On behalf of the Executive Committee of the Cassidy Clan, I wish all Cassidys and your families a holiday season filled with joy and the comfort of family and friends, and peace, good health and prosperity in 2025.
Recently my wife Amy, daughter Maeve and I flew to Dublin, Ireland, to see our daughter Fiona who is a student at the University College Dublin. This was my 15th trip to Ireland! Here are some photos I took during the visit.
Stephen Cassidy, Cassidy Clan Chieftain
“The Cassidy brothers, Thomas, Phillip and Edward were convicted and transported for life, for reputedly throwing a horse over the precipice at Cullaigh, Belmore Mountain, Fermanagh. They were sent to Australia on board the Hercules II in 1830.”
As part of the clan’s goal of promoting kinship among all Cassidys and their descendants, we would like to create an internet library of family histories and stories, including emigrant tales. We also welcome your articles, observations, and humor from Cassidys and friends for inclusion in our newsletter and/or posting on our website.
We wish to highlight the work of Veronica Williams from Australia. Veronica is a member of the Cassidy Clan Executive Committee and our expert on DNA research. She has written a fascinating article on her Cassidy ancestors from County Fermanagh (where all Cassidys originated) and their lives in Australia.
We are excited to come together in 2025 for our Cassidy Clan Rally.
The rally will commence on the evening of Friday 4th July and conclude with the banquet dinner on the night of Sunday 6th July, 2025, with departure on Monday July 7th.
The rally will feature a guided tour of the area where Cassidys originated including the Cassidy ancestral rath. On Sunday evening, the rally concludes with our Gala Dinner, which is always one of the main events.
The cost for attending the rally is £175 (or $235 US) for a single and £300 (or $400 US) for a couple. All rally attendees are automatically granted membership in the Cassidy Clan until 2028.
We require a deposit of £95 (or $125 US) per person to secure a registration for the rally. The remaining balance must by paid by Friday 6 June 2025.
Note – the charges above are for attending the rally and your meal at the Gala Dinner. The charges do not include your accommodations or meals other than the Gala Dinner. You must arrange for your lodging during the rally at the host hotel or other hotel or B&B nearby.
You must take two steps to register for the rally:
1) please click here to complete our registration form for the rally.
2) please pay the deposit.
The costs for the rally do not include accommodations. You must arrange for your own lodging during the rally.
Futher important details on the 2025 Rally are posted here: please visit our Clan Rally page.
Brent Ó Caiside is a member of the Cassidy Clan Executive Committee and has made tremendous contributions to the success of our rallies.
An amazing storyteller, Brent has a smooth and inviting voice. He recently produced his first album, the Port Seal. It is a wonderful collection of timeless traditional, adapted and original stories with music and songs by Brent. The Port Seal is “a joy to the ear and to the senses,” as reviewed by the Irish News. The stories will delight children and adults alike.
We are honored to bring Brent’s album to the attention of Cassidys worldwide. The Port Seal is self published by Brent in CD and digital format. If you wish to purchase a CD, Brent will ship it worldwide for 18 Euro. A digital copy can be purchased for 10 Euro. Contact Brent by email at: bcassidy [at] nic.fi
Devenish Island in County Fermanagh is special to the Cassidy Clan. The Cassidys served as “erenaghs,” hereditary land managers for the Church’s property in parts Devenish parish and undoubtedly studied and worshiped at Devenish Island.
The most famous early Irish Cassidy ancestor, the poet Giolla Mochuda More Ó Caiside, composed Banshenchas, The Lore of Woman, on Devenish Island in 1147. The poem tells the history of the women of the world starting with Eve. At the conclusion of the poem, Devenish is described as “of gracious words and pure holy song.”
Here’s a short video about the restoration work done there after the lightning strike in 2022: https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-northern-ireland-62339868?fbclid=IwAR1i1kFvPYydKsF8j8btiwo5TbhN4nntTB2X8ouLPlkh_Lq8wvefQ1WhSSk
We will visit Devenish Island during the 2025 Cassidy Clan Rally.
Dear Cassidys and Friends,
It’s my pleasure to share with you the 2023 Cassidy Clan Newsletter.
Included in the issue are tributes to Nuala Cassidy, our Clan Chieftain who passed away last month, an invitation to join the Cassidy Clan in Ireland in 2025 for our rally, a summary of the Cassidy connection to Devenish Island in County Fermanagh, and a bit of craic from Benny Cassidy.
Please share the newsletter with family and friends.
We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year’s, and that 2024 brings peace, joy and good healthy to you and your family.
All the best,
Stephen Cassidy , Cassidy Clan Chieftain
“It is with great sadness but also the deepest appreciation for a life well lived and incredible contributions spanning three decades to the Cassidy Clan that we announce the passing of the Cassidy Clan Chieftain (“An O’ Caisideach”) Nuala Cassidy. After a long illness Nuala passed away early this morning, 7 November, in County Armagh, Northern Ireland.
Nuala was inaugurated as our Chieftain at the Clan Rally in 2017 during a ceremony on Devenish Island. While becoming Chieftain represented the pinnacle of her service to the Cassidy Clan, it is not hyperbole to state that the modern Cassidy Clan would not have commenced and thrived from its founding in 1991 to the present without Nuala’s tireless efforts and incredible contributions – all on a voluntary, unpaid basis.
Nuala was simply the backbone of the Cassidy Clan. From its founding under the leadership of Colm Cassidy of County Clare, Nuala served as the Clan Secretary. She co-organized the first clan rally and each rally thereafter, eventually becoming the lead organizer of all Clan rallies.
Nuala also eagerly took on the role of Clan Genealogist, maintaining Cassidy records and assisting countless Cassidys from across the globe in tracing their Irish ancestors. Eventually, Nuala became Chairperson of the Cassidy Clan herself, and then Chieftain in 2017.
Nuala’s warm smile, kindness, dedication, sense of humor and sharp intellect will be missed by all. I offer my deepest condolences to her family.
Please share your memories and experiences with Nuala here in the comments.”
– Stephen Cassidy, Cassidy Clan Tánaiste (Deputy to the Clan Chieftain)
[Editor: Thank you to Gearóid O Ceallaigh, Chairperson of the Clans of Ireland, for your thoughtful comments on the passing of Nuala Cassidy. In addition to leading the Cassidy Clan, Nuala was an active member of the Clans of Ireland for several decades.]
“I am deeply saddened to learn of the death of Mrs Nuala Cassidy, Clan Chieftan of the Cassidy Clan.
I knew Mrs Cassidy well over many years as a member of the Board of Clans of Ireland, until she retired due to health complications. Indeed, she continued to help with the Annual Cultural Summit registration for a number of years following her retirement.
Nuala always treated her various roles on the Board with respectful seriousness, while also always maintaining her sense of infectious humour. I often sought her advice during my initial period as a member of the Board. It will be Nuala’s pleasant temperament that will remain as my abiding memory of her.
Tá sí i mo smaointe agus paidreacha. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam uasal.”
– Gearóid O Ceallaigh, Cathaoirleach (Chairperson), Clans of Ireland
[Editor: Brent Ó Caiside has written a loving tribute to Nuala Cassidy. One of Nuala’s strengths was recognizing the potential in people and welcoming them into leadership roles in the Cassidy Clan.]
Dear Nuala,
Ní bheidh do leithéid arís ann.
There will never be the likes of you ever again.
Today my heart breaks at the news that you have got your wings. I saw two rainbows in the sky yesterday and decided to take a walk not knowing what I would find, maybe a treasure. On my return, news came that you had passed and then it became clear that those rainbows were you smiling down on me. In every Irish sense of the symbolism of the rainbows and pots of gold, it was you. In that moment, I felt your presence and peace.
I am happy, grateful, blessed to have known you and shared so many loving memories over the last 21 years, but I believe everyone who came into your circle are better people than before meeting you. You were contagious with people, sharing stories, love and inspiration and treating everyone equal in the true sense of our Celtic ancestors.
Your love of Irish culture, history and the great Cassidy family that has spread all over Ireland and the world has inspired us all. I am forever grateful for your hospitality and warmth as a person to inspire my life into our Cassidy heritage, Irish history and culture. Forever grateful I am and little did I know that your inspiration drove me to go deeper, to learn more and discover self to be where I am today.
Thanks for welcoming my family to BallyCassidy so many times and for welcoming, showing and supporting our story from Roslea. Thank you for journeying across the pond to see where our family ended up and meet all your cousins.
Thank you for countless discussions, for encouragement and support. Thank you for welcoming my wife and family in to the Cassidy Clan and for visiting us in Donegal and then later in Oulu. The memories are countless, the craic and banter legendary, the love and hospitality forever a part of us. You were more than a friend, you were family and I will miss you forever while cherishing your memory.
Forever will you live in our hearts and forever will you be in my thoughts and anything I ever do for it was you who set me off on this Gaelic journey back in 2000. And, this is how I will celebrate your life, by continuing on as you did to inspire through peace, love and harmony. God bless you, your family and all that had the blessing to come in to contact with you.
When they write the next part of the Cassidy Clan’s history, your name will be amongst the greatest.
Go n’éirí an bothar leat a Nuala ’s go raibh míle míle mhaith agat, ár An Caiseadach mór go deo. Ní bheidh do leithéid arís ann.
My deepest condolences to Nuala, Leslie, Nodlaig, Sheila and all the extended family.
is mise le meas,
Brent Ó Caiside
We welcome you back to Ireland in 2025. The Cassidy Clan Rally is held in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, close to the ancestral lands of the Cassidys.
Our next rally will take place in 2025 from Friday 4 July through Sunday 6 July. The weekend event celebrates Irish culture and history, including local history and the Cassidy role within it, through stories, musical performances, and genealogy and cultural presentations.
Please visit our Clan Rally page for details, and to let us know of your interest in attending the rally.
We thank Kerry Cassidy of Switzerland and Australia for his report and contribution to our website:
After two years delay and quite a few hiccups, the 2022 Cassidy Clan Rally was eventually held on the weekend of the 22nd to the 24th July. The organisation was rather difficult as all possible dates were taken by couples who had delayed their weddings due to Covid and the hotels were all fully booked. There was also a misunderstanding with one booking and the confusion of dates threw quite a few people’s plans out. We were eventually almost 30 people and I believe all enjoyed themselves.
The official meeting was planned for the Friday evening, but as a few members arrived late, it was put off till Saturday morning. The main business discussed was regarding support for the executives, as Nuala has not been well and Noel has been very busy with his sick wife. We decided to make Stephen, who has so far been responsible for the Website, an assistant executive officer. As such he can make minor decisions on his own and post the info on the website without having to wait for a reply from Nuala or Noel. We hope that this system works out and relieves Nuala of some of her responsibilities.
Stephen intends to update the website and if anyone has contributions or ideas for that, they would be very welcome. We are also looking at possibilities to strengthen the financial situation of the club with possibility of a worthwhile project which we could support.
Following the meeting on Saturday, we boarded a bus for a tour of Enniskillen and then to the Castle which is also an interesting museum and always worth a visit. Frank Roofe was our guide and as a local historian, he is a very interesting one. We unfortunately had a breakdown with the bus and had to wait for a replacement before we could depart the museum.
The weather played tricks on us, but a lot of the rain fell during the bus trip to the Ancient Cassidy Rath. We were there for maybe a quarter of an hour before it started raining again. There are a few umbrellas evident in the group photo taken at the Rath. We can thank Noel Cassidy for his great efforts to clear the Rath and the access path through Cassidy Wood. He spent considerable time working on that and was eventually assisted by the forestry department, who own the Cassidy Wood and part of the Rath. We had a few discussion groups at the hotel after dinner on Saturday evening.
On Sunday we enjoyed a few presentations. First we eventually got the computer connected to the projector and sound system to play one of the well prepared presentations on using DNA in researching your ancestors. Veronica Williams is our specialist on DNA and made a very professional presentation. This as well as her second presentation are now available on the Clan web site for anyone who is interested. Check on the web site under https://cassidyclan.org/making-the-most-of-your-cassidy-dna/
Veronica’s presentation was followed by an interesting talk by Frank Roofe with tips on researching your Irish ancestors, then the story teller held us in suspense with his vivid descriptions.
After the talks the bus was waiting to take us to the ferry landing to cross Dead Man’s Pass to Devenish Island. There we had time to explore this special place before holding the ceremony to reinstate Nuala as An-Caisideach. The weather improved during the afternoon and we made a short stop on the way home to view the old Bally Cassidy Post Office and the Cloughbally Mill at Bally Cassidy. This has now been rebuilt as a B&B and looks really nice.
Sunday evening was very pleasant and I believe all enjoyed the Gala Dinner at Killyhevlin Hotel.
As we parted, many promised to meet again at the next rally. From what I have heard we will aim at three years time, so we hope we will be able to give a lot more notice this time.
I’d like to thank all who helped to get the Rally off the ground and I especially thank Noel for all the effort he put into the preparations under rather trying conditions.
We look forward to seeing you next time! Kerry Cassidy
Editor’s Note: The next Cassidy Clan Rally will take place in 2025 from Friday 4 July through Sunday 6 July.
Genealogical DNA testing can help us discover the origins of our ancestral lines.
Cassidy Clan member Veronica Williams has written a fascinating blogpost on how to apply DNA analysis techniques to your Cassidy pedigree and validate connections back to Ireland where Cassidys originated.
