Corkonians Abroad: I’m one of 10... 7 of us emigrated

Q: Where are you from originally, James, and what was life like there?

I am originally from Cobh in Cork Harbour, one of 10 - seven of whom moved overseas to Australia, London, Manchester, Philadelphia, Germany, etc.

I did all the sporting stuff while young and got to a first degree black belt in 1985.

I completed my electrical apprenticeship in Verolme dockyard and aquired the City & Guilds Electrical Engineering A and B through night class at the regional tech college in Bishopstown .

Q: What drove you to move to another country?

The economy virtually collapsed, it was very sudden. Ford, Dunlop, Verolme, Irish Steel, maritime transport, and transport companies all suffered. Families just walked out of their houses and over to relatives in the UK.

I saw 11 full buses a day leaving for Rosslare on the way to London, everyone was on the move, it was huge but not very well publicised, and we all had places to go.

Los Angeles’ Olympic stadiums were under construction... it was a huge wave of Irish emigrants going all over the world, it was an amazing human event. I still can’t comprehend how many people were on the move, it was huge.

Q: Where do you live now, and what is it like there?

I live in the Australian national capital, Canberra. We have a very good climate, we get the seasons more so than anywhere else in Australia. Winter is cold, summer is hot, but not to the extreme.

We have all the national institutions here, everything is new, it’s a new city and well maintained with a very well educated population, great for families.

Q: Do you have family where you live now?

I am the only member of my family in Australia. I have a boy and two girls, one is married and lives in Melbourne with her husband and two boys, and my son lives and works for Sydney Water Board as an electrician. My other daughter resides in Canberra, she’s in HR here, so we are a bit spread out on the east coast.

Q: What has been the most memorable moment in your new home?

Well, there’s been lots. I received the Australian Sports Medal award in 2000 in conjunction with the Olympic Games in Sydney for the introduction of taekwondo.

I have employed more than 55 people in my business, including seven electrical apprentices, and I have 23 on the books as of today, which I find strange sometimes as I really struggled to get employment when I finished my apprenticeship in Cork and then ended up employing people in another country.

Q: What is your job/career where you now live?

I am retired out of the electrical engineering business, however, that changes sometimes as they chase me down for assistance on some projects.

I have a martial arts studio with fantastic staff who run everything, and this allows me to have more down time with grandkids, etc. Currently, the studio has more than 419 members so, as you can imagine, they call me when things get overwhelming and I am flexible with assisting them.

Q: How might you spend your weekends?

I usually do a martial arts class for senior black belts from 8-9am on Saturday, then we do coffees and breakfast.

I have a transit van which I converted to a camper and I head away to the coast or Outback for the weekend, looking at all the historical places which have a huge Irish connection. There are some amazing places, towns where they built mills, dams, bridges, and flood ways.

The Irish history in the cemeteries is huge. Rookwood Cemetery in Sydney and all the cemeteries out the bush have huge Irish history, they endured all kinds of calamities from floods to fires and bushrangers.

The countryside has some amazing sights too, I just got back from a 8,500km trek to south-west Western Australia, and saw the Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk, Busselton jetty, which is 2km long, Bunbury, Perth, and the super pit in Kalgoorlie with its huge Irish history - Paddy Hannan, who was born in Co. Clare, discovered gold there.

There were 800,000 ounces mined last year at $4,200 US dollars an ounce, generating a huge income for Australia since 1893.

Cy O’Connor, of Meath, brought the water to the goldfields, 600km, an amazing feat of engineering endurance.

Q: How is the culture where you live different from Cork/Ireland? How is it the same?

We are very similar, I would say we have similar sports objectives, etc, and the arts are well catered for here - music, theatre, portrait gallery, museums, etc.

I think they identify with a similar culture in Ireland, however, it is still a relatively new country, only 240 years old, but progressing.

Q: What do you miss most about Cork?

The old Cork had the shops and the older generations there, and they had great stories and were very engaging - they were great to support the younger generations and I got some fantastic support.

They were very passionate about current events and voiced their opinions liberally, on the Falklands War, the miners’ strike in England, the Wapping/Fleet Street riots, etc, Long Kesh, you definitely knew of current events and opinions, etc.

Q: Do you get to go home to Cork often? What do you do when you return?

I was there in August, I hired a car went to Glasnevin Cemetery to take the tour, there is huge history there.

I went to the Battle of the Boyne display and Newgrange, and then St Patrick’s grave and the city of Derry.

We have a long history there and, being from Cobh, we have everything from the Napoleonic Wars to the Lusitania and Titanic history and Jack Doyle.

I try and get back every two or three years, and transport is getting better. Next year, we have direct flights from Australia to London, New York, etc, so no more stops, direct 19-hour flights, to catch up with family and friends and see the changes.

Q: Any special mentions to family/friends back home in Cork?

Well, my mother there in Assumption Place, who lives by herself now that my dad passed two years ago, but she has a great community around her and is never short of support from the wonderful community there

The neighbours too, some lovely people, too many to mention, but sending a lot of gratitude from Australia.

Q: If you could spend an ideal day in Cork, what would that entail?

I would just walk around the city, the Coal Quay, South Mall, St Finbarr’s, the quays, the Mardyke where I watched Steve Ovett and John Tracey and John Walker from New Zealand race in the Cork mile.

The street sights of Cork are fabulous and the food in the English market amazing.

Q: What are your plans for the future?

I have travelled a bit and hope to continue to see wonderful places so long as my health is maintained.

I managed to attain my 8th Degree Black belt in March, 2025, when I had to go to Seoul in South Korea to do my exam. My next exam is 9th Degree in 2034 so I’ll be working towards that for the next few years.

Q: Any other information you wish to add?

Well, I’m sure everything sounds wonderful but there was a lot of toil on my journey, when you have to support a family and have no back-up family to assist financially or otherwise, when you are so far from home - but the Irish have great perseverance and that always comes through in the end.

It can be difficult for some, and my wife and other women found life here very hard without family support.

I would not be able to achieve what I have achieved here back in Ireland, and Australia has provided great opportunities for the kids, jobs, houses, cars, lifestyle, but they too hold Irish passports so maybe one day things could change and they might migrate in that direction.