Two important books arrived on my desk in the last week, both of them with listings of men who served our neighbouring country at a time whe...

During twelve months of lockdown we have witnessed a catastrophic change in the commercial life of our town and district. Local businesses h...

Last week’s Kildare Nationalist carried a news item concerning White’s Castle and an announcement of the forthcoming auction of what was des...

The game of soccer in Athy has a history dating back to the mid 1920s. The first club, known as ‘The Barrow Rovers’, was started by men wor...

The relentless march of time each day brings changes to our lives. Some for the better which are welcomed but there are also many unwelcome...

Long forgotten memories flooded in on me as Teddy Kelly’s remains were lowered into the grave at the new St. Michael’s Cemetery. Memories w...

Images of Charles Dickens’s characters came to mind as I studied the Minute Book of 1892/’93 in which the Master of Athy’s Workhouse recorde...

The Art Council’s announcement of a grant of €450,000 over a period of three years to help the development of creative opportunities for peo...

When I was asked by the Eastern Health Board almost 30 years ago to research and write a history of St. Vincent’s Hospital and it’s predeces...

Last week’s visit by the Minister for State in the Department of Heritage and Local Government to the Shackleton Museum was a welcome acknow...

Within the past week the Kildare Decade of Commemoration Committee published a 128-page booklet titled ‘A Timeline of the War of Independenc...

The game of hurling has over the years had a limited degree of success in Athy. The first Senior County Final in which the Athy club played...

The Barrowhouse chapel bell rang out at 4 o’clock on the afternoon of 16th May last. It was around that time 100 years ago that two young m...

The truce which came into effect on 11th July 1921 came approximately four months after the execution by the I.R.A. of Mrs. Mary Lindsey and...

Irish traditional music, whether songs in Irish or English, instrumental music or dance music, has been passed on from generation to generat...

During the period of civil unrest extending from the Easter Rising of 1916 to the end of 1921, 2850 Irish men, women and children were kille...

The second part of the story of Kildare connected persons killed during the War of Independence is put aside until next week. Instead, I wa...

The first deaths of participants in the Irish War of Independence occurred three days before the start of the Easter Rising. On 21st April...

Over the years Athy has been home to many festivals, two of which came to my attention as I sorted papers collected, laid aside and forgotte...

The Dublin Penny Journal was founded in 1831 by Caesar Otway who was later joined by George Petrie and John O’Donovan. In its early life the...

This week we continue our virtual tour of Athy, beginning at the town hall in Emily Square. Built 300 years ago as a market house, courthous...