As Ireland prepares for the final centenary commemorations of its revolutionary era, a researcher has uncovered the extraordinary life of Joseph Reynolds, a man who served three different causes across fifty years of history.
January 26 marks the 100th anniversary of the release of the "Peterhead Ten," the last group of Irish Republican prisoners held in the brutal granite quarries of Scotland.
Among them was Joseph Reynolds, originally from Aghacashel, County Leitrim.
Reynolds’ journey didn't end at the prison gates in 1926. His life story reveals an "unbroken chain" of service, this according to Linda Barry MacManus, a grandniece of Reynolds who is researching his life.
In that life of distinctly varied service Reynolds was an Irish Volunteer, a veteran of the Leitrim Flying Column.
He survived the "Silent System" (no talking among prisoners) and hunger strikes in Peterhead Prison.
After immigrating to the Bronx, he donned the uniform of the United States Army, serving during World War II.
In the 1970s, Reynolds became a senior organizer for NORAID in New York, using his status as an "Old IRA" veteran to mentor a new generation of activists.
Said Barry MacManus: The research also highlights the tragic local cost of the Peterhead imprisonment. Two other members of the "Ten"—Sean Flood (brother of the executed Frank Flood) and John Kiernan of Leitrim—died shortly after their release due to injuries sustained in the Scottish prison."
Joseph Reynolds, added Barry MacManus, represents the ultimate Irish-American story.
"He fought for Irish freedom, he fought for global democracy in WWII, and he spent his final years in the Bronx ensuring the struggle at home was never forgotten. We are seeking any information from the Bronx community or his descendants to ensure he is properly honored in the 2026 centenary."
Barry MacManus can be contacted at linda4conor@gmail.com.
