Tom Kelleher was a member of the Irish Republican Army

Irish Republican Army

The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...

 in the 1920s and 1930s. He took part in various engagements of the West Cork Flying Column during the Irish War of Independence

Irish War of Independence

The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...

, notably the Crossbarry Ambush

Crossbarry Ambush

The Crossbarry Ambush occurred on 19 March 1921 and was one of the largest engagements of the Irish War of Independence. It took place at the rural crossroads of Crossbarry, County Cork, around 20 km south west of Cork city. About a hundred Irish Republican Army volunteers escaped an attempt...

 in March 1921.

He also took part in the ambush at Béal na mBláth

Béal na mBláth

Béal na mBláth, officially Béal Átha na Bláiche , is a small village in County Cork, Ireland. Both Bláth or Bláiche are variations of the word bláthach, meaning literally "flowery" or "floral", or in this case "buttermilk"....

, County Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

 on 22 August 1922, during which Michael Collins

Michael Collins (Irish leader)

Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...

 was fatally wounded.

His son Sean Kelleher stood unsuccessfully as an Anti H-Block

Anti H-Block

Anti H-Block was the political label used in 1981 by supporters of the Irish republican hunger strike who were standing for election in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland...

candidate in the 1981 General Election for the Cork South West constituency.