James Gralton

Jimmy Gralton (17 April 1886–1945) was an Irish communist leader, who became a United States citizen after emigrating in 1909, and the only Irishman ever deported from Ireland.

He returned to Ireland to fight in the Tan War, and later in 1932 to look after his parents, where he led the Revolutionary Workers' Group in Leitrim, a predecessor of the Communist Party of Ireland.Shortly after he married a local woman from the area Bessie Cronogue. He ran a dance hall in Effrinagh where he arranged free events where he expounded his political views. There were violent protests against these dances led by Catholic priests, which culminated in a shooting incident. Following this, on 9 February 1933, he was arrested, and later deported to the United States of America, on the basis that he was an alien. This led to public protests organised by the Irish Republican Army.

Early years
James Gralton was born on 17 April 1886 in the townland of Effrinagh, Parish of Kiltoghert, about six miles from Carrick-on-Shannon. His parents were Micheal Gralton and Alice Campbell. There were four girls and three boys in the family: Winnie, Mary Ann, Alice and Maggie Kate were the girls, and the boys were Jimmy, Charles and a little boy who died young.

Jimmy was reared on a small farm of about twenty-five acres of bad land, which was surrounded by some good land. The people were too poor to buy fertiliser for the crops so they had to burn some of the topsoil, and this left the land poor and shallow.