On learning that Bishop Kearney was buried in a tomb within St Canice’s Cathedral;
“I have to admit it was very exciting and it was great to finally prove conclusively that Barack Obama’s sixth generation grand uncle was the Bishop of Ossory who died in Kilkenny city at the Bishop’s Palace in 1813. It is now the headquarters of the Heritage Council."
Local Academic Gabriel Murray
The population of County Kilkenny is 95,419 according to the 2011 census ... plus an undisclosed number of Kilkenny cats.Film star George Clooney’s great-great-grandfather was baptised Nicholas Clooney in Windgap church, Kilkenny, on July 23, 1829.
Iconic film producer and animation innovator Walt Disney has Kilkenny roots. His great-grandfather Arundel Elias Disney emigrated from Gowran, County Kilkenny, in the 19th century.
The gravestone of Daniel O’Connell in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin is made from Kilkenny black marble, and the stone was also used in the construction of Cobh Cathedral in CorkIn 1650 invading Cromwellian forces mounted an attack on Kilkenny castle and although it was initially successfully defended they eventually managed to take control of the city by another route.
