370:
house. Two men were posted as sentries on the road to either side of the planned road-block. According to Paddy Heaney, at about midnight steps were heard approaching along the road from the direction of
Pearsons’ house. Sentry Mick Heaney issued the verbal challenge "Halt! Who goes there?" In response shots were fired at him, wounding him in the abdomen, arm and neck. The other sentry ran to his assistance and both returned fire. The other sentry, Tom Donnelly, was shot in the head. A retired RIC man who had been detained by them was also shot by the attackers. The abdominal injuries of Mick Heaney were serious, and he died a few years later. The retired RIC man was seriously injured in the back and legs, and lost a lung. In this version, the Pearsons had, as loyalists, become hostile to the local community as the war intensified, leading to their participation as combatants in the war.
386:
the house was prepared to be burned. Their father
William Pearson, and brother Sidney were away from home at the time. The brothers Richard and Abraham Pearson were shot by a firing squad of about ten men, and the house was burned. Richard and Abraham Pearson died after six hours and fourteen hours, respectively.
385:
On 30 June 1921, about a week after the roadblock shootings, a party of about thirty IRA men arrested
Richard and Abraham Pearson. They were taken to their house and held under guard there with other members of the family (their mother, three sisters, younger brother, and two female cousins), while
381:
in
Officers’ Battalion Council, into the identity of the men who attacked the road-block, Thomas Burke, the IRA Officer Commanding South Offaly No. 2 Brigade, ordered that the three brothers Richard, Abraham, and Sidney Pearson were to be executed and their houses destroyed. The orders to shoot the
369:
An eight-man IRA roadblock party selected a tree to fell for a roadblock on the Birr to
Tullamore road, about halfway between the Pearsons’ house and the village of Cadamstown. The roadside tree was at the point of boundary between the Pearsons’ and a neighbouring farm about half a mile from their
389:
The medical reports declare that the death of
Richard Pearson was due to haemorrhage and shock caused by gunshot wounds to the left shoulder, right groin, right buttock, left lower leg and to the back; the most serious being the wound to the right groin. In the case of Abraham Pearson, death was
399:
Queens County that the two
Pearson boys a few days previously had seen two men felling a tree on their land adjoining the road. Had told the men concerned to go away, and when they refused had fetched two guns and fired and wounded two Sinn Feiners, one of whom it is believed died. It is further
373:
According to one alternative account, the
Pearsons fired a single shotgun cartridge in the air as a warning to rebels who were damaging their property while Alan Stanley wrote,"A cousin of my father's, Oliver Stanley, told me that after the tree had been felled, a number of men came to man the
431:
A controversial programme about the incident was broadcast by the Irish broadcaster RTÉ on 23 October 2007, giving rise to considerable discussion and debate. Complaints against the programme were rejected by the
Broadcasting Complaints Commission. In addition to media discussion, the Aubane
423:
by the IRA" after allegedly becoming embroiled in a plot with the auxiliaries to arrest an IRA volunteer. He was living under an assumed name, "Jimmy
Bradley", at the time of the roadblock incident and escaped by running away when the Pearson brothers were arrested.
365:
In June 1921, the Kinnitty Company of the South Offaly No 2 Brigade IRA was ordered to construct a roadblock as part of county-wide military manoeuvres. At around midnight some of the Pearsons are said to have come to the roadblock and fired a shot or shots.
1270:
1353:
763:
An online book reviewer mistakenly suggested that this dispute occurred a year earlier in 1920 and was already settled. 'Getting them Out', Tom Wall, Dublin Review of Books (drb.ie), Issue 9, 2009. See Philip O’Connor and Pat Muldowney,
427:
Stanley's son, Alan Stanley, argued that the Pearsons were innocent farmers, that they did not shoot anybody at the roadblock, and that they were murdered by people who wanted to take their land. These claims have been challenged.
414:
issued a statement claiming that an atrocity had been committed against the Pearsons. Claims of murder and atrocity were made by William Stanley, "a loyalist fugitive and distant cousin of the Pearsons. He had been ordered out of
353:(RIC, the militarized police force which was the principal agency of the British state in Ireland) were killed in an ambush by the IRA on 17 May 1921. Following a June 1921 dispute between the Pearsons and local Catholics over a
345:, where the Pearsons had their farm at Coolacrease, the military conflict was slow to develop, but it intensified in the course of 1921. A number of Catholics, classified by the IRA as spies and informers, were executed. In
76:
318:
Initially, the Pearsons integrated well into the local community, and their children attended the local Catholic school in Cadamstown, where one of them was a member of the hurling team. Following the
1267:
374:
barricade thus created, and were shortly afterwards surprised by security people (police and auxiliaries presumably). He said that a brief gun battle had ensued and a man was injured on each side."
1009:
555:
69:
888:
In 'Coolacrease: The True Story of the Pearson Executions', by Paddy Heaney, Pat Muldowney, Philip O’Connor, Dr Brian P Murphy, and others, Aubane Historical Society (2008).
748:
971:
497:
693:
303:. They bought a 341-acre (1.38 km) farm and worked it successfully. They are said to have belonged to a Protestant religious movement commonly referred to as
938:
62:
378:
1081:
1045:
908:
779:
382:
Pearsons would have come directly from IRA headquarters, and not made locally. However McConway indicates the decision to execute was made by Burke himself.
390:
declared to be the result of shock from gunshot wounds to the left cheek, left shoulder, left thigh, lower third of left leg and through the abdomen.
100:
1133:
1115:
1288:
1242:
1152:
768:
1002:
458:
and historians from Offaly. It was, amongst other things, critical of the RTÉ documentary. The book was reviewed by Steven King in the
547:
1363:
653:
402:" The import of this information and non-inclusion in a controversial RTE television documentary was debated in the press in 2007.
1373:
1168:
1268:
Coolacrease: the true story of the Pearson executions—an incident in the Irish War of Independence, review by Joost Augusteijn
470:
Magazine, (March/April 2009) and in Autumn 2009 by Tom Wall in the Dublin Review of Books, giving rise to further discussion.
745:
1228:
963:
489:
1206:
704:
930:
622:
323:
252:
1070:
1034:
898:
776:
1368:
455:
86:
43:
farmer William Pearson. On 30 June, his sons Richard (aged 24) and Abraham (aged 19) Pearson were shot by an IRA
28:
1358:
350:
1332:
1321:
1150:
TV review: When history and hearsay collide, The Sunday Business Post, 28 October 2007, by Emmanuel Kehoe
849:
NAUK (British Public Records Office) CO 762/24/5 William Sidney Pearson, King’s County, No. 324 1926–1927
326:
a majority of the Irish elected representatives implemented their election manifesto by establishing the
831:
Brian Hanley, History Ireland, Vol 16 no.1 2008, pg.5 (Brian Hanley lectures in history at NUI Maynooth)
282:
32:
765:
460:
272:
257:
152:
142:
137:
1130:
445:
1317:
Dublin Review of Books published two responses: by book authors Philip O'Connor and Pat Muldowney,
167:
112:
40:
416:
287:
242:
217:
187:
122:
107:
1296:
1246:
1149:
1111:
649:
312:
227:
197:
172:
157:
393:
An appendix to the report of the British Military Court of Enquiry into the events states: "
277:
262:
207:
1336:
1325:
1274:
1156:
1137:
903:
783:
752:
466:
357:
running through the Pearsons’ land, two IRA men, John Dillon and JJ Horan, were arrested.
331:
247:
237:
232:
202:
192:
182:
162:
147:
117:
222:
212:
177:
132:
35:(IRA) volunteers came under fire at a roadblock in the rural area of Coolacrease (near
1347:
772:
411:
342:
327:
127:
24:
1176:
964:"Niamh Sammon, Unfounded claims about killings, Sunday Independent 25 November 2007"
931:"Pat Muldowney, Muddying the waters on deaths, Sunday Independent 18 November 2007"
437:
420:
300:
44:
319:
840:
Michael Cordial, Witness Statement, W.S. 1712, Bureau of Military History, Dublin
441:
334:
military hostilities between the IRA and British forces developed into a bitter
308:
1198:
304:
36:
1229:"Coolacrease executions were a war time tragedy (article about the AHS book)"
400:
rumoured that when the farm house was burning, two guns fell out of the roof.
433:
354:
335:
54:
614:
899:"Pat Muldowney, The Killings at Coolacrease, Irish Times 27 November 2007"
728:
Philip McConway (14 November 2007). "The Pearsons of Coolacrease, pt. 2".
346:
775:, Dublin Review of Books (drb.ie), Issue 11. See also Niall Meehan,
1354:
Military actions and engagements during the Irish War of Independence
349:, about five miles (8 km) from Coolacrease, two members of the
1329:
1318:
599:
Paddy Heaney (2006). "Coolacrease: A Place with a Tragic History".
958:
956:
876:
NAUK (British Public Records Office), WO 35/57A Court of Enquiry
58:
39:). The roadblock was located at the boundary of land owned by
299:
In 1911, the Pearsons moved to Coolacrease from neighbouring
822:
BĂ©aslaĂ Papers, National Library of Ireland, Ms. 33, 913 (4)
646:
The Resurrection of Ireland – The Sinn Féin Party, 1916–1923
311:. However, in the 1911 census they listed their religion as
528:
Alan Stanley (9 October 2005). "I met Murder on the way".
1243:"Coolacrease book has numerous axes to grind: ThePost.ie"
484:
482:
452:
Coolacrease: The True Story of the Pearson Executions
1277:, History Ireland, Vol. 17, No. 2, March-April 2009.
884:
882:
858:O'Halpin, Eunan & Ó Corráin, Daithà (2020),
862:, Yale University Press, pgs. 500-501 & 503
1199:"Aubane Historical Society - online catalogue"
798:Eglish & Drumcullen – A Parish in Firceall
872:
870:
868:
548:"This tree has rotten roots and bitter fruit"
70:
8:
786:, Dublin Review of Books (drb.ie), Issue 11.
687:
685:
723:
721:
719:
717:
683:
681:
679:
677:
675:
673:
671:
669:
667:
665:
490:"National Archives: Census of Ireland 1911"
1173:Broadcasting Complaints Commission website
1071:"The Pearsons' Counter-Insurgency PART 2B"
523:
521:
519:
517:
515:
410:On 9 July 1921, the British Government in
77:
63:
55:
741:
739:
594:
592:
590:
588:
541:
539:
16:Killings in the Irish War of Independence
992:Dublin Castle Statement 1029 9 July 1921
464:, November 2008, by Joost Augusteijn in
1044:. Tullamore Tribune. 14 November 2007.
478:
1008:. Tullamore Tribune. 7 November 2007.
500:from the original on 23 September 2015
1051:from the original on 28 February 2017
1015:from the original on 28 February 2017
974:from the original on 26 November 2007
7:
1035:"The Pearsons Of Coolacrease PART 2"
1003:"The Pearsons Of Coolacrease PART 1"
941:from the original on 26 October 2012
694:"The Pearsons of Coolacrease, pt. 1"
615:"The Irish General Election of 1918"
1330:Frank Gallagher and Land Agitation.
911:from the original on 4 October 2021
692:Philip McConway (7 November 2007).
23:was an incident that took place in
1209:from the original on 4 August 2020
1087:from the original on 22 March 2016
777:Frank Gallagher and land agitation
14:
625:from the original on 8 March 2020
577:Parker, Doug & Helen (1982).
558:from the original on 2 March 2011
432:Historical Society complained to
377:Following official investigation,
1108:The Politics of Enmity 1789–2006
860:The Dead of the Irish Revolution
546:Eoghan Harris (9 October 2005).
444:and RTÉ Director of Programmes
648:. Cambridge University Press.
1:
581:. Macarthur Press. pp. .
454:was published in 2008 by the
1203:aubanehistoricalsociety.org
1169:"Decisions – February 2008"
1110:. Oxford University Press.
530:Sunday Independent Magazine
338:conflict in 1920 and 1921.
330:on 21 January 1919. In the
322:electoral successes in the
51:The Pearsons of Coolacrease
47:and their house was burnt.
1390:
1131:RTÉ programme announcement
324:elections of December 1918
456:Aubane Historical Society
332:Irish War of Independence
96:
88:Irish War of Independence
29:Irish War of Independence
1364:History of County Offaly
751:28 February 2017 at the
746:Philip McConway articles
644:Laffan, Michael (1999).
379:Philip McConway articles
351:Royal Irish Constabulary
1328:; and by Niall Meehan,
1136:1 February 2008 at the
811:I met Murder on the way
782:15 October 2009 at the
440:, RTÉ Director General
273:Bloody Sunday (Belfast)
21:killings at Coolacrease
1374:1921 murders in Europe
1335:4 October 2021 at the
1324:4 October 2021 at the
1295:. 2009. Archived from
395:It is said by the C.I.
153:Bloody Sunday (Dublin)
1319:A house built on sand
1273:6 August 2020 at the
1155:10 April 2008 at the
766:A House Built on Sand
283:Arnon Street killings
33:Irish Republican Army
31:. In late June 1921,
461:Sunday Business Post
603:. pp. 220–225.
494:nationalarchives.ie
1289:"Getting them Out"
1106:Bew, Paul (2007).
552:Sunday Independent
288:Dunmanway killings
123:Sack of Balbriggan
1299:on 5 October 2011
1231:. Offaly Express.
1148:For example, see
1117:978-0-19-820555-5
1078:offalyhistory.com
1042:offalyhistory.com
771:1 August 2012 at
730:Tullamore Tribune
701:Tullamore Tribune
436:(Prime Minister)
313:Church of Ireland
296:
295:
1381:
1369:June 1921 events
1339:
1315:
1309:
1308:
1306:
1304:
1284:
1278:
1265:
1259:
1258:
1256:
1254:
1249:on 22 April 2009
1245:. Archived from
1239:
1233:
1232:
1225:
1219:
1218:
1216:
1214:
1195:
1189:
1188:
1186:
1184:
1179:on 20 April 2009
1175:. Archived from
1165:
1159:
1146:
1140:
1128:
1122:
1121:
1103:
1097:
1096:
1094:
1092:
1086:
1075:
1067:
1061:
1060:
1058:
1056:
1050:
1039:
1031:
1025:
1024:
1022:
1020:
1014:
1007:
999:
993:
990:
984:
983:
981:
979:
960:
951:
950:
948:
946:
927:
921:
920:
918:
916:
895:
889:
886:
877:
874:
863:
856:
850:
847:
841:
838:
832:
829:
823:
820:
814:
808:
802:
801:
793:
787:
761:
755:
743:
734:
733:
725:
712:
711:
710:on 16 July 2011.
709:
703:. Archived from
698:
689:
660:
659:
641:
635:
634:
632:
630:
611:
605:
604:
596:
583:
582:
574:
568:
567:
565:
563:
543:
534:
533:
525:
510:
509:
507:
505:
486:
278:McMahon killings
91:
89:
79:
72:
65:
56:
1389:
1388:
1384:
1383:
1382:
1380:
1379:
1378:
1359:1921 in Ireland
1344:
1343:
1342:
1337:Wayback Machine
1326:Wayback Machine
1316:
1312:
1302:
1300:
1287:
1285:
1281:
1275:Wayback Machine
1266:
1262:
1252:
1250:
1241:
1240:
1236:
1227:
1226:
1222:
1212:
1210:
1197:
1196:
1192:
1182:
1180:
1167:
1166:
1162:
1157:Wayback Machine
1147:
1143:
1138:Wayback Machine
1129:
1125:
1118:
1105:
1104:
1100:
1090:
1088:
1084:
1073:
1069:
1068:
1064:
1054:
1052:
1048:
1037:
1033:
1032:
1028:
1018:
1016:
1012:
1005:
1001:
1000:
996:
991:
987:
977:
975:
962:
961:
954:
944:
942:
929:
928:
924:
914:
912:
904:The Irish Times
897:
896:
892:
887:
880:
875:
866:
857:
853:
848:
844:
839:
835:
830:
826:
821:
817:
809:
805:
795:
794:
790:
784:Wayback Machine
762:
758:
753:Wayback Machine
744:
737:
727:
726:
715:
707:
696:
691:
690:
663:
656:
643:
642:
638:
628:
626:
613:
612:
608:
601:Offaly Heritage
598:
597:
586:
579:The Secret Sect
576:
575:
571:
561:
559:
545:
544:
537:
527:
526:
513:
503:
501:
488:
487:
480:
476:
467:History Ireland
408:
406:Atrocity claims
363:
297:
292:
163:Burning of Cork
92:
87:
85:
83:
53:
17:
12:
11:
5:
1387:
1385:
1377:
1376:
1371:
1366:
1361:
1356:
1346:
1345:
1341:
1340:
1310:
1279:
1260:
1234:
1220:
1190:
1160:
1141:
1123:
1116:
1098:
1062:
1026:
994:
985:
968:Independent.ie
952:
935:Independent.ie
922:
890:
878:
864:
851:
842:
833:
824:
815:
803:
788:
756:
735:
713:
661:
654:
636:
606:
584:
569:
535:
511:
477:
475:
472:
446:Claire Duignan
407:
404:
362:
359:
294:
293:
291:
290:
285:
280:
275:
270:
265:
260:
255:
250:
245:
240:
235:
230:
225:
220:
215:
210:
205:
200:
195:
190:
185:
180:
175:
170:
165:
160:
155:
150:
145:
140:
135:
130:
125:
120:
115:
110:
104:
103:
97:
94:
93:
84:
82:
81:
74:
67:
59:
52:
49:
15:
13:
10:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
1386:
1375:
1372:
1370:
1367:
1365:
1362:
1360:
1357:
1355:
1352:
1351:
1349:
1338:
1334:
1331:
1327:
1323:
1320:
1314:
1311:
1298:
1294:
1290:
1283:
1280:
1276:
1272:
1269:
1264:
1261:
1248:
1244:
1238:
1235:
1230:
1224:
1221:
1208:
1204:
1200:
1194:
1191:
1178:
1174:
1170:
1164:
1161:
1158:
1154:
1151:
1145:
1142:
1139:
1135:
1132:
1127:
1124:
1119:
1113:
1109:
1102:
1099:
1083:
1079:
1072:
1066:
1063:
1047:
1043:
1036:
1030:
1027:
1011:
1004:
998:
995:
989:
986:
973:
969:
965:
959:
957:
953:
940:
936:
932:
926:
923:
910:
906:
905:
900:
894:
891:
885:
883:
879:
873:
871:
869:
865:
861:
855:
852:
846:
843:
837:
834:
828:
825:
819:
816:
812:
807:
804:
799:
792:
789:
785:
781:
778:
774:
773:archive.today
770:
767:
760:
757:
754:
750:
747:
742:
740:
736:
731:
724:
722:
720:
718:
714:
706:
702:
695:
688:
686:
684:
682:
680:
678:
676:
674:
672:
670:
668:
666:
662:
657:
655:0-521-65073-9
651:
647:
640:
637:
624:
620:
616:
610:
607:
602:
595:
593:
591:
589:
585:
580:
573:
570:
557:
553:
549:
542:
540:
536:
531:
524:
522:
520:
518:
516:
512:
499:
495:
491:
485:
483:
479:
473:
471:
469:
468:
463:
462:
457:
453:
449:
447:
443:
439:
435:
429:
425:
422:
418:
413:
412:Dublin Castle
405:
403:
401:
396:
391:
387:
383:
380:
375:
371:
367:
361:The shootings
360:
358:
356:
352:
348:
344:
343:County Offaly
339:
337:
333:
329:
325:
321:
316:
314:
310:
306:
302:
289:
286:
284:
281:
279:
276:
274:
271:
269:
266:
264:
261:
259:
258:Carrowkennedy
256:
254:
251:
249:
246:
244:
241:
239:
236:
234:
231:
229:
226:
224:
221:
219:
216:
214:
211:
209:
206:
204:
201:
199:
196:
194:
191:
189:
186:
184:
181:
179:
176:
174:
171:
169:
166:
164:
161:
159:
156:
154:
151:
149:
146:
144:
143:Piltown Cross
141:
139:
136:
134:
131:
129:
126:
124:
121:
119:
116:
114:
111:
109:
106:
105:
102:
99:
98:
95:
90:
80:
75:
73:
68:
66:
61:
60:
57:
50:
48:
46:
42:
38:
34:
30:
26:
25:County Offaly
22:
1313:
1301:. Retrieved
1297:the original
1292:
1282:
1263:
1251:. Retrieved
1247:the original
1237:
1223:
1211:. Retrieved
1202:
1193:
1181:. Retrieved
1177:the original
1172:
1163:
1144:
1126:
1107:
1101:
1089:. Retrieved
1077:
1065:
1053:. Retrieved
1041:
1029:
1017:. Retrieved
997:
988:
976:. Retrieved
967:
943:. Retrieved
934:
925:
913:. Retrieved
902:
893:
859:
854:
845:
836:
827:
818:
810:
806:
797:
791:
759:
729:
705:the original
700:
645:
639:
627:. Retrieved
618:
609:
600:
578:
572:
560:. Retrieved
551:
529:
502:. Retrieved
493:
465:
459:
451:
450:
438:Bertie Ahern
430:
426:
421:County Laois
409:
398:
394:
392:
388:
384:
376:
372:
368:
364:
340:
317:
301:County Laois
298:
267:
253:Custom House
168:Pickardstown
45:firing squad
20:
18:
1091:27 February
1055:27 February
1019:27 February
796:Pey (ed.).
442:Cathal Goan
417:Luggacurran
309:Two by Twos
268:Coolacrease
243:Tourmakeady
218:Selton Hill
108:Soloheadbeg
27:during the
1348:Categories
945:28 January
629:9 February
474:References
328:First Dáil
305:Cooneyites
228:Crossbarry
198:Coolavokig
173:Drumcondra
158:Kilmichael
138:Ballinalee
37:Cadamstown
1286:Tom Wall
978:15 August
619:ark.ac.uk
434:Taoiseach
355:mass path
336:guerrilla
320:Sinn FĂ©in
263:Rathcoole
208:Clonbanin
113:Knocklong
1333:Archived
1322:Archived
1303:12 April
1271:Archived
1253:12 April
1207:Archived
1183:24 April
1153:Archived
1134:Archived
1082:Archived
1046:Archived
1010:Archived
972:Archived
939:Archived
909:Archived
780:Archived
769:Archived
749:Archived
623:Archived
556:Archived
498:Archived
347:Kinnitty
248:Kilmeena
238:Scramoge
233:Headford
203:Sheemore
193:Clonmult
183:Dromkeen
118:Holywell
101:Timeline
41:loyalist
562:19 July
223:Burgery
213:Kilfaul
178:Clonfin
133:Tooreen
1293:drb.ie
1114:
652:
504:5 July
148:Tralee
128:Rineen
1213:9 May
1085:(PDF)
1074:(PDF)
1049:(PDF)
1038:(PDF)
1013:(PDF)
1006:(PDF)
915:9 May
708:(PDF)
697:(PDF)
188:Upton
1305:2009
1255:2009
1215:2020
1185:2004
1112:ISBN
1093:2017
1057:2017
1021:2017
980:2009
947:2011
917:2020
813:p.67
650:ISBN
631:2008
564:2009
506:2014
397:" "
19:The
419:in
341:In
307:or
1350::
1291:.
1205:.
1201:.
1171:.
1080:.
1076:.
1040:.
970:.
966:.
955:^
937:.
933:.
907:.
901:.
881:^
867:^
738:^
716:^
699:.
664:^
621:.
617:.
587:^
554:.
550:.
538:^
514:^
496:.
492:.
481:^
448:.
315:.
1307:.
1257:.
1217:.
1187:.
1120:.
1095:.
1059:.
1023:.
982:.
949:.
919:.
800:.
732:.
658:.
633:.
566:.
532:.
508:.
78:e
71:t
64:v
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.