In 1846, at the height of the Irish Famine, an infamous eviction took place at the East Galway village of Ballinlass. After a protracted struggle with their landlady, over 400 half-starved people, some suffering from typhus, were turned out into a wintry landscape to perish or escape as best they could. The atrocity at Ballinlass caused public outrage, and continues to feature in histories of the Famine to the current day. But what was the real story behind the Ballinlass Eviction? And how did refugees from this notorious episode in Irish history end up living in Davenport, Iowa and Brisbane Australia? 

Robyn Collins and Natalie Jane Prior, Australian descendants of Ballinlass evictees Larry and Kate Kilmartin, share some of their in-depth research and reveal the bizarre reason why they were born in Australia instead of the United States…

Natalie Jane Prior is the award-winning author of over 50 children’s books, which have been published in numerous countries and languages. Her books include the best-selling Lily Quench series, with over half a million copies in print, and most recently, the Naughty Dragons series. Natalie has also worked as a reference librarian and genealogist. Her life-long interest in the Great Famine and the Irish diaspora was sparked by family stories told by her maternal grandmother.

Robyn Collins is retired! She had a varied career starting as a teacher in country high schools then moving into the Arts and Libraries. She is proud to have been the State Librarian of both Tasmania and South Australia. She was a partner in a small publishing company specialising in books for children. She held executive positions in government. Her last job was buying helicopters for the Royal Australian Navy. Like her cousin Natalie, she has had a lifetime love of history.