Naval hero’s birthplace demolished
The Irish deputation included members of the Irish Navy and the Admiral Browne Society.
The house in Foxford, Co Mayo, was marked with a commemorative plaque erected 20 years ago, but that did not prevent it being razed. It did not have a preservation order.
A local man who bought the house some months ago said he was acting on professional advice to demolish it because of the danger posed by the front wall leaning onto the street.
While there is some local disagreement about theexact birthplace of the man who is today revered inArgentina, the main body of historical records points to Foxford.
Some locals argue that Browne was born in Coranaragh, a hilltop townland outside Foxford, but this is not the general consensus.
In the Recoleta Cemetery in Buenos Aires there is a memorial with the inscription: “William Browne was born on June 22, 1777, at Foxford, Co Mayo.”
In Argentina there are more than 1,200 streets called after him.
Last weekend, the Government’s official representative in Argentina for St Patrick’s Day, attorney general Rory Brady greeted more than 400 members of the Irish-Argentine community at a function organised by the Irish embassy to mark the 150th anniversary of the death of Admiral Brown at Luján outside Buenos Aires.
