The Land Commission Migrations Of Western Seaboard People To County Kildare [58-minute radio doc]

This 58-minute radio documentary is entitled "Let’s Go East - Uncovering The Story Of The Land Commission Migrations of Western Seaboard People To County Kildare During The Twentieth Century"
Theme of radio documentary:
When Ireland became independent from Britain in 1922, many major land issues were left unsolved and uneconomic farm holdings were still the main cause of rural poverty along the congested districts of the Western seaboard. To try solve this problem, the first major social reform legislation that the new Free State government introduced was the 1923 Land Act, which gave a newly created Irish Land Commission the necessary powers to carry out compulsory purchases and redistribute land. Over the next five decades or so (from the 1920’s to the 1970’s), large numbers of Western seaboard families from counties such as Mayo, Galway and Kerry migrated to eastern counties like Kildare and settled on land which they purchased (on a loan repayment basis over many years) from the Land Commission, in exchange for their uneconomic Western holdings. Fortunately, the vast majority of these families very quickly integrated into their new communities, bringing new energy, industry, imagination and vision to them.
This 58-minute radio documentary investigates the phenomenon of those Land Commission families who successfully settled in County Kildare from the 1920’s to the 1960’s, with a particular focus on: 1. The reasons why these families migrated in the first place; 2. The challenges they faced in uprooting from their ancestral county and moving to Kildare (which most knew little about), as well as how they overcame such challenges; 3. Their successful integration into their new communities and how they ultimately helped empower them and the wider county - with once depopulated areas getting new people, schools getting new pupils, GAA teams getting new players, and the list goes on.
More than anything else, this documentary shows how the settlement of Land Commission people in County Kildare was an overwhelming success, with many of the children and grandchildren of the original settlers achieving huge success in countless spheres of endeavour in County Kildare, from politics to sport, business to community enterprises, and much more.
Please note:
(1). All music in this documentary is from the album Lán D’Áthas, which was produced by the music group Ceol Ón Sráid.
(2). This documentary is to be downloaded for non-profit purposes only, in adherence with the universal truth: “What you do for yourself dies with you, what you do for others lives forever. It is eternal".
* Image depicts land commission house.

[@SallinsLocalHistorySociety]

Wonderful documentary, well done Paul and everyone involved!

[@brianoconnor3656]

Great documentary. Well done all.

[@owendoconnor]

Great documentary but important to note that the Irish Land Commission was established in 1843 by Robert Peel's Conservative government under Queen Victoria to "inquire into the occupation of the land in Ireland". By 1885 its powers were extended to divest absentee landlords of their dilapidated estates and transfer the farmland to tenants. Like other government bodies, the Land Commission was transferred to the Irish Free State in 1922.

[@liamkenny99]

Well done Paul

[@paulwright3827]

Cheers Liam. The true star of this radio documentary is 106-year old Bernard Campbell, who discusses his life and love of dairy farming. It was an absolute privilege and pleasure to interview this gentleman.

[@padowado]

Excellent job Paul....Thanks for doing this...Patrick Heneghan

[@martinmoran2285]

excellent documentary, congradulations to all involved.