Michael Egan (28 February 1866 – 3 March 1947) was an Irish

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ...

ist and politician. A coach-builder by trade, his public career started when he was comparatively young, and he became an advocate of the workers of Cork and a driving force in establishing and maintaining

ism in the city — often against strong opposition. For several years he was chairman of the Cork Workers Council, and was vice-president and then president of the Cork United Trades from 1904 to 1907, and again in 1913. In 1908 he was elected to the

Cork Corporation Cork City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Chorcaí) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Cork in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Prior to the enactment of the 2001 Act, ...

, and was active locally on the portfolios of Law, Finance, and Public Works. He was a member of the National Executive of the Irish Trade Union Congress and Labour Party, and represented the labour movement on the Anti-Conscription Committee which sat in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

with fellow members

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (, ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was a prominent Irish statesman and political leader. He served several terms as head of govern ...

Arthur Griffith Arthur Joseph Griffith ( ga, Art Seosamh Ó Gríobhtha; 31 March 1871 – 12 August 1922) was an Irish writer, newspaper editor and politician who founded the political party Sinn Féin. He led the Irish delegation at the negotiations that prod ...

and

John Dillon John Dillon (4 September 1851 – 4 August 1927) was an Irish politician from Dublin, who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for over 35 years and was the last leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party. By political disposition Dillon was an a ...

. Following the resignation of his colleague

Alfred O'Rahilly Alfred O'Rahilly, KSG (1 October 1884 – 1 August 1969) was an academic with controversial views on both electromagnetism and religion. He briefly served in politics, as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Cork City, and was later the president of Unive ...

, Egan was elected at a by-election in 1924 to Dáil Éireann as a

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 ...

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parli ...

(TD), sitting for the remainder of the

4th Dáil Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

. He was not re-elected at the June 1927 general election. He continued his involvement however in Irish politics and was president of the Cork branch of Cumann na nGaedheal from 1928 to 1930. Active in public life in Cork into later years, he was a member of the Cork Harbour Board, and Cork

Vocational Education Committee A Vocational Education Committee (VEC) ( ga, Coiste Gairmoideachais) was a statutory local education body in Ireland that administered some secondary education, most adult education and a very small amount of primary education in the state. Before ...

. Michael Egan married Annie Brennan in 1899, and had four children. He died in the North Infirmary Cork, in March 1947 aged 81.

References

External links

National Library of Ireland - Manuscripts attributed to Michael Egan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Egan, Michael 1866 births 1947 deaths Cumann na nGaedheal TDs Politicians from County Cork Members of the 4th Dáil Trade unionists from Cork (city)