John O'Connor Power

John O'Connor Power (13 February 1846 – 21 February 1919) was an Irish Fenian and a Home Rule League and Irish Parliamentary Party politician and as MP in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland represented Mayo from June 1874 to 1885. He practised as a barrister from 1881.

He was born in Clashaganny, County Roscommon and was the third son of Patrick Power from Ballinasloe and his wife Mary O'Connor of County Roscommon, during the Potato Famine years. He contracted smallpox and spent some time in the Ballinasloe Fever hospital, which was housed in the workhouse. On the death of his parents he was raised by Catherine O'Connor Duffield in her home in Society Street. At fifteen years of age, he went to live with relatives in Lancashire where he recruited for the Irish Republican Brotherhood and took up a trade in house painting. It was here that he first met Michael Davitt.

He became known to the police under alias names 'John Fleming', 'John Webster', 'Charles Ferguson'. After being involved in the abortive raid on Chester Castle in February 1867, he evaded capture and was sent to the United States later that year at the age of 21 to discuss reorganisation of the Fenians. After his return he was arrested in Dublin on 17 February 1868 and spent five months in Kilmainham and Mountjoy jails. The County of Dublin Gaol, Kilmainham file holds a 'photograph and description of a prisoner who was formerly in custody under the Lord Lieutenant's warrant, charged with treasonable practices and discharged on bail on 29 July 1868.' John Power, alias John Webster, alias Charles Fleming was a Roman Catholic who was born in County Roscommon. He was 5 ft 9in, 'stout', with a long face, dark brown hair, grey eyes, a large nose and a large mouth. His whiskers were dark and he had no beard. His fresh complexion was pitted and he had a large wart on the small finger of his left hand. His make was 'ordinary'. He was a newspaper reporter and lived in Lancashire, in Bolton or in Rochdale.

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