for the winter, he came across the stout Dunhill Castle, atop a bleak hillside in Co. Waterford. It was then being defended by the lady of the house – Lady Power. Her husband was absent, defending another local castle from the Cromwellian forces – that of nearby Kilmeaden.
Cromwell’s men, tired and battle weary, could not take the castle easily, owing to its position and defences. During the siege, one of Lady Power’s gunners requested some refreshments for an attachment of his men defending the battlements. Not wanting her men to consume alcohol at the time, or perhaps from being particularly frugal, she is said to have sent the men some buttermilk instead of the beer they would have normally been expecting. The men were apparently insensed and the afrementioned gunner signalled to Cromwell’s men, and led them into the castle, taking it !
The gunner himself was promptly hanged as a traitor by Cromwell and hung from the castle walls … or so the legend goes !
In April of this year, Jonathan Powers of Clarence, New York, was appointed by President Obama to serve as the administration’s Federal Environmental Executive. Powers is an Iraq veteran and Chief Operation Officer for the USA’s Truman National Security Project.
In his government capacity, Jon is responsible for promoting environmental and energy sustainability across government operations. He regularly contributes to “The Blog” at the Huffington Post – see some of his articles here and here. He also appeared recently on Irish TV when the documentary called “How to Fold a Flag” ran on TV3.
PS : Did the world end wherever you are ?
The la Poer (Power) family of Dunhill were an infamous clan in the 14th century, as they launched many attacks on Waterford City. In one particular assault, in 1345, they destroyed the area around city but were counter-attacked, taken prisoner and many hanged.
The remaining members of the Power clan joined forces with the O’Driscoll family of Cork. This alliance would attack Waterford City many times over the next 100 years, with both success and failure. After a defeat in Tramore in 136,8 the castle of Dunhill passed to the Powers of Kilmeaden. It remained in their control until the Cromwellian attack on Dunhill and its first capture (The Legend of the Gunner and the Buttermilk) in 1649. It is said that out of this house (Dunhill Castle), all the Powers of Ireland descend.
As part of the Power Clan Gathering 2013, we will be inviting Powers from all around the world to come back home to take part in a re-enactment of the battle to take Waterford City and will also be holding a week long exhibition in the Tramore Coast Guard station on the Power family history. As well as these events, guided tours of Tramore and Dunhill and it’s connection with the Power family will be held.
There will also be “A Day at the Races” where we will be holding the Power
Family chase.
Here is a link to Canadian Ambassador’s Waterford City interview on WLRfm last week, as he launched the Power Clan Gathering 2013.
Listen to the full interview here - Noctor til 6 CLIP
Don’t forget you can also check us out on Facebook !
‘The Forgotten Irish’ is a community of Irish people living over two thousand miles from Ireland in Newfoundland, Canada, whose ancestors left their home country six generations ago. Have a look at this Radharc program from RTÉ’s archives, looking at a colony of Irish people for whom time has stood still.
http://www.rte.ie/archives/exhibitions/1378-radharc/355628-the-forgotten-irish/
A group in Newfoundland is working with the Power Clan Gathering steering committee in Ireland to facilitate air travel and accommodations for the Power Clan event next June. The package will also include optional tours to other parts of Ireland. For more information, email PowerClanNL@gmail.com
Wow – what a story we have for you today.
Click here to download the remarkable story of Maurice Marty Powers of New York, who was posted to the Australian outback when serving as a gunner in the Army Air Corps of America during World War II.
His gripping Australian adventure takes him from Harlem to Darwin, Australia and from Borneo to California …
His story is told with humour and humility – we can all be proud of this man bearing the Powers surname.
There are lots of surviving church records in Waterford City and County – most of these are available in some for or another on FamilySearch and Ancestry.com but the most comprehensive index as to what records exist can be downloaded here.
As with all records, it is essential to know the place of origin of your ancestor – parish is the most obvious one, as this is how these records are broken down. Also have a look at this resource from Waterford City Council Library Service, which details other church records available.
