Paddy Conneely

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Paddy Conneely (also spelled Coneely) died 11 September 1851. He was a blind Irish piper and singer known as The Galway Piper because he lived in Galway for many years. James Hardiman supported him and gave him pipes made in the 1820s. His music was written down by collectors including Henry Hudson, George Petrie, William Forde, and Henry Westenra, 3rd Baron Rossmore, producing about 180 tunes. Most of his manuscripts are now in the National Library of Ireland, the Boston Public Library, and the University of Notre Dame. Frederic William Burton painted his portrait in 1839, and an engraving based on it appeared in The Irish Penny Journal in 1840, possibly making him the first folk musician to be pictured on the cover of a widely read journal. After his death, his two sons were taken into care by the Christian Brothers.