Michéal Ó hUiginn (born 1942) was the

Mayor of Galway The office of Mayor of Galway is an honorific title used by the of Galway City Council. The council has jurisdiction throughout its administrative area of the city of Galway which is the largest city in the province of Connacht, in Ireland. Th ...

on three separate occasions: from 1972–1973, 1979–1980, and 1995–1996. Ó hUiginn's family were based on Father Griffin Road, on the west bank of the Corrib. He was the eldest of five children and graduated from

Galway University The University of Galway () is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. The university was founded in 1845 as "Queen's College, Galway". It was known as "University College, Galway" (UCG) () from 1908 to 1997 and as ...

with a B.Comm. in 1963. The following year his father died and Ó hUiginn took over the family building business. At the same time, he was co-opted to serve on the city council to fill the vacancy left by his father's death. Aged twenty-two, he was its then youngest member. He was a member of the

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

party. His last official function for that term was to welcome

President of Ireland The president of Ireland () is the head of state of Republic of Ireland, Ireland and the supreme commander of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Irish Defence Forces. The presidency is a predominantly figurehead, ceremonial institution, serving as ...

Erskine Childers to Galway on 29 June 1973, to open the Leisureland complex, which had cost IR£1.3m. His second term, 1979–1980, was marked by the Irish visit of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

. On Sunday 30 September 1979 the Pope arrived in Galway, celebrating mass for at

Ballybrit racecourse Ballybrit Race Track, also known as Galway Racecourse, is a horse race course in County Galway, Ireland. It is located in the townland of Ballybrit, in the environs of Castlegar, County Galway, Castlegar, just north of the N6 road (Ireland), N6 ...

for three hundred thousand people. Ó hUiginn conferred the Freedom of Galway upon the Pontiff. His third term was plagued with problems concerning the long-overdue and controversial

sewage Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewerage, sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged fro ...

treatment plant on Mutton Island, which had been dragging on since 1982. Work would only begin on the project in 1999. One notable high-point was the opening of the newly refurbished Town Hall Theatre, which he opened jointly with

Michael D. Higgins Michael Daniel Higgins (; born 18 April 1941) is an Irish politician, poet, broadcaster, and sociologist who has been serving as the president of Ireland since 2011. Entering national politics through the Labour Party, he served as a senator ...

. He held a civic reception for Irish Olympian,

Francie Barrett Francis Barrett (born 7 February 1977) is a retired Irish professional boxer, who represented Ireland at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. Background He was introduced to boxing by trainer, mentor and former boxer Chick Gillen. A ...

, and conferred the Freedom of Galway on President of

National University of Ireland, Galway The University of Galway () is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. The university was founded in 1845 as "Queen's College, Galway". It was known as "University College, Galway" (UCG) () from 1908 to 1997 and as ...

Colm Ó hEocha Colm Ó hEocha (; 19 September 1926 – 19 May 1997) was an Irish scientist and educationalist, who served as president of University College Galway and Chairman of the New Ireland Forum. Ó hEocha was born in Dungarvan, County Waterford, in 1 ...

References

*''Role of Honour:The Mayors of Galway City 1485-2001'', William Henry, Galway 2001.

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20071119083053/http://www.galwaycity.ie/AllServices/YourCouncil/HistoryofTheCityCouncil/PreviousMayors/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Ohuiginn, Micheal Alumni of the University of Galway Members of Galway City Council Politicians from County Galway Mayors of Galway 1942 births Living people Fianna Fáil local councillors