Our Courthouse having received a one million pounds revamp was officially opened by the Minister for Justice John O’Donoghue on Thursday morning last. The one time corn exchange built in 1857 to Frederick Darley’s design looked at its best after almost 1½ years of careful tending at the hands of D. & J. Cabery, Building Contractors.
The opening ceremony was performed in the presence of Judges of the District Court, the Circuit Court and the Supreme Court, all of whom were women. I’m not sure if this was a coincidence or a reflection of the shifting of the gender imbalance which for so long deprived our State and its institutions of the enriching influence of the female mind. The Supreme Court Judge was Justice Mrs. Susan Denham whose father Douglas Gageby was for so long editor of the Irish Times and in whose newspaper there appeared almost four years ago a letter from a Dublin man criticising those responsible for the sad state of Athy’s fine Jacobean-style Courthouse. Judge Jackie Linnane of the Circuit Court and Judge Mary Martin of the District Court made up the judicial triumvirate at the opening.
The refurbishment work undertaken by D. & J. Carbery, Builders under the guidance of Michael Lysaght, Architect is first class and the mid-19th century building which within two years of being built was described as deficient in ventilation and lighting is now a lasting monument to the skill and workmanship of today’s craftsman as much as it is to the skills of 150 years ago.
Brothers Dan and Brian Carbery now manage the building firm which has been operating in one form or another since the 1880’s and possibly earlier. Dan Carbery and John Carbery of the original company formed sometime at the turn of the last century were Luggacurran brothers who did building work for Lord Landsdowne on his Luggacurran estates, as well as on his estates in Co. Kerry. The Plan of Campaign adopted in Luggacurran in 1886 with the active encouragement of local Curate Rev. John Maher saw the Carbery families as well as 60 or more other families evicted from holdings which they had held as tenants or under tenants of Lord Landsdowne. Some of those evicted, including the Carberys, came to Athy town where the building contracting business of D. & J. Carbery flourished, becoming in time the largest contracting firm in the region. D. & J. Carbery were involved in almost every major housing scheme undertaken by Athy Urban District Council from 1913 onwards. The very first Council housing scheme in Athy saw D. & J. Carbery build 10 houses in what was then known as Matthew’s Lane for the sum of £2,544.7.11. Those houses are now known as St. Michael’s Terrace. The Athy-based firm also built St. Patrick’s Avenue in 1931 and completed the houses in Dooley’s Terrace in January 1934. Convent View was built by them two years later and in November 1936 they completed work on Plewman’s Terrace and Minch’s Terrace. The Geraldine Road housing scheme was also the work of the Cabery firm which they finished in 1939 and their next big local authority housing scheme in Athy was Pairc Bhride in 1951.
The last major contract in which D. & J. Carbery, Building Contractors, Athy were involved in was the building of the Secondary School complex at Rathstewart which now houses Scoil Eoin and St. Mary’s girls school. Soon after completing that contract D. & J. Carbery Limited of Athy went out of business but the Carlow branch of the firm continued and indeed were involved in building houses for Athy Urban District Council at Butler’s Lane a few years ago.
The awarding of the Contract for the restoration of the Courthouse to the firm now managed by Dan and Brian Carbery was significant in terms of the State’s committment to preserving one of the most important architectural features of Athy. The architect of the original building Frederick Darley was one of the most important Irish architects of the 19th century and he was responsible for the Kings Inn library in Henrietta Street, Dublin as well as several other important buildings in the Nations Capital. Here in Athy we have several examples of his work including the Model School on the Dublin Road, St. Michael’s Church of Ireland on the Carlow Road which was built in 1840 during the Rectorship of Rev. F.S. Trench and while Darley was architect to the Ecclesiastical Commission. The Presbyterian Church and former Manse on the Dublin Road were also designed by Darley.
The choice of D. & J. Carbery Limited to refurbish the Courthouse was one which helped to continue this firm’s connection with the built heritage of Athy. The Town Hall and the Courthouse now both handsomely refurbished after years of neglect and fears of their possible demolition for car parking spaces provide a wonderful backdrop to the important urban spaces formerly known as Market Square before being renamed in honour of Emily, Duchess of Leinster. The generous proportions of both buildings are enhanced by the equally generous proportions of the spaces which surround them and which never fail to impress visitors to our town.
Last week Mullingar-based Paddy Looney passed away. Paddy was a former playing member of Athy Gaelic Football Club and won Senior Championship medals with Athy in 1933 and 1934. Athy’s first ever Senior Championship win in 1933 followed a hat trick of defeats in the County Finals of 1923, 1926 and 1927 and was achieved with such great footballers as Cuddy Chanders, Tommy Mulhall, Paul Matthews, Jim Fox and Barney Dunne. These five players were also part of the much fancied County Kildare team which failed to win the 1935 All-Ireland final against the men from the Breifne County. With the death of Paddy Looney, Barney Dunne who played alongside him in the full forward line in the 1934 County Final is the last surviving member of that great Athy team.
Showing posts with label Athy Courthouse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Athy Courthouse. Show all posts
Thursday, May 24, 2001
Thursday, May 4, 2000
Athy's Courthouse
The building work currently going on in the Courthouse building in Emily Square turned up an intriguing item during the past month. A small piece of timber found behind an architrave bore the following message written in pencil :-
“This Courthouse will be the property of the Irish Republic very soon or else it will be up in the air again.
Rory of the Hill”
The Courthouse building was last refurbished in or about 1928 by a Contractor named Sheridan under the guidance of Architects Foley and O’Sullivan. The Building, first provided by the Duke of Leinster as a corn exchange for the town of Athy, was subsequently re-adopted for use as a Courthouse and as such was a prime target during the War of Independence. Almost inevitably the building was torched on the night of 15th July, 1921 just a few weeks after James Lacey and William Connors had been killed during what has since become known as the Barrowhouse Ambush.
The Athy members of the IRA had not been very active during the War of Independence. An attack on the Military Barracks and raids on a few private houses for guns were the most noteworthy of their activities. Some of the locals visited at night and “encouraged” to give up their firearms included Cootes Drapers of Leinster Street, the local Station Master O’Neill and Hegartys who lived in an isolated cottage at the rear of Offaly Street. These and other similar nocturnal raids involved Jack Bradley of Woodstock Street, better known as “Gay Leg” Bradley, Mick Dunne originally from Clonaslee in County Laois and Bill Nolan of St. Michael’s Terrace. The last named was an energetic member of the local IRA and is credited, if such is the right term, with torching the Courthouse in July 1921. The local IRA had not sanctioned this action in the same way as they had no involvement in Bill Nolan’s earlier destruction of the Post Office clock in Duke Street.
Clearly Bill was a man of action who did not feel himself in any way restricted by belonging to an organised resistance group. In any event Bill’s latest escapade which culminated in the destruction of the Courthouse was not overlooked by the IRA Group leaders and so Bill was court martialled. John Hayden, a teacher in the local Christian Brothers School who was then living with his brother Paddy in Offaly Street was appointed with Mick Dunne to prepare a report on the Courthouse incident. Following this Bill Nolan was suspended by his IRA superiors, but was subsequently taken back into the fold long before the Courthouse itself was rebuilt. Indeed the building, or what was left of it, remained an eyesore for about seven years, fenced off from the rest of Emily Square until Kildare County Council, suitably reimbursed for it’s loss, engaged Sheridans Building Contractors to restore the building.
It was presumably during that work that the piece of timber mentioned at the start of this article was inserted by one of Sheridan’s workman at the rear of an architrave. Bill Nolan is long dead but the events of almost eighty years ago are recalled with the discovery of the small piece of timber by one of Dan Carbery’s workmen last month.
One of the mysteries from the 1990/1923 period in Athy concerns the identity of two men recalled and remembered for me some years ago by older members of the local community who have since passed on. J.J. O’Byrne, a teacher in the Christian Brothers School, lived in Duke Street in the property now owned by Alan Grothier. Next door was the shop of Michael Dooley where the local IRA men met regularly and in whose yard and haybarn they paraded on occasions. O’Byrne is believed to have been married to a woman from Barrowhouse whose name is unknown to me. The School teacher was arrested on 17th August, 1918 after he had got up on a box outside his front door and read out a notice, the contents of which are unknown but which immediately lead to his arrest and imprisonment in Mountjoy Jail. So far as I can ascertain J.J. O’Byrne never returned to Athy and he remains to this day a man of mystery.
Equally mysterious was a young man named Horgan or O’Horgan, an active member of the local IRA who worked as a Chemist or a Chemist’s assistant in McHugh’s of Duke Street. His name was mentioned by several different sources as an IRA member of the time but no one has yet come up with his Christian name. He is believed to have been from County Kerry where he subsequently returned and I am told he was wounded in a shootout between the IRA and the Black and Tans in that county. Is there anyone out there who can throw any light on either of these two men? If so I would be delighted to hear from you.
Writing of the rebuilding of the Courthouse brings me rather sadly to the recent unexpected death of the local Court Clerk, Frances Behan. When the Court last sat less than two weeks ago in the temporary accommodation at the top of Offaly Street Frances was in her usual place in front of the Judge organising the Court’s business in her customary pleasant and efficient manner. Within two days she was dead, a tragic loss to her family and friends and to the Court Practitioners in Athy and Carlow who had come to appreciate her kind and considerate nature since her appointment nine years ago. Working within the Irish Court system, whether at District Court or at a higher level, is for practitioners, staff and everyone else involved a demanding and at times a stressful job and so it is that practitioners especially, appreciate the understanding and graciousness with which our demands on the District Court and particularly Frances Behan were invariably met. Frances was a considerate and helpful Court Official who will be sadly missed.
“This Courthouse will be the property of the Irish Republic very soon or else it will be up in the air again.
Rory of the Hill”
The Courthouse building was last refurbished in or about 1928 by a Contractor named Sheridan under the guidance of Architects Foley and O’Sullivan. The Building, first provided by the Duke of Leinster as a corn exchange for the town of Athy, was subsequently re-adopted for use as a Courthouse and as such was a prime target during the War of Independence. Almost inevitably the building was torched on the night of 15th July, 1921 just a few weeks after James Lacey and William Connors had been killed during what has since become known as the Barrowhouse Ambush.
The Athy members of the IRA had not been very active during the War of Independence. An attack on the Military Barracks and raids on a few private houses for guns were the most noteworthy of their activities. Some of the locals visited at night and “encouraged” to give up their firearms included Cootes Drapers of Leinster Street, the local Station Master O’Neill and Hegartys who lived in an isolated cottage at the rear of Offaly Street. These and other similar nocturnal raids involved Jack Bradley of Woodstock Street, better known as “Gay Leg” Bradley, Mick Dunne originally from Clonaslee in County Laois and Bill Nolan of St. Michael’s Terrace. The last named was an energetic member of the local IRA and is credited, if such is the right term, with torching the Courthouse in July 1921. The local IRA had not sanctioned this action in the same way as they had no involvement in Bill Nolan’s earlier destruction of the Post Office clock in Duke Street.
Clearly Bill was a man of action who did not feel himself in any way restricted by belonging to an organised resistance group. In any event Bill’s latest escapade which culminated in the destruction of the Courthouse was not overlooked by the IRA Group leaders and so Bill was court martialled. John Hayden, a teacher in the local Christian Brothers School who was then living with his brother Paddy in Offaly Street was appointed with Mick Dunne to prepare a report on the Courthouse incident. Following this Bill Nolan was suspended by his IRA superiors, but was subsequently taken back into the fold long before the Courthouse itself was rebuilt. Indeed the building, or what was left of it, remained an eyesore for about seven years, fenced off from the rest of Emily Square until Kildare County Council, suitably reimbursed for it’s loss, engaged Sheridans Building Contractors to restore the building.
It was presumably during that work that the piece of timber mentioned at the start of this article was inserted by one of Sheridan’s workman at the rear of an architrave. Bill Nolan is long dead but the events of almost eighty years ago are recalled with the discovery of the small piece of timber by one of Dan Carbery’s workmen last month.
One of the mysteries from the 1990/1923 period in Athy concerns the identity of two men recalled and remembered for me some years ago by older members of the local community who have since passed on. J.J. O’Byrne, a teacher in the Christian Brothers School, lived in Duke Street in the property now owned by Alan Grothier. Next door was the shop of Michael Dooley where the local IRA men met regularly and in whose yard and haybarn they paraded on occasions. O’Byrne is believed to have been married to a woman from Barrowhouse whose name is unknown to me. The School teacher was arrested on 17th August, 1918 after he had got up on a box outside his front door and read out a notice, the contents of which are unknown but which immediately lead to his arrest and imprisonment in Mountjoy Jail. So far as I can ascertain J.J. O’Byrne never returned to Athy and he remains to this day a man of mystery.
Equally mysterious was a young man named Horgan or O’Horgan, an active member of the local IRA who worked as a Chemist or a Chemist’s assistant in McHugh’s of Duke Street. His name was mentioned by several different sources as an IRA member of the time but no one has yet come up with his Christian name. He is believed to have been from County Kerry where he subsequently returned and I am told he was wounded in a shootout between the IRA and the Black and Tans in that county. Is there anyone out there who can throw any light on either of these two men? If so I would be delighted to hear from you.
Writing of the rebuilding of the Courthouse brings me rather sadly to the recent unexpected death of the local Court Clerk, Frances Behan. When the Court last sat less than two weeks ago in the temporary accommodation at the top of Offaly Street Frances was in her usual place in front of the Judge organising the Court’s business in her customary pleasant and efficient manner. Within two days she was dead, a tragic loss to her family and friends and to the Court Practitioners in Athy and Carlow who had come to appreciate her kind and considerate nature since her appointment nine years ago. Working within the Irish Court system, whether at District Court or at a higher level, is for practitioners, staff and everyone else involved a demanding and at times a stressful job and so it is that practitioners especially, appreciate the understanding and graciousness with which our demands on the District Court and particularly Frances Behan were invariably met. Frances was a considerate and helpful Court Official who will be sadly missed.
Thursday, January 13, 2000
Athy Courthouse
Two years ago the Irish Times carried a letter from a Dublin man who chastised those responsible for the neglected state of Athy Courthouse. The fine Jacobean style building was indeed in a sad state, and remains so to this day but not for much longer. The Department of Justice is now about to loosen the purse strings to rescue what is an important part of the architectural heritage of our town.
The building now known as the Courthouse was originally the towns Corn Exchange. The first reference I found to it was in the Leinster Express of 25th April, 1857 when that newspaper then published in Naas and Maryboro carried a report of a banquet in the Leinster Arms Hotel. The occasion was a celebration for the newly elected Member of Parliament, W.H.F. Cogan and the following weeks headlines noted that one guest refused to stand for the customary toast to the Duke of Leinster. As Landlord for the town of Athy the Duke was accustomed to receiving unsolicited and uncritical allegiance from the subservient townsfolk and the action of the unnamed man was the first occasion such a public act of defiance was noted. The reason was the Dukes family’s involvement in the proposed closure of the town jail on the Carlow Road. It eventually closed in 1859 when all the prisoners were transferred to the new jail in Naas.
At the same time the Duke of Leinster received the gratitude of all those assembled in the Leinster Arms Hotel for the new Corn Exchange, then under construction in the Square of Athy. Newspaper reports claimed that the Duke was providing for the town of Athy “as pretty a building as any in Ireland” to be used as a Corn Exchange. It was opened for business on Tuesday, 6th October 1857 but before long the same newspapers carried reports that “the ventilation of the building was very defective and the manner in which it is lighted was also objected to”.
The criticism was surprising given that the Architect employed by the Duke of Leinster was none other than Frederick Darley, one of Ireland’s foremost Architects. Darley is best known for designing the Kings Inn Library in Henrietta Street, Dublin as well as a number of buildings in Trinity College and the wrought iron conservatories in the Botanical Gardens, Glasnevin. He was at different times Ecclesiastical Commissioners Architect for the Archdioceses of Dublin, and Architect to the Board of National Education. While Architect for the Archdioceses he designed St. Michael’s Church which was built on the Carlow Road and dedicated in September 1841. It is highly likely that Athy’s Model School on the Dublin Road opened in 1850 was also the work of Darley who was Architect to the National Board of Education at the time.
Whether the ventilation and lighting problems was the cause of the subsequent closure of the Corn Exchange we cannot say but certainly within five years the building was lying idle. A letter in the Leinster Express of 14th November, 1863 referred to the “large swamp around the ruins of the lamented Exchange”. To add to the woes of the locals the Summer Assizes hitherto held alternatively between Athy and Naas were transferred on a permanent basis out of Athy in the summer of 1858. Up to then the Court was located on the first floor of the Town Hall which had been built by the County Kildare Grand Jury in the early part of the 18th century. The Courts held there included the quarterly Assizes, the Petty Sessions which dealt with minor crimes and the Town Commissioners Court at which matters arising under the Town Improvement Act were heard.
When the former Corn Exchange was adopted for use as the Towns Courthouse I cannot yet confirm, but it would seem to have been utilised for that purpose before the end of the 19th century. The Assizes eventually returned to Athy but during the War of Independence the fine stone building with its flamboyant curved gables, dramatic tall granite chimney stacks and elliptical arched colonnades was burnt to the ground. The local IRA who were attached to the Carlow/Kildare brigade were believed to be responsible. It was felt to be an act of reprisal for the death of John Byrne of Gracefield, Ballylinan who died during the burning of the Luggacurran RIC Barracks. However, the truth which was known to a few was perhaps less heroic. One of the local volunteers acting on his own initiative and without the approval of his superiors torched the Court building on 15th July, 1921. The man responsible was Bill Nolan of St. Michael’s Terrace and he was subsequently court martialled by the IRA for his youthful indiscretion. The Court Martial Report prepared by John Hayden and Michael Dunne recommended his suspension from the Brigade. The suspension was soon thereafter lifted and Bill returned as an active member of the local volunteers.
The Duke of Leinster subsequently lodged a claim for compensation with the Urban Council and was awarded £1,455. The Clerk of the Petty Sessions Thomas J. Bodley lodged a similar claim for the loss of books, stationery and office furniture and received the sum of £30. Kildare County Council also applied for compensation indicating on 7th January, 1924 that the delay in paying the award made to it in Court was holding up the rebuilding of the Courthouse. The Urban District Councillors at their monthly meetings made regular reference to what they described as “the unsanitary state of the ruined interior of the Courthouse” and at one such meeting directed the town surveyor to “have a proper barbed wire fence erected to enclose the ruins”. The earlier arrival in the town of the first contingent of the newly established Garda Station prompted the same Councillors to request Kildare County Council to erect a Barracks for the Civic Guards in the vicinity of the Courthouse when it was being reinstated. The request obviously fell on deaf ears!
The rebuilding of the Courthouse was apparently completed sometime in 1928 under the supervision of Foley and O’Sullivan Architects. For whatever reason the building contractor delayed in handing over the building to Kildare County Council, a matter regarded by the local Urban Council as “a cause of inconsiderable inconvenience”. When the Courthouse was eventually reopened it continued to house the District Court and the quarterly sessions of the Circuit Courts. The offices of the District Court Office were located on the first floor and the last person to hold that office in Athy was Fintan Brennan. Rather strangely the local Garda Sergeant acted as the District Court Officer during the occasional absence of Fintan Brennan and I recall my own father doing short stints of duty in the District Court Office. The Irish penchant for centralisation resulted in the loss of the local District Court Office and for a while threatened the very future of Circuit Court sittings in Athy. Circuit Court Criminal Trials are no longer held in Athy, locals being required to travel to Naas for such hearings. Maybe with the refurbishment of the Courthouse we can look forward to the return of many of the lost elements of Court life in Athy.
Last week in what could have been the last Court sitting in the old building a fine tribute was paid to Bill Delahunty, Courthouse Caretaker who died recently. Billy, a member of an old Athy family will be sadly missed. Another recent death which was that of Michael Drennan, with whom I shared many happy schooldays in the local Christian Brothers. Hilary, as he was known, died just a few days after his mother passed away. May they rest in peace.
The building now known as the Courthouse was originally the towns Corn Exchange. The first reference I found to it was in the Leinster Express of 25th April, 1857 when that newspaper then published in Naas and Maryboro carried a report of a banquet in the Leinster Arms Hotel. The occasion was a celebration for the newly elected Member of Parliament, W.H.F. Cogan and the following weeks headlines noted that one guest refused to stand for the customary toast to the Duke of Leinster. As Landlord for the town of Athy the Duke was accustomed to receiving unsolicited and uncritical allegiance from the subservient townsfolk and the action of the unnamed man was the first occasion such a public act of defiance was noted. The reason was the Dukes family’s involvement in the proposed closure of the town jail on the Carlow Road. It eventually closed in 1859 when all the prisoners were transferred to the new jail in Naas.
At the same time the Duke of Leinster received the gratitude of all those assembled in the Leinster Arms Hotel for the new Corn Exchange, then under construction in the Square of Athy. Newspaper reports claimed that the Duke was providing for the town of Athy “as pretty a building as any in Ireland” to be used as a Corn Exchange. It was opened for business on Tuesday, 6th October 1857 but before long the same newspapers carried reports that “the ventilation of the building was very defective and the manner in which it is lighted was also objected to”.
The criticism was surprising given that the Architect employed by the Duke of Leinster was none other than Frederick Darley, one of Ireland’s foremost Architects. Darley is best known for designing the Kings Inn Library in Henrietta Street, Dublin as well as a number of buildings in Trinity College and the wrought iron conservatories in the Botanical Gardens, Glasnevin. He was at different times Ecclesiastical Commissioners Architect for the Archdioceses of Dublin, and Architect to the Board of National Education. While Architect for the Archdioceses he designed St. Michael’s Church which was built on the Carlow Road and dedicated in September 1841. It is highly likely that Athy’s Model School on the Dublin Road opened in 1850 was also the work of Darley who was Architect to the National Board of Education at the time.
Whether the ventilation and lighting problems was the cause of the subsequent closure of the Corn Exchange we cannot say but certainly within five years the building was lying idle. A letter in the Leinster Express of 14th November, 1863 referred to the “large swamp around the ruins of the lamented Exchange”. To add to the woes of the locals the Summer Assizes hitherto held alternatively between Athy and Naas were transferred on a permanent basis out of Athy in the summer of 1858. Up to then the Court was located on the first floor of the Town Hall which had been built by the County Kildare Grand Jury in the early part of the 18th century. The Courts held there included the quarterly Assizes, the Petty Sessions which dealt with minor crimes and the Town Commissioners Court at which matters arising under the Town Improvement Act were heard.
When the former Corn Exchange was adopted for use as the Towns Courthouse I cannot yet confirm, but it would seem to have been utilised for that purpose before the end of the 19th century. The Assizes eventually returned to Athy but during the War of Independence the fine stone building with its flamboyant curved gables, dramatic tall granite chimney stacks and elliptical arched colonnades was burnt to the ground. The local IRA who were attached to the Carlow/Kildare brigade were believed to be responsible. It was felt to be an act of reprisal for the death of John Byrne of Gracefield, Ballylinan who died during the burning of the Luggacurran RIC Barracks. However, the truth which was known to a few was perhaps less heroic. One of the local volunteers acting on his own initiative and without the approval of his superiors torched the Court building on 15th July, 1921. The man responsible was Bill Nolan of St. Michael’s Terrace and he was subsequently court martialled by the IRA for his youthful indiscretion. The Court Martial Report prepared by John Hayden and Michael Dunne recommended his suspension from the Brigade. The suspension was soon thereafter lifted and Bill returned as an active member of the local volunteers.
The Duke of Leinster subsequently lodged a claim for compensation with the Urban Council and was awarded £1,455. The Clerk of the Petty Sessions Thomas J. Bodley lodged a similar claim for the loss of books, stationery and office furniture and received the sum of £30. Kildare County Council also applied for compensation indicating on 7th January, 1924 that the delay in paying the award made to it in Court was holding up the rebuilding of the Courthouse. The Urban District Councillors at their monthly meetings made regular reference to what they described as “the unsanitary state of the ruined interior of the Courthouse” and at one such meeting directed the town surveyor to “have a proper barbed wire fence erected to enclose the ruins”. The earlier arrival in the town of the first contingent of the newly established Garda Station prompted the same Councillors to request Kildare County Council to erect a Barracks for the Civic Guards in the vicinity of the Courthouse when it was being reinstated. The request obviously fell on deaf ears!
The rebuilding of the Courthouse was apparently completed sometime in 1928 under the supervision of Foley and O’Sullivan Architects. For whatever reason the building contractor delayed in handing over the building to Kildare County Council, a matter regarded by the local Urban Council as “a cause of inconsiderable inconvenience”. When the Courthouse was eventually reopened it continued to house the District Court and the quarterly sessions of the Circuit Courts. The offices of the District Court Office were located on the first floor and the last person to hold that office in Athy was Fintan Brennan. Rather strangely the local Garda Sergeant acted as the District Court Officer during the occasional absence of Fintan Brennan and I recall my own father doing short stints of duty in the District Court Office. The Irish penchant for centralisation resulted in the loss of the local District Court Office and for a while threatened the very future of Circuit Court sittings in Athy. Circuit Court Criminal Trials are no longer held in Athy, locals being required to travel to Naas for such hearings. Maybe with the refurbishment of the Courthouse we can look forward to the return of many of the lost elements of Court life in Athy.
Last week in what could have been the last Court sitting in the old building a fine tribute was paid to Bill Delahunty, Courthouse Caretaker who died recently. Billy, a member of an old Athy family will be sadly missed. Another recent death which was that of Michael Drennan, with whom I shared many happy schooldays in the local Christian Brothers. Hilary, as he was known, died just a few days after his mother passed away. May they rest in peace.
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