July 17–20, 2023 · Westport, County Mayo

The first modern Clan Gathering

The long-planned reunion finally became real at the Castlecourt Hotel: 105 attendees, family history, scholarship, worship, music, two very different Mayo excursions and one unforgettable proposal.

Clan Mac Hale members gathered at the Castlecourt Hotel in Westport — Clan Mac Hale at the Castlecourt Hotel, Westport, July 2023.

105 attendees reported

Coming together in Mayo

The Gathering ran from Monday, July 17 through Thursday, July 20, 2023. The Castlecourt Hotel in central Westport served as the Clan's base.

For a community that had spent years corresponding through genealogy, DNA work, newsletters and reunion planning, the Gathering turned names on a mailing list into cousins in the same room.

MON · JUL 17

Arrival, dinner and a new Taoiseach

The first evening centered on welcome, dinner and getting acquainted. During the opening-night dinner, Kathleen Blanchard was elected Taoiseach of Clan Mac Hale, succeeding Shawn McHale.

Clan members dining at the Castlecourt Hotel on the opening night of the 2023 Gathering — Opening-night dinner at the Castlecourt Hotel.

TUE · JUL 18

A day of presentations and Clan history

Tuesday was the most formal program day. Presentations connected the living Clan with cultural history, Archbishop John MacHale and the visual history of County Mayo.

A speaker presenting on music, culture and McHale family connections — **Music and identity**
A presentation explored how music carried family and cultural identity across generations.

Professor Des MacHale speaking at the 2023 Clan Gathering — **Prof. Des MacHale**
A presentation on Archbishop John MacHale and the “Lion of the West.”

Historian Bernard O'Hara speaking at the 2023 Clan Gathering — **Bernard O'Hara**
The final presentation used historic photography to illuminate County Mayo and its people.

St. Mary's, Westport

After the presentations, the Clan attended a special service at Saint Mary's Catholic Church, the parish church of Westport (Aughaval) Parish.

Interior of Saint Mary's Catholic Church in Westport — Saint Mary's Catholic Church, Westport.

Sanctuary at Saint Mary's Catholic Church in Westport — The sanctuary at Saint Mary's.

WED · JUL 19

Two ways to experience Mayo

On Wednesday morning the Gathering divided. One group climbed Croagh Patrick. The other boarded a bus for a historical journey through northern and central County Mayo.

Choice 1: Croagh Patrick

Caleb Ferguson proposing to Emily McHale during the Croagh Patrick outing

The climb produced the most personal story of the Gathering. Caleb Ferguson proposed to Emily McHale during the Croagh Patrick outing, with Clew Bay and the Mayo landscape behind them. She said yes.

A family social-media account later described the proposal as the highlight of a ten-day Ireland trip built around the Clan reunion. Emily and Caleb followed through on the mountaintop promise and married in November 2024.

Emily McHale and Caleb Ferguson on their wedding day in November 2024 — Emily McHale and Caleb Ferguson on their wedding day, November 2024.

Choice 2: Historical Mayo by bus

The second group headed north from Westport for a full-day historical excursion. The route included Ionad Achaidh Chéide / Céide Fields Centre, nearby coastal viewpoints, Ballycastle, Crossmolina, Lahardane and the countryside south toward Castlebar.

Sign for Ionad Achaidh Chéide, Céide Fields Centre — Céide Fields Centre.

Atlantic coastline in north County Mayo — North Mayo coastline.

Green County Mayo countryside viewed during the historical tour — Through the Mayo countryside.

Leonard's in Lahardane

A planned late lunch at Leonard's in Lahardane gave the group a chance to stop, eat and listen to traditional Irish music before continuing the historical route.

Clan members seated for lunch inside Leonard's in Lahardane — Lunch and music inside Leonard's.

Father Andrew Conroy and John MacHale

After lunch, the group stopped at the memorial to Father Andrew Conroy, parish priest of Addergoole and the priest who baptized John MacHale. The memorial stands with Croagh Patrick visible beyond it and is close to the Addergoole Titanic Memorial Park.

Father Andrew Conroy memorial with Croagh Patrick in the background — The Andrew Conroy memorial and Croagh Patrick.

English-language plaque describing Father Andrew Conroy and his connection to John MacHale — The memorial plaque records Conroy's connection to John MacHale.

The group then visited John MacHale's birthplace, where members met the people who live there today, before continuing south through the countryside toward Castlebar and back to Westport.

THU · JUL 20

Departure, and one more Mayo discovery

Thursday morning was principally departure day. One attendee made an additional visit to Reilig Thurlach / Turlough Graveyard and the nearby round tower. Coming from the southern United States, where the surname is comparatively uncommon, the number of McHale graves in one place was striking.

Turlough Round Tower and church ruins in County Mayo — Turlough Round Tower and church ruins.

Map and burial list at Turlough Graveyard — The graveyard map and burial index.

McHale family gravestone at Turlough Graveyard — One of numerous McHale family memorials.

Why the Gathering matters

The Westport Gathering was more than a reunion. It connected genealogy to landscape, research to living people, and an online network to a shared experience in Mayo. It also created stories that could never have been planned in a program: a proposal on Croagh Patrick, conversations with people living at John MacHale's birthplace, and the surprise of seeing the McHale name repeated across an old Mayo graveyard.

That is the spirit this website is intended to preserve.