A Memorial for the Famine dead of Athy's Workhouse

Last March I wrote to Councillor Mark Stafford who was then Mayor of County Kildare asking if Kildare County Council would provide funding for the design, construction and erection of a suitable memorial to honour those who died in Athy Workhouse and the County Home and were buried in St. Mary’s Cemetery. That last resting place for so many is just a short distance from the former workhouse from where the emaciated bodies of the famine dead were carted across Lennon’s Bridge on their final journey. I was prompted to write to the Mayor having some weeks earlier read the report of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission which outlined a shameful period in our nation’s history. In a subsequent Eye on the Past No. 1486 I recounted how in 1994 I made an appeal to the Eastern Health Board at the launch of my book on the history of St. Vincent’s Hospital for that authority to erect a suitable memorial ‘to the forgotten people who lie in St. Mary’s Cemetery so that they can be shown the respect and dignity denied to them while they lived’. There was no response from the Eastern Health Board but Councillor Mark Stafford replied to my letter indicating that Kildare County Council would pursue the matter with representatives from the Mother and Baby Homes and County Homes and that “your proposal will be considered as part of this process”. I interpreted his reply as a clear indication that Kildare County Council would memorialise the forgotten inmates of Athy’s Workhouse and the County Home. Last week’s Kildare Nationalist carried the news that Kildare County Council, following a motion brought to the Council by Councillors Aoife Breslin and Nuala Killeen, had authorised the expenditure of €68,000 for the erection of a memorial in St. Mary’s Cemetery for ‘all those sadly neglected souls that died in the Workhouse and the County Home’. The members of Kildare County Council are to be congratulated for their decision and the hope is that the memorial will be in position in time for next May’s National Famine Commemoration Day. In the meantime Clem Roche and Michael Donovan are continuing their research to identify as many as possible of the men, women and children who died in the Workhouse between 1844 and 1922. Their task is a very difficult one but is an essential element of any commemorative acknowledgement of our town’s past. Several people have contacted me in recent times with regard to the lack of readily available information relating to activities and events in the town. Within the last week two persons, who are quite recent arrivals in Athy, pointed out that it was very difficult for them to know what activities or events are taking place and questioned why there was no town directory and no regular public announcements as to what was happening in the town. In olden days every town had a town crier whose job was to walk through the streets ringing a bell and proclaiming the latest news or announcements. Nowadays what with mobile phones, texting and emails one might readily assume that passing on information should be a much easier task than in years gone by. The problems associated with the use of modern technology however is that not everyone has a mobile phone or computer and the gathering of information for transmission town wide requires the regular co-operation of event organisers, clubs and associations. The gathering of information on a regular basis is the most difficult part of information transmission across a town or district. Once information is gathered it should be a straight forward matter to have it brought to the attention of the general public whether by leaflet drops, a newsletter or local radio. Perhaps the least costly way of disseminating information is to use public notice boards. There is a notice board in Emily Square which if matched by other similar notice boards in the carpark of the town library and a third perhaps at the Arts Centre in Woodstock Street they could be used to keep the general public advised of forthcoming events. Providing notice boards is the easy part of the process. The greatest difficulty lies in availing of the services of a person or persons whose role is to gather in the material. This would require liaising on a regular basis with local organisations to ensure a comprehensive listing of local events and happenings and the preparation of event listings for the public notice boards. This is a task which will require a great deal of commitment and I believe it might best be undertaken by the community and events officer employed by Athy municipal council. If the local Councillors accept it as a community benefit project worthy of support perhaps they would establish this or some other form of public information link for Athy and the South Kildare area. The 21st Shackleton Autumn School takes place on Saturday, 30th of October. This year’s event is again an online event which last year attracted a large international audience. ‘Virtually Shackleton’ is a free event which you can join by contacting the Shackleton Museum at info@shackletonmuseum.com. Next week’s Eye on the Past will give an account of the 2021 Autumn School speakers, their subjects and an interesting recent arrival in the Shackleton Museum.