Born in June 1877 in Aghoo to James McGoohan and Margaret O’ Donnell, Phil McGoohan was a well-known writer of ballads and poetry who composed many songs that give us a little insight into life in the early 1900s that we don’t often get from more formal history books.
One of his best-known ballads describes the area around him and the curse of unemployment and emigration – “Where Leitrim Waters Flow”
History in Song
Another song by McGoohan (although it was also claimed that a Master O’ Rourke had written it) brings us on a journey on the Narrow Gauge.
Logan’s Mill
Another ballad depicts a mill which was in Gorvagh near where McGoohan’s wife came from.
Local Newspapers
Phil McGoohan was said to be able to write ballads in a very short space of time and he submitted some of his work to local papers.
