Former RTÉ Western Editor Jim Fahy will be warmly remembered by the Williamstown Heritage Society in northeast Galway at the launch of a book he had been working on prior to his death in January 2022.
'The Puddler Poet' is a biography of Michael McGovern who was born in Williamstown in 1847 and went on to become a highly regarded labour poet in the United States.
The 'Puddler' title comes from his time spent working in the steel mills in Pennsylvania and Ohio, while writing poetry standing up for the rights of workers and criticising the industrialists and mill owners.
In 1899, the boy from Williamstown, whose formal education amounted to three months in a hedge school, published one book of his poems 'Labor Lyrics and Other Poems'.
In his trademark way, Jim Fahy came upon the story of Michael McGovern through word of mouth.
He had scant detail to work with but he enlisted the help of Leo and Eileen Finnegan from the Williamstown Heritage Society.
Leo said the book became Jim's passion project over five years leading up to his death.
He said: "Through a series of coincidences, Jim and myself and my wife Eileen became engrossed in this project.
"Starting with zero information and led by Jim's incomparable journalistic skills, we built up a very full picture of the life of this talented and almost forgotten poet.
"McGovern left Ireland for Sheffield as a teenager and some years later, because of his involvement with the IRB and the Fenians, he had to be secreted away to the US.
"He was later joined there by his wife and children. Being a puddler was back breaking work. He worked at blazing furnaces, he melted and stirred pig iron, removing impurities and turning it into wrought iron. Most puddlers were dead by 40."
He said the dedicated research carried out by Jim Fahy has brought to life the times and poetry of Michael McGovern, who would otherwise be a forgotten man.
He said: "Jim wove his life, his poetry, his art, his politics, his philosophies into a most profound and interesting read.
"We made many contacts and friends along the way in the USA, particularly in the Ohio area where Michael McGovern spent so much of his life."
Prior to his death, Jim Fahy asked his close friend and former RTÉ journalist Tommie Gorman to help get the project over the line.
Leo said: "Tommie took on the task with enthusiasm and enlisted the aid of RTE colleagues, Ray Burke and Patricia Brennan for the task of editing. But we were visited by more sadness when he passed away suddenly in June 2024. With the help of Jim's family, along with Ray and Patricia, the second stage of the editing was completed.
"The final edit then fell to Eileen and myself, and we were very relieved when it finally went to print. Not alone will the memory of Michael McGovern be, most deservedly, brought to life, but also, the launch will fill the final gap in the outstanding journalistic career of Jim Fahy."
Leo said the book honours two immensely talented figures.
"Michael McGovern is the poet from an earlier time, and Jim Fahy is the journalist from more recent times. Both were outstanding wordsmiths from different eras," he added.
The launch date for The Puddler Poet is Saturday 25 October at 8pm in Williamstown, Co Galway, the native parish of Michael McGovern.
