Mary Freehill

Mary Freehill
Freehill in 2015
Dublin City Councillor
In office
1977–2024
ConstituencyKimmage–Rathmines
Lord Mayor of Dublin
In office
July 1999 – July 2000
Preceded byJoe Doyle
Succeeded byMaurice Ahern
Personal details
Born (1946-07-22) 22 July 1946 (age 78)
Ballyconnell, County Cavan, Ireland
Political partyLabour Party

Mary Freehill (born 22 July 1946) is a former Dublin City Councillor, who served as the Lord Mayor of Dublin during the Millennium year from 5 July 1999 to 3 July 2000.[1][2][3] She was a Labour Party councillor on Dublin City Council from 1977 to 2024.[4]

Freehill was born and went to school in the town of Ballyconnell, County Cavan. Her parents were Bernard Freehill, a building contractor and Kathleen Freehill (nee Donohoe) of Daisy Hill, Ballyconnell. She is a second cousin of Vin Scully, the former long-time play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers.[5]

Freehill was elected to the city council in 1977 to 1985 for Pembroke electoral area and was re-elected for Rathmines electoral area in 1991. She was re-elected at each subsequent local election (1999, 2004, 2009, 2014, 2019) for the same area. She was an unsuccessful Labour Party candidate for Dublin South-East at the 1977 and 1981 general elections, and for Dublin Central at the 1987 general election.[6]

As Lord Mayor of Dublin City, she awarded the Freedom of the City to Nobel Peace Prize winner and Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and also to the band U2.[7]

Freehill did not contest the 2024 Dublin City Council election.[8]

  1. ^ Humphreys, Joe. "Labour woman to be elected Dublin Mayor". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  2. ^ "Mary to be city's fourth female Mayor". independent. 20 June 1999. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  3. ^ "Lord Mayors of Dublin 1665–2020" (PDF). Dublin City Council. June 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  4. ^ "Byrne, Alderman Alfred". Who Was Who. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2007. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u235369. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2020. (subscription required)
  5. ^ Seamus Enright (11 September 2016). "Inside Story: Vin's last innings". Anglo Celt. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  6. ^ "Mary Freehill". ElectionsIreland.org. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
  7. ^ "Details of Aung San Suu Kyi public event on Monday night". www.dublincity.ie. Archived from the original on 9 December 2017. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  8. ^ Finnerty, Mike (20 March 2024). "ANYTHING GOES IN KIMMAGE-RATHMINES". Dublin People. Retrieved 6 April 2024.