One Irishman, two Great Escapes and a bit of Craic BY SHARON BARBA
WESTERN AUSTRALIA’S CONNECTION TO THE IRISH FENIAN STORY WAS THE FOCUS OF THE JOHN BOYLE O’REILLY WEEKEND COORDINATED BY THE FENIANS, FREMANTLE AND FREEDOM! (FFF) GROUP. Sixty-two Fenians were transported to Western Australian on board the Hougoumont in 1867, including John Boyle O’Reilly. O’Reilly was a talented poet, journalist, and editor and a widely respected advocate for many humanitarian causes. 36 | THE IRISH SCENE
The weekend tour traced John Boyle O’Reilly’s involvement in two dramatic escapes: his own bid for freedom in March 1869, and the rescue of six Fenians in 1876 on board the Catalpa, which O’Reilly was instrumental in facilitating. Margo O’Byrne, FFF Chairperson, was our expert guide throughout this fascinating journey through time and space. We were especially privileged to enjoy the company of two people with a direct connection to those heady days: Nicole Anderton, a descendant of William Anderton, a convict who arrived on the Hougoumont, and Anne Golden, who spoke to us about her ancestor, John Golden, a hero of the Kerry uprising. The tour kicked off from the Shipwrecks Museum in Cliff Street, the former Commissariat where O’Reilly and his fellow Fenians were processed upon arrival in Western Australia. Our coachload of Fenian enthusiasts drove past Fremantle Prison, the clink of iron chains ringing in our ears as we imagined the Fenians doing the “convict shuffle” from the harbour to the Establishment that dominated the port. From the prison, we shifted gear to 1876, following the six military Fenians sprung from their “tomb” by an elaborate sting spearheaded by Fenian escapemaster, John Breslin, following consultation with O’Reilly. Driving down Rockingham Road, it wasn’t difficult to imagine the pounding of horses’ hooves on the dusty road, the newly liberated Fenians huddled in the carriages as they hurtled towards their rendezvous with New
