Joseph Mary Plunkett Mooney (26 May 1916 – 21 January 1988) was an Irish

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

politician from

County Leitrim County Leitrim ( ; gle, Contae Liatroma) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Connacht and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the village of Leitrim. Leitrim County Council is the local authority for the ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

who served as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for four years.

Early life and family

He was born on 26 May 1916 in

, and was named after

Joseph Plunkett Joseph Mary Plunkett (Irish: ''Seosamh Máire Pluincéid''; 21 November 1887 – 4 May 1916) was an Irish nationalist, republican, poet, journalist, revolutionary and a leader of the 1916 Easter Rising. Joseph Mary Plunkett married Grace Giffo ...

, one of the leaders of the 1916

Easter Rising The Easter Rising ( ga, Éirí Amach na Cásca), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the a ...

. His father Andrew Mooney (born Kilteevan,

County Roscommon "Steadfast Irish heart" , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Roscommon.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Connacht , subdi ...

) married Josephine Gaffney of

Drumshanbo Drumshanbo (, ridge of the old huts) is a small town situated in the heart of County Leitrim, Ireland. Drumshanbo is surrounded by a scenic area of soft rolling hills, woodlands, lakes and the Sliabh an Iarainn and Arigna mountains. It is a well ...

in New York in 1908, and relocated to Drumshanbo, County Leitrim where he ran the family business of bar, grocery and drapery shop. Elected a

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...

Councillor in 1919, Andrew Mooney was interned in Ballykinlar Camp,

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

by the British forces during the

War of Independence This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence. List See also * Lists of active separatist movements * List of civil wars * List of o ...

. Following his release in late 1921 he took the pro-

Treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations An international organization or international o ...

side joining

Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal (; "Society of the Gaels") was a political party in the Irish Free State, which formed the government from 1923 to 1932. In 1933 it merged with smaller groups to form the Fine Gael party. Origins In 1922 the pro-Treaty G ...

, but left that party over a Dáil nomination dispute in 1929. He remained an independent councillor until his sudden death in 1943.

Politics

Joe Mooney was nominated to his father's seat in 1943 and served until his death in 1988. He was an independent member of

Leitrim County Council Leitrim County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae Liatroma) is the authority responsible for local government in County Leitrim, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing ...

until 1961 when he joined

and stood unsuccessfully as a Dáil candidate in the 1961 general election for the Sligo–Leitrim constituency. In December 1961, the

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

Seán Lemass Seán Francis Lemass (born John Francis Lemass; 15 July 1899 – 11 May 1971) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1959 to 1966. He also served as Tánaiste from 1957 to 1959, 1951 to 1954 ...

nominated Mooney to Seanad Éireann. Mooney served as a senator until 1965 when Lemass called a snap general election. Although Mooney was considered a shoo-in for the Fianna Fáil nomination, he was not selected as a candidate. At the 1969 general election, Mooney was once again called upon to be the candidate for Fianna Fáil in the Sligo–Leitrim constituency, following further boundary changes which meant that a Leitrim-based candidate like Mooney had little chance of being elected. Mooney was also a candidate at the 1973 general election but again he was not elected.

Other activities

He was a founding member of

Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (; meaning "Society of the musicians of Ireland") is the primary Irish organisation dedicated to the promotion of the music, song, dance and the language of Ireland. The organisation was founded in 1951 and has pr ...

(CCE), serving as Chairman of the Connacht Council of CCE for ten years. He was also a founding member of the national cultural festival known as

An Tóstal An Tóstal (, meaning "The Gathering") was the name for a series of festivals held in Ireland in the 20th century. Inaugurated in 1953 as a celebration of Irish life, it continued on until 1958 when it died out in most centres except Drumshanbo. Af ...

started in 1953 to extend the tourist season by encouraging towns and villages across Ireland to present a week-long series of events reflective of their area. Drumshanbo is now the only town in Ireland where the An Tóstal festival continues to this day each June bank holiday weekend. Following his death, a local Committee decided to commence a Summer School in Mooney's memory and today the Annual Joe Mooney Summer School attracts many people from all over the world to the small town in the centre of County Leitrim. The Drumshanbo Vocational School also stands as a memorial to Joe Mooney who persuaded the then government during his time as a Senator to build a second level School in the town. It is now the largest Vocational School in the County. His son

Paschal Mooney Paschal Canice Mooney (born 14 October 1947) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician and a former member of Seanad Éireann. A journalist and broadcaster, he was first elected to the Seanad in 1987, on the Cultural and Educational Panel. He retaine ...

is a former senator.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mooney, Joe 1916 births 1988 deaths Fianna Fáil senators Members of Leitrim County Council Members of the 10th Seanad Nominated members of Seanad Éireann People from Drumshanbo Fianna Fáil candidates in Dáil elections