When Sean T. O’Ceallaigh, then Minister for Local Government came to Athy on 5th April, 1934 to open the new Housing Schemes at St. Joseph’s Terrace and Michael Dooley’s Terrace he acknowledged that no local authority had responded better to his Government Housing initiative than Athy UDC. He remarked that Ireland was a “good Christian country with Catholic morals prevailing and families were increasing and would have to be provided with houses”.
The local Council had already made substantial strides in replacing the unsanitary hovels which were the remnants of 18th century Athy with modern local authority houses and suitably emboldened by the Minister’s words planned to build upwards of another 171 houses. No doubt it’s announcement of the proposed 5th Housing Scheme for Athy owed much to the local elections scheduled for 26th June, 1934 and which for the first time would be held under the Proportional Representation System. Six of the fifteen outgoing members of the Urban Council nevertheless lost their seats and John Dillon, Francis Doran, Patrick Kelly, Richard Murphy, James Tierney and Daniel Toomey never again graced the Council Chamber.
The newly elected Council met with it’s Engineer three days after the election and after much discussion decided to reduce the number of proposed new houses to 56. This may have been due to a realisation that the Council’s finances were overstretched for within a few weeks the Department of Local Government felt obliged to inform the Council that the proposed sewerage scheme for Athy “will receive immediate consideration as soon as all outstanding loan instalments are paid and an undertaking given under seal to pay all future instalments promptly.” Despite their obvious financial difficulties the Council advertised in September 1934 for contractors to build 20 one story four roomed houses at Clonmullin, and 25 two story four roomed houses on Carbery’s field at Rathstewart. The Minister for Local Government wrote to the Urban Council in a letter read at it’s meeting on 10th October in which he expressed himself :- “Very dissatisfied with the Council’s attitude regarding outstanding instalments of housing loans and unless they are paid regularly no further advances will be made.” Undaunted the Council opened tenders for new houses in Rathstewart and Clonmullin on 5th November, 1934. Messrs Duggan of Templemore and D. & J. Carbery of Athy who between them had built the recently opened new houses in Lower and Upper St. Joseph’s Terrace were duly appointed as Contractors. Carberys agreed to build 20 one story houses on Mr. Rodger’s site at Clonmullin for £5,482 and Duggans were entrusted with the building of 25 two story houses on Carbery’s field at Rathstewart which when completed would link up with the 17 houses previously built by D. & J. Carbery to form Upper St. Joseph’s Terrace.
The Urban Council must have settled it’s differences with the Department regarding the unpaid loan instalments as the Department approved the tenders and further approved the Council’s acquisition of Mrs. Holland’s field at Geraldine Road and Plewman’s site at Blackparks for £80 per statute acre. Before the end of the year the Council had agreed to purchase 1 acre 1 rood of land from Dan Finter at the rear of Carbery’s houses in Woodstock Street which had been demolished under the first Clearance Order. The Duke of Leinster also sold to the Council the site on which the 22 Carbery houses had stood, measuring 1 rood and 10 perches. Clearly the site density was of quite extraordinary proportions.
Patrick Tierney of Stanhope Street was appointed Clerk of Works for the Council’s fifth housing scheme and two months later in February 1935 the Department of Local Government sanctioned a loan of £36,500 for the Council’s scheme “of about 106 houses”. One can only marvel at the latitude apparently given to the Urban Council.
Before long the Urban District Council were pushing it’s luck when in March it asked the Office of Public Works “because of our poor financial situation” to undertake the sewerage scheme for the town. The Office of Public Works promptly replied that such work was “normally undertaken by local authorities”. Brigid Darby who during her time as a Councillor displayed remarkable foresight was again somewhat ahead of her colleagues when early in 1935 she brought forward a proposal that the Council provide a children’s playground in connection with the St. Joseph’s Terrace houses. She was defeated by an amendment which provided for the tenants to be given all the land at the rear of their houses for gardens.
McHugh’s Malt Store and site at Woodstock Street which the Council had tried to acquire for many years was finally the subject of a Compulsory Purchase Order. A public enquiry was held in the Town Hall on 25th November, 1934 by Denis J. Hickie, Local Government Inspector to hear the objectors and joint owners Miss M. McHugh and Mr. J.S. McHugh. Dr. James McHugh of Dublin Road, Carlow indicated that the store was last used in or about 1923 as a Malthouse. Built of stone it was a substantial building and according to the evidence of the Council Engineer P.J. Sheehan it’s roof was not in the best of condition while the windows of the store were barred with boards and had no glass in them. The Inspector closed the enquiry after deciding to inspect the stores for himself.
On receiving confirmation of the Compulsory Purchase Order on McHugh’s site the Council decided to build 12 houses there under the fifth housing scheme instead of 16 houses as originally intended. J. Reynolds, a local dentist of Leinster Street who was first elected in June 1934 now brought before the Council a Motion that “the Council consider the construction of a swimming pool”. Supported unanimously this led to the appointment of Reynolds, Tom Carbery, Tom Flood, Patrick Dooley and Dr. J. Kilbride to a Committee to confer with the local Engineer J.J. Bergin. The Committee agreed to meet at Chapel Well on Thursday, 9th May, 1935 at 8pm, presumably, although it was not stated, because this was to be the site of the proposed pool. Within two weeks plans for the oft discussed sewerage scheme for Athy were received from Nicholas O’Dwyer B.E. who had estimated it’s cost at £17,866 for which the Department promised a Grant of £400. The Council agreed to go ahead with a modified sewerage scheme costing £13,000 but only if the Department gave it a substantial grant for the work. At the same time the brave Councillors sent to the Department a request for funding for a swimming pool to which the Department Officials replied that they regarded “a sewerage scheme for Athy as more important than a swimming pool”. Dr. Kilbride, the local Medical Officer of Health, agreed with the Department and suggested that a plan to provide bathing facilities could be carried out “owing to the fact that they are less than 100 houses in Athy provided with bathrooms and the population of the town is about 3,700.”
…….. to be continued
Thursday, May 11, 2000
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.
Wednesday, May 3, 2000
Inner Relief Road
I had intended to write this week of a local man who in the 1940’s and throughout the following two decades proved himself to be one of the most vocal public representatives of his time. However, my plans have to be laid aside for the time being to enable me to highlight the recent announcement concerning the proposed new road linking Dublin and Waterford. The public consultation process which must now accompany any proposal for major road works in this country commenced a few weeks ago and it was Athy’s turn last week.
We have until Friday, 15th June to contact the National Road Authority and let the know our views in relation to the various routes suggested for the proposed Dublin to Waterford dual carriageway and motorway. Here in Athy we are specifically concerned with the route options for the second section of the new roadway, stretching from midway between Kilcullen and Athy and extending downwards to within a mile or so of Carlow town.
The National Road Authority undertook a study following the publication of the National Development Plan for 2000/2006, which Plan identified the need for a reliable road transport system, the need for better access between the regions and the necessity to reduce fatalities and injuries resulting from road traffic accidents. The National Road Authority study concluded that the new road between Kilcullen and Waterford should be located so as to best serve Kildare, Carlow, Laois, Kilkenny and adjacent counties. It also recognised that the new road should separate long distance traffic from other road users and commented that the provision of a dual carriageway or a motorway with limited access points offered the best guarantee of greater road safety. At the same time the National Road Authority acknowledged that the new roadway should also bring with it economic and environmental advantages for the areas which it is proposed to serve.
For the purposes of the public consultation process which is now in operation the full length of the new road from Kilcullen (where it will link with the existing motorway) to the city of Waterford has been subdivided into seven sections, each inter-linked and showing within each of those sections a number of different route options. For instances on the first section taking in Kilcullen, Ballitore and Moone, there are no less than five route options set out on the map prepared by the National Road Authority. The second section covering Athy and Castledermot also has five route options and our immediate concern is in relation to these two sections of the proposed roadway.
The issue facing the people of Athy is whether the new roadway should be brought close to the town, thereby allowing us to gain some advantage from its proximity, or alternatively whether the road should be kept well away from Athy. Common sense decrees that the townspeople of Athy should fight hard to bring the new road as near as possible to their town. Of the five route options the one most likely to bring maximum advantage to Athy is route B1. This starts east of Ardscull and passes south of Athy and crosses the River Barrow approximately 2 kilometres from the town centre. It then turns south and follows the Barrow Valley, passing Carlow on the west side of that town. None of the other four route options could possibly provide the range of benefits which are likely to flow from having the new roadway passing within 2 kilometres of the centre of Athy. The future development of Athy’s limited industrial base depends on the opening up of lands serviced by roads as will happen with this road project. Bringing the road as close as 2 kilometres to the town centre, coupled with an additional spur from it onto the Kilkenny road would provide an outer relief road to take away the through traffic, especially the heavy lorries, which presently clog up our main street. The environmental and safety benefits which would flow from this are incalculable as are the economic benefits to an area hit again recently by the closure of yet another factory.
Many locals have consistently campaigned for an outer relief road, recognising the long term advantages that would follow from such a development and here now is the possibility of committing the Government to a road development which would serve to revive the fortunes of Athy. An overview of the entire roadway from Kilcullen to Waterford shows that the towns of Athy, Carlow, Leighlinbridge, Kilkenny and Bennettsbridge are the towns most likely to benefit. Kilkenny and Carlow, two major centres of development, have achieved their economic success on the backs of being county towns. The new roadway is needed insofar as they are concerned to facilitate traffic movement and not, as in smaller centres such as Athy, to create not only the road infrastructure, but also development opportunities. The latter requires the new road to be brought as near to the town of Athy as the 2 kilometres projected in option B1 because in doing so the land served by the road would give a much needed boost to our local economy. In the case of Athy a roadway close to the town centre would have the additional benefit of allowing an outer relief road option to be implemented without too much difficulty.
Simple put, we need a roadway to come as near as possible to the centre of Athy for it offers the possibility of an economic lifeline for a town pushed for too long to the rear of every queue which ever formed at the doorsteps of successive Irish Governments. If we do not seize this opportunity to put our case with vigour and with justifiable concern for our town’s future, then Athy’s future will be further threatened.
Athy’s Urban Development Group which has been spearheading the demand for an Outer Relief Road will hold a public meeting in the Dominican Hall on Tuesday, 12th June next at 8.00pm to press Athy’s claim for the new roadway on route option B1. Everyone and anyone interested in the National Road Authority’s plans for the new Dublin/Waterford road should come along to that meeting.
We have until Friday, 15th June to contact the National Road Authority and let the know our views in relation to the various routes suggested for the proposed Dublin to Waterford dual carriageway and motorway. Here in Athy we are specifically concerned with the route options for the second section of the new roadway, stretching from midway between Kilcullen and Athy and extending downwards to within a mile or so of Carlow town.
The National Road Authority undertook a study following the publication of the National Development Plan for 2000/2006, which Plan identified the need for a reliable road transport system, the need for better access between the regions and the necessity to reduce fatalities and injuries resulting from road traffic accidents. The National Road Authority study concluded that the new road between Kilcullen and Waterford should be located so as to best serve Kildare, Carlow, Laois, Kilkenny and adjacent counties. It also recognised that the new road should separate long distance traffic from other road users and commented that the provision of a dual carriageway or a motorway with limited access points offered the best guarantee of greater road safety. At the same time the National Road Authority acknowledged that the new roadway should also bring with it economic and environmental advantages for the areas which it is proposed to serve.
For the purposes of the public consultation process which is now in operation the full length of the new road from Kilcullen (where it will link with the existing motorway) to the city of Waterford has been subdivided into seven sections, each inter-linked and showing within each of those sections a number of different route options. For instances on the first section taking in Kilcullen, Ballitore and Moone, there are no less than five route options set out on the map prepared by the National Road Authority. The second section covering Athy and Castledermot also has five route options and our immediate concern is in relation to these two sections of the proposed roadway.
The issue facing the people of Athy is whether the new roadway should be brought close to the town, thereby allowing us to gain some advantage from its proximity, or alternatively whether the road should be kept well away from Athy. Common sense decrees that the townspeople of Athy should fight hard to bring the new road as near as possible to their town. Of the five route options the one most likely to bring maximum advantage to Athy is route B1. This starts east of Ardscull and passes south of Athy and crosses the River Barrow approximately 2 kilometres from the town centre. It then turns south and follows the Barrow Valley, passing Carlow on the west side of that town. None of the other four route options could possibly provide the range of benefits which are likely to flow from having the new roadway passing within 2 kilometres of the centre of Athy. The future development of Athy’s limited industrial base depends on the opening up of lands serviced by roads as will happen with this road project. Bringing the road as close as 2 kilometres to the town centre, coupled with an additional spur from it onto the Kilkenny road would provide an outer relief road to take away the through traffic, especially the heavy lorries, which presently clog up our main street. The environmental and safety benefits which would flow from this are incalculable as are the economic benefits to an area hit again recently by the closure of yet another factory.
Many locals have consistently campaigned for an outer relief road, recognising the long term advantages that would follow from such a development and here now is the possibility of committing the Government to a road development which would serve to revive the fortunes of Athy. An overview of the entire roadway from Kilcullen to Waterford shows that the towns of Athy, Carlow, Leighlinbridge, Kilkenny and Bennettsbridge are the towns most likely to benefit. Kilkenny and Carlow, two major centres of development, have achieved their economic success on the backs of being county towns. The new roadway is needed insofar as they are concerned to facilitate traffic movement and not, as in smaller centres such as Athy, to create not only the road infrastructure, but also development opportunities. The latter requires the new road to be brought as near to the town of Athy as the 2 kilometres projected in option B1 because in doing so the land served by the road would give a much needed boost to our local economy. In the case of Athy a roadway close to the town centre would have the additional benefit of allowing an outer relief road option to be implemented without too much difficulty.
Simple put, we need a roadway to come as near as possible to the centre of Athy for it offers the possibility of an economic lifeline for a town pushed for too long to the rear of every queue which ever formed at the doorsteps of successive Irish Governments. If we do not seize this opportunity to put our case with vigour and with justifiable concern for our town’s future, then Athy’s future will be further threatened.
Athy’s Urban Development Group which has been spearheading the demand for an Outer Relief Road will hold a public meeting in the Dominican Hall on Tuesday, 12th June next at 8.00pm to press Athy’s claim for the new roadway on route option B1. Everyone and anyone interested in the National Road Authority’s plans for the new Dublin/Waterford road should come along to that meeting.
Thursday, April 20, 2000
The Sisters of Mercy leave their Convent
They arrived at a time when Athy was home to poverty, deprivation and disease. Their primary intention was to provide education for the children of local families who could never otherwise hope to aspire to a better life. On arrival by train at the local railway station which had been built six years previously, they were greeted by the local Parish Priest. The three Sisters of Mercy were then driven in a closed horse drawn carriage to the newly built Convent behind the Catholic Church in Stanhope Place. The building, much augmented over the intervening years, was built with the coppers and silver coins of the local people gathered in the years before and after the Great Famine.
Those first Sisters of Mercy were Mother Vincent Whitty, Sr. Gabriel and Sr. Mary and the welcome they received on day of their arrival and on the days following no doubt bode well for the future well being of the Sisters of Mercy in Athy.
Over the years Athy has witnessed many changes, many of which are no doubt faithfully recorded in the Annals of the Sisters of Mercy. The poverty and the slum dwellings of the 1850’s are no longer even a memory, and little visible remains are to be seen today of the wretched hovels of yesteryear. The Convent School opened in 1852 to cater for the young Catholic girls of the town, flourished under the guidance of the newly arrived Sisters of Mercy and in time became part of a two level system of education provided locally by the same Sisters.
Apart from tending to the educational needs of the local girls the Sisters also provided nursing services in the Poor House, now St. Vincent’s Hospital, at a time when professionally trained nurses were unknown. House visitations to the sick and elderly and especially to the poorer families of the area were other important elements of the Sisters of Mercy work locally. We shall never know the extent and range of help which the goodly Sisters provided quietly and without fuss for the most vulnerable in our community. Meanwhile the mission of Cuan Mhuire founded by Sr. Consilio, at one time a nurse in St. Vincent’s Hospital and for many years a Sister of Mercy attached to the Athy community continues.
I was reminded of the events of 148 years ago when I dropped into the Convent on Friday, 19th May knowing that on the following day the last remaining Sisters of Mercy were leaving to take up residence in their new houses at Church Road. The Sisters, all dressed in lay garb, were busy bringing boxes full of small items gathered over the years to their waiting cars in preparation for the short journey to Church Road. This journey was to be a reverse of the journey undertaken by their predecessors from the local railway station so many years ago. This time the trip was by motor car driven by a Nun, no longer readily recognisable as such in the absence of the heavy veil of earlier years.
Times have changed and nowhere was this more obvious in the way that the Sisters of Mercy set about their task of relocating a century and a half of memories from the Convent with which they will always be associated. The vast empty building looked somewhat forlorn as it was shorn of it’s furniture and fittings. History was in the making but unlike 1852 there was no-one to share in the experience as the lock was turned for the last time on the big panelled door of the Convent of Mercy.
How many times was that same door opened in response to the knocking and later the belling of supplicants, not just from Athy but also those passing through the town who could always rely on the charity of the Sisters of Mercy. Many a tale could be told if only the stone walls would unburden themselves. But it is not to be and somehow it seems almost surreal to realise that after 148 years the Convent will never again be a refuge for those in need.
The enclosed cemetery to one side of the Convent building is a forest of metal crosses, each marking the last resting place of nuns and postulants who died while members of the Athy Mercy community. There are 77 such crosses, a sad legacy of lives lived in poverty, chastity and obedience.
I have before mentioned the difficulties of unraveling the different paths who lead so many young women to join the Sisters of Mercy, and specifically the Sisters of Mercy here in Athy. I fondly remember, as will many aging men even of more years than myself that small bundle of joy known as Sr. Brendan who taught so many of us in St. Joseph’s School. She was from The Glens near Dingle in County Kerry but I never discovered how it was that she came to join the Sisters in Athy. The list of those entering the Athy Convent from all parts of Ireland during the 1930’s and 1940’s clearly demonstrated that the Convent in Athy was particularly popular. It was not unusual for several members of the same families to join the Convent and the role call of some of those families begins with the Gavins of Westmeath, who gave us Sr. Francis and Sr. Peter. The Blanchfield family of Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny gave us Sr. Agnes and Sr. Sacred Heart, while the Cowhey family of Buttevant, Co. Cork were represented by Sr. Finbar and Sr. Dolores. The O’Leary’s of Dublin gave us Sr. Joseph and Sr. Carmel, while nearer to home the Malones of Barrowhouse were represented by Sr. Laurence and Sr. Ursula and the Cullen Family of Ballitore by Sr. Joseph and Sr. Cecilia. The list goes on and on and includes Sr. Alphonsus and Sr. Oliver who were Meaghers of Doon, Co. Limerick and the three representatives of the Cosgrave family of Daingean, Co. Galway, Sr. Paul, Sr. Xavier and Sr. Rose.
The work of these nuns and the many other nuns who at one time or other over the last 148 years passed through the doors of Athy’s Mercy Convent is now part of our local history. The last remaining Sisters of Mercy in Athy quietly and without fuss or fanfair left their Convent on Saturday, 20th May to begin a new life in more homely surroundings.
The departure of the Christian Brothers from the town some years ago coincided with the 150th Anniversary of the death of their founder Edmund Ignatius Rice and culminated in the unveiling of a Memorial in the newly named Edmund Rice Square. I am sure the Town Fathers acting on behalf of the grateful people of Athy will no doubt already have in train plans to mark the closure of the Convent of Mercy in a suitable and permanent manner. Maybe it’s time to shed one of the ascendancy names which grace our main streets and squares and name one of them after the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy. This, coupled with an appropriate piece of street sculpture, would add enormously to the heritage of the town.
Those first Sisters of Mercy were Mother Vincent Whitty, Sr. Gabriel and Sr. Mary and the welcome they received on day of their arrival and on the days following no doubt bode well for the future well being of the Sisters of Mercy in Athy.
Over the years Athy has witnessed many changes, many of which are no doubt faithfully recorded in the Annals of the Sisters of Mercy. The poverty and the slum dwellings of the 1850’s are no longer even a memory, and little visible remains are to be seen today of the wretched hovels of yesteryear. The Convent School opened in 1852 to cater for the young Catholic girls of the town, flourished under the guidance of the newly arrived Sisters of Mercy and in time became part of a two level system of education provided locally by the same Sisters.
Apart from tending to the educational needs of the local girls the Sisters also provided nursing services in the Poor House, now St. Vincent’s Hospital, at a time when professionally trained nurses were unknown. House visitations to the sick and elderly and especially to the poorer families of the area were other important elements of the Sisters of Mercy work locally. We shall never know the extent and range of help which the goodly Sisters provided quietly and without fuss for the most vulnerable in our community. Meanwhile the mission of Cuan Mhuire founded by Sr. Consilio, at one time a nurse in St. Vincent’s Hospital and for many years a Sister of Mercy attached to the Athy community continues.
I was reminded of the events of 148 years ago when I dropped into the Convent on Friday, 19th May knowing that on the following day the last remaining Sisters of Mercy were leaving to take up residence in their new houses at Church Road. The Sisters, all dressed in lay garb, were busy bringing boxes full of small items gathered over the years to their waiting cars in preparation for the short journey to Church Road. This journey was to be a reverse of the journey undertaken by their predecessors from the local railway station so many years ago. This time the trip was by motor car driven by a Nun, no longer readily recognisable as such in the absence of the heavy veil of earlier years.
Times have changed and nowhere was this more obvious in the way that the Sisters of Mercy set about their task of relocating a century and a half of memories from the Convent with which they will always be associated. The vast empty building looked somewhat forlorn as it was shorn of it’s furniture and fittings. History was in the making but unlike 1852 there was no-one to share in the experience as the lock was turned for the last time on the big panelled door of the Convent of Mercy.
How many times was that same door opened in response to the knocking and later the belling of supplicants, not just from Athy but also those passing through the town who could always rely on the charity of the Sisters of Mercy. Many a tale could be told if only the stone walls would unburden themselves. But it is not to be and somehow it seems almost surreal to realise that after 148 years the Convent will never again be a refuge for those in need.
The enclosed cemetery to one side of the Convent building is a forest of metal crosses, each marking the last resting place of nuns and postulants who died while members of the Athy Mercy community. There are 77 such crosses, a sad legacy of lives lived in poverty, chastity and obedience.
I have before mentioned the difficulties of unraveling the different paths who lead so many young women to join the Sisters of Mercy, and specifically the Sisters of Mercy here in Athy. I fondly remember, as will many aging men even of more years than myself that small bundle of joy known as Sr. Brendan who taught so many of us in St. Joseph’s School. She was from The Glens near Dingle in County Kerry but I never discovered how it was that she came to join the Sisters in Athy. The list of those entering the Athy Convent from all parts of Ireland during the 1930’s and 1940’s clearly demonstrated that the Convent in Athy was particularly popular. It was not unusual for several members of the same families to join the Convent and the role call of some of those families begins with the Gavins of Westmeath, who gave us Sr. Francis and Sr. Peter. The Blanchfield family of Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny gave us Sr. Agnes and Sr. Sacred Heart, while the Cowhey family of Buttevant, Co. Cork were represented by Sr. Finbar and Sr. Dolores. The O’Leary’s of Dublin gave us Sr. Joseph and Sr. Carmel, while nearer to home the Malones of Barrowhouse were represented by Sr. Laurence and Sr. Ursula and the Cullen Family of Ballitore by Sr. Joseph and Sr. Cecilia. The list goes on and on and includes Sr. Alphonsus and Sr. Oliver who were Meaghers of Doon, Co. Limerick and the three representatives of the Cosgrave family of Daingean, Co. Galway, Sr. Paul, Sr. Xavier and Sr. Rose.
The work of these nuns and the many other nuns who at one time or other over the last 148 years passed through the doors of Athy’s Mercy Convent is now part of our local history. The last remaining Sisters of Mercy in Athy quietly and without fuss or fanfair left their Convent on Saturday, 20th May to begin a new life in more homely surroundings.
The departure of the Christian Brothers from the town some years ago coincided with the 150th Anniversary of the death of their founder Edmund Ignatius Rice and culminated in the unveiling of a Memorial in the newly named Edmund Rice Square. I am sure the Town Fathers acting on behalf of the grateful people of Athy will no doubt already have in train plans to mark the closure of the Convent of Mercy in a suitable and permanent manner. Maybe it’s time to shed one of the ascendancy names which grace our main streets and squares and name one of them after the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy. This, coupled with an appropriate piece of street sculpture, would add enormously to the heritage of the town.
Extracts from Charles Carey's Journal
Thanks to a referral by Colm Walsh I have been priviliged in the last week to read a Journal kept by a local man Charles Carey during part of the 19th century. It is now in the Manuscript Section of the National Library and for long it has been there I cannot say. It is a most interesting compilation of news, gossip and opinion, the latter particularly evident in the letters Charles Carey wrote to his nephew Michael Carey. Charles, local farmer, wrote to his nephew who was subsequently a printer based in Barrow Quay, Athy with a pen dipped in vitriol rather than in ink. The Journal itself is worthy of note for the extensive chronology he gives of life in Athy between 1823 and 1858. Where else could one hope to find a gem of local information such as the entry which read :-
“The bell was first rung at the Chapel for the death of a man on 7th March, 1830 - he was Bradley, a baker.”
Or what about the entry :-
“The bell first rung for divine service in Athy Church on 22nd March, 1857.”
The reference here and presumably in the previous entry was to St. Michael’s Church in Offaly Street where Mr. Cross had commenced building the Church steeple in June 1856.
The events noted in Carey’s Journal are the stuff of local history, even if some of them are destined never to be more than one liners designed to bring a smile to the face of the reader as in the reference to Andrew Conroy who was interred on 21st June, 1827. Carey appended a note claiming that he had hanged himself in the County Carlow to prevent the Coroner of Kildare benefitting from the Inquest.
The real usefulness of the entries lies in the minutiae of local life which tells us of conditions 175 years ago. For instance we learn of “cholera raging in Athy from May to November, 1832”. This followed by another entry:- “Cholera bad - Six died in Barrack Street, 7th February, 1833.” Elsewhere the names of other unfortunates who died in the Cholera Epidemic are given.
In an entry for January 1847 Charles Carey notes that he is frightened at the aspect of the time, “people dying of hunger - great misery in Ireland - no work for labourers - 100 bankrupt in the South in one week in December - misery never to be forgotten - fever prevalent - trade stagnant and starvation in the land.”
In 1856 he records that a Crimean canon was brought through Athy, unfortunately not detailing where it was journeying to. The departure of local people for America was carefully noted throughout the life of the Journal, and in that regard offers an invaluable record for local historians and genealogists.
As you can imagine the Journal threw up interesting if as yet unclear references. Such is the reference to “Convent Building August 1844”. Was this a reference to the future Convent of Mercy or to the Dominican Convent? A later entry noted :- “Fr. Cremin purchased Mr. Mansergh’s house from Mr. Beasley - 8th August, 1845.” Thus the 1844 reference may well have been to the Convent building at Rathstewart.
A further reference to the consecration of a new Churchyard on 25th March, 1848 may well be a reference to an extension of St. Michael’s cemetery, or perhaps the opening of St. Mary’s Cemetery across the bridge from the present St. Vincent’s Hospital.
Early in the Journal Charles Carey referred to Robert Robinson, a local man who was transported for bigamy in October 1839 to Norfolk Island. In his Journal Carey has transcribed one and possibly the only letter he received from the transportee. It provides a fascinating glimpse of the fate awaiting those transported overseas and raises the question which I cannot yet answer :- Who was the Athy man named Fletcher referred to in that letter? The letter read :-
“My Dear Charles,
I received your kind letter dated 27th March, 1840 but I had not money to pay postage for an answer. I remained four years in Norfolk Island. It is called The Garden of the World. Nothing can equal it in point of beauty, but on the other hand you might lawfully term it The Field of Slaughter. Thank God I always had a good friend in the commandant so I passed my time like the soldiers dog - hunger and ease. Tell the poor people to beware of violating the law. If they saw the scenes I have been obliged to witness they would say the gallows was much preferable. What would you think if you saw one of our poor countrymen receive 100 lashes and then sent out to work - if he did not do his task that day the next day he received the same. The man that has not interest here is very soon settled. I must say that the feeling here is in favour of Irishmen. However, we all stand well to each other. As to myself, Irishmen keep my pocket low. I could not have it and see them in want. I know you will be glad to hear I am at last well off. I arrived here last March twelve months penniless and as I thought friendless. However, God soon raised up a friend for me. By chance I heard of my townsman Mr. Fletcher who is Commissary General here. I waited on him and he had me appointed Watch Housekeeper that day. The duties were such that a man should have the heart of a stone to fulfill them so I resigned in three weeks. I went again to my friend who had me appointed Deputy Jailer where I still remain and shall until I am free which will, if God spares me, be 1st August, 1846. After all, I never enjoyed better health. This country is totally ruined. Property of every sort is of no value. You can buy sheep for 2/6 per head, which four years ago were worth £2 each. Other cattle equally low. Tea 1s. per pound. Sugar 1p. Bread 1p. I understand Bigham is here, badly off.
Let me hear from the children above all things and how the mother is behaving to my dear babes. How I long to see them both. My folly drove me from the children of my heart. Let me know does the mother ever talk of her unfortunate Bob.
ROBERT ROBINSON
Oatland, Van Diemans land.”
One of the last entries of the Journal was made on 22nd October, 1858 when Carey noted “Kavanagh Malting in Cottiers Lane.” I wonder how many people know where Cottiers Lane was located. It is still there, although now known by a different name.
Charles Carey died in his Athy home on 29th January, 1859 leaving his property including no doubt his Journal to his favourite nephew Michael Carey who for many years carried on business as a printer at Barrow Quay.
“The bell was first rung at the Chapel for the death of a man on 7th March, 1830 - he was Bradley, a baker.”
Or what about the entry :-
“The bell first rung for divine service in Athy Church on 22nd March, 1857.”
The reference here and presumably in the previous entry was to St. Michael’s Church in Offaly Street where Mr. Cross had commenced building the Church steeple in June 1856.
The events noted in Carey’s Journal are the stuff of local history, even if some of them are destined never to be more than one liners designed to bring a smile to the face of the reader as in the reference to Andrew Conroy who was interred on 21st June, 1827. Carey appended a note claiming that he had hanged himself in the County Carlow to prevent the Coroner of Kildare benefitting from the Inquest.
The real usefulness of the entries lies in the minutiae of local life which tells us of conditions 175 years ago. For instance we learn of “cholera raging in Athy from May to November, 1832”. This followed by another entry:- “Cholera bad - Six died in Barrack Street, 7th February, 1833.” Elsewhere the names of other unfortunates who died in the Cholera Epidemic are given.
In an entry for January 1847 Charles Carey notes that he is frightened at the aspect of the time, “people dying of hunger - great misery in Ireland - no work for labourers - 100 bankrupt in the South in one week in December - misery never to be forgotten - fever prevalent - trade stagnant and starvation in the land.”
In 1856 he records that a Crimean canon was brought through Athy, unfortunately not detailing where it was journeying to. The departure of local people for America was carefully noted throughout the life of the Journal, and in that regard offers an invaluable record for local historians and genealogists.
As you can imagine the Journal threw up interesting if as yet unclear references. Such is the reference to “Convent Building August 1844”. Was this a reference to the future Convent of Mercy or to the Dominican Convent? A later entry noted :- “Fr. Cremin purchased Mr. Mansergh’s house from Mr. Beasley - 8th August, 1845.” Thus the 1844 reference may well have been to the Convent building at Rathstewart.
A further reference to the consecration of a new Churchyard on 25th March, 1848 may well be a reference to an extension of St. Michael’s cemetery, or perhaps the opening of St. Mary’s Cemetery across the bridge from the present St. Vincent’s Hospital.
Early in the Journal Charles Carey referred to Robert Robinson, a local man who was transported for bigamy in October 1839 to Norfolk Island. In his Journal Carey has transcribed one and possibly the only letter he received from the transportee. It provides a fascinating glimpse of the fate awaiting those transported overseas and raises the question which I cannot yet answer :- Who was the Athy man named Fletcher referred to in that letter? The letter read :-
“My Dear Charles,
I received your kind letter dated 27th March, 1840 but I had not money to pay postage for an answer. I remained four years in Norfolk Island. It is called The Garden of the World. Nothing can equal it in point of beauty, but on the other hand you might lawfully term it The Field of Slaughter. Thank God I always had a good friend in the commandant so I passed my time like the soldiers dog - hunger and ease. Tell the poor people to beware of violating the law. If they saw the scenes I have been obliged to witness they would say the gallows was much preferable. What would you think if you saw one of our poor countrymen receive 100 lashes and then sent out to work - if he did not do his task that day the next day he received the same. The man that has not interest here is very soon settled. I must say that the feeling here is in favour of Irishmen. However, we all stand well to each other. As to myself, Irishmen keep my pocket low. I could not have it and see them in want. I know you will be glad to hear I am at last well off. I arrived here last March twelve months penniless and as I thought friendless. However, God soon raised up a friend for me. By chance I heard of my townsman Mr. Fletcher who is Commissary General here. I waited on him and he had me appointed Watch Housekeeper that day. The duties were such that a man should have the heart of a stone to fulfill them so I resigned in three weeks. I went again to my friend who had me appointed Deputy Jailer where I still remain and shall until I am free which will, if God spares me, be 1st August, 1846. After all, I never enjoyed better health. This country is totally ruined. Property of every sort is of no value. You can buy sheep for 2/6 per head, which four years ago were worth £2 each. Other cattle equally low. Tea 1s. per pound. Sugar 1p. Bread 1p. I understand Bigham is here, badly off.
Let me hear from the children above all things and how the mother is behaving to my dear babes. How I long to see them both. My folly drove me from the children of my heart. Let me know does the mother ever talk of her unfortunate Bob.
ROBERT ROBINSON
Oatland, Van Diemans land.”
One of the last entries of the Journal was made on 22nd October, 1858 when Carey noted “Kavanagh Malting in Cottiers Lane.” I wonder how many people know where Cottiers Lane was located. It is still there, although now known by a different name.
Charles Carey died in his Athy home on 29th January, 1859 leaving his property including no doubt his Journal to his favourite nephew Michael Carey who for many years carried on business as a printer at Barrow Quay.
Thursday, April 13, 2000
Toberara Well
“This lonely and sequestered place, remote from habitation, is on the eastern bank of the river Barrow, one mile and a-half north of Athy town. In its solitude it is a scene of considerable beauty. The name Toberara, or as it was sometimes called Tobbera, probably signifies St. Bara’ Well (Tober-Bara), or according to Mr. Kingsbury in the Statistical Account of Ireland (1814), it means Holy Well; or the well by the Barrow (Tober-Berjos). A church was built herein a most remote age. No ruins now remain standing, but its site may still be traced by the raised surface where the surrounding walls fell in. The older part of the wall, on the northern side, is apparently a portion of the ancient church. The space enclosed is of considerable extent. The well flows from the middle of it, and sends forth a great flood of water constantly, and all the year round - sparkling, bright, and limpid. People came hither from far and near, in olden times, to drink the water and to pray. St. John was the patron saint of the place, and on his festival, the 24th of June, a great concourse of pilgrims was usually present, and this custom continued during the early part of the present century. But like other patron days, or as they were called “pattern days,” it grew to an abuse and had to be prohibited.”
So wrote Athy curate, Rev. J. Carroll in the Journal of the Kildare Archaeological Society in 1891. William Shaw Mason in his PAROCHIAL SURVEY OF IRELAND published in 1814 in relation to Toberara Well wrote: “a holy well among the Roman Catholics considered by them under the patronage of St. John. The Patron Day is 24th June. People come far and near to drink the water, pray and dance.” Dealing with the people of the area Mason acknowledged that “they are poor enough. Oatmeal, potatoes, herrings, eggs with some milk and butter constituted the food of the lower orders. Their fuel is turf, their clothing homemade frieze coats, cotton waistcoats and corduroy breeches, yarn stockings and brogues. The appearance of the women is much bettered, for about 20 years ago they were ragged and bare footed, now no country girl is seen without decent clothing, shoes, stockings, etc.”
Toberara Well had been the focus of public attention, local and regional, for many centuries prior to the clerical edict which put an end to the Pattern Day held each year on the Feast of St. John’s Day.. The details of the original Pilgrimage arrangements insofar as they related to Toberara Well were not to my knowledge reduced to writing and as over 175 years have elapsed since the local Parish Priest put an end to the local Pattern Day will now never be known. In common with other Irish Patron Days St. John’s Day would have been regarded in South Kildare at least as a day of rest. Treated as if it was a Sunday the day was set aside for the annual Pilgrimage to the Holy Well at Tobbera. Indeed throughout Ireland of the 18th and 19th century the 24th of June, St. John the Baptist Day, was a popular feast day. On the eve of 24th June the celebrations started with the lighting of fires on hilltops, a tradition with links to the pre-Christian celebration of the summer solstice. Whether or not this ritual was part of the St. John’s Day celebration in Athy I cannot say with any degree of confidence, but possibly it was. There is no doubt whatsoever regarding the popularity of the Toberara Well Pattern Day which became in time a mixture of religious ceremonies and social enjoyment. The local people gathered in great numbers on what was the feast day of the Patron Saint of the small Churchyard and Church at Tobbera, there to perform the Pilgrimage which had formed part of the local tradition for many centuries past.
We can visualise the shawl covered women and the frieze jacketed men attending at the holy well, probably doing the stations at various points within the Tobbera complex before concluding with the taking of the holy water and the fixing of an offering of cloth or other material on the nearby Whitethorn bush. Such was the traditional holy day pilgrimage of 200 years ago which in time degenerated into the social gatherings which was to cause much offence to the Catholic Church of the time. Drinking, dancing and faction fighting in time became an inextricable part of the Pattern Day, pushing the religious ceremonies into the background. It was all great fun, a great day out for everyone, but in time was suppressed by the local Parish Priest, owing it is believed to the loss of life resulting from faction fighting at the Holy Well.
The question must be posed as to why a graveyard and a Church were to be found in such an isolated spot next to the River Barrow at Tobbera. Churches were built to serve the needs of local people and were invariably located in areas of population. There are few houses in the vicinity of Tobbera today and it’s a difficult enough place to access. Was there a small village in the locality which has since disappeared, leaving only the last resting place of some of the villagers lying next to the tumbled walls of the Church? With a Pattern Day on St. John’s Day we can assume that the Church was dedicated to St. John the Baptist. This was also the Saint who gave his name to the Monastery established in the early 13th century in the shadow of Woodstock Castle and who is still commemorated in the name St. John’s Lane. There are a lot of interesting historical connections still to be unraveled and maybe in time and with some luck the links will be identified and clarified.
Next Sunday, 21st May, the Pilgrimage to Toberara Well anciently held on St. John’s Day will be reactivated after a lapse of almost 175 years. One of the great traditions of South Kildare will once again be revived, even if not to coincide with the traditional Pilgrimage Day under the auspices of our Parish Renewal and Development Group. For some time past a group from Churchtown assisted by FAS workers have been clearing and restoring the fabled Toberara Well in preparation for the Pilgrimage next Sunday. The gathering point for everybody taking part in the Pilgrimage will be St. Vincent’s Hospital which opened in 1841, some years after the last Pattern Day was held in Toberara. Here at 2.00pm next Sunday the First Station will take place before the Pilgrimage continues on foot to Cuan Mhuire for the Second Station. From there a leisurely walk will bring the pilgrims to the entrance to the field giving access to Toberara where another Station will be completed before everybody crosses the fields to the site of the ancient Church, Holy Well and Cemetery for the final Station. Sunday, 21st May has been designated as National Pilgrimage Day and will surely be a great day to celebrate the revival of an ancient South Kildare tradition of the Pilgrimage to Toberara Well.
So wrote Athy curate, Rev. J. Carroll in the Journal of the Kildare Archaeological Society in 1891. William Shaw Mason in his PAROCHIAL SURVEY OF IRELAND published in 1814 in relation to Toberara Well wrote: “a holy well among the Roman Catholics considered by them under the patronage of St. John. The Patron Day is 24th June. People come far and near to drink the water, pray and dance.” Dealing with the people of the area Mason acknowledged that “they are poor enough. Oatmeal, potatoes, herrings, eggs with some milk and butter constituted the food of the lower orders. Their fuel is turf, their clothing homemade frieze coats, cotton waistcoats and corduroy breeches, yarn stockings and brogues. The appearance of the women is much bettered, for about 20 years ago they were ragged and bare footed, now no country girl is seen without decent clothing, shoes, stockings, etc.”
Toberara Well had been the focus of public attention, local and regional, for many centuries prior to the clerical edict which put an end to the Pattern Day held each year on the Feast of St. John’s Day.. The details of the original Pilgrimage arrangements insofar as they related to Toberara Well were not to my knowledge reduced to writing and as over 175 years have elapsed since the local Parish Priest put an end to the local Pattern Day will now never be known. In common with other Irish Patron Days St. John’s Day would have been regarded in South Kildare at least as a day of rest. Treated as if it was a Sunday the day was set aside for the annual Pilgrimage to the Holy Well at Tobbera. Indeed throughout Ireland of the 18th and 19th century the 24th of June, St. John the Baptist Day, was a popular feast day. On the eve of 24th June the celebrations started with the lighting of fires on hilltops, a tradition with links to the pre-Christian celebration of the summer solstice. Whether or not this ritual was part of the St. John’s Day celebration in Athy I cannot say with any degree of confidence, but possibly it was. There is no doubt whatsoever regarding the popularity of the Toberara Well Pattern Day which became in time a mixture of religious ceremonies and social enjoyment. The local people gathered in great numbers on what was the feast day of the Patron Saint of the small Churchyard and Church at Tobbera, there to perform the Pilgrimage which had formed part of the local tradition for many centuries past.
We can visualise the shawl covered women and the frieze jacketed men attending at the holy well, probably doing the stations at various points within the Tobbera complex before concluding with the taking of the holy water and the fixing of an offering of cloth or other material on the nearby Whitethorn bush. Such was the traditional holy day pilgrimage of 200 years ago which in time degenerated into the social gatherings which was to cause much offence to the Catholic Church of the time. Drinking, dancing and faction fighting in time became an inextricable part of the Pattern Day, pushing the religious ceremonies into the background. It was all great fun, a great day out for everyone, but in time was suppressed by the local Parish Priest, owing it is believed to the loss of life resulting from faction fighting at the Holy Well.
The question must be posed as to why a graveyard and a Church were to be found in such an isolated spot next to the River Barrow at Tobbera. Churches were built to serve the needs of local people and were invariably located in areas of population. There are few houses in the vicinity of Tobbera today and it’s a difficult enough place to access. Was there a small village in the locality which has since disappeared, leaving only the last resting place of some of the villagers lying next to the tumbled walls of the Church? With a Pattern Day on St. John’s Day we can assume that the Church was dedicated to St. John the Baptist. This was also the Saint who gave his name to the Monastery established in the early 13th century in the shadow of Woodstock Castle and who is still commemorated in the name St. John’s Lane. There are a lot of interesting historical connections still to be unraveled and maybe in time and with some luck the links will be identified and clarified.
Next Sunday, 21st May, the Pilgrimage to Toberara Well anciently held on St. John’s Day will be reactivated after a lapse of almost 175 years. One of the great traditions of South Kildare will once again be revived, even if not to coincide with the traditional Pilgrimage Day under the auspices of our Parish Renewal and Development Group. For some time past a group from Churchtown assisted by FAS workers have been clearing and restoring the fabled Toberara Well in preparation for the Pilgrimage next Sunday. The gathering point for everybody taking part in the Pilgrimage will be St. Vincent’s Hospital which opened in 1841, some years after the last Pattern Day was held in Toberara. Here at 2.00pm next Sunday the First Station will take place before the Pilgrimage continues on foot to Cuan Mhuire for the Second Station. From there a leisurely walk will bring the pilgrims to the entrance to the field giving access to Toberara where another Station will be completed before everybody crosses the fields to the site of the ancient Church, Holy Well and Cemetery for the final Station. Sunday, 21st May has been designated as National Pilgrimage Day and will surely be a great day to celebrate the revival of an ancient South Kildare tradition of the Pilgrimage to Toberara Well.
Thursday, April 6, 2000
Housing Schemes in Athy in the 1930s
In 1932 the Department of Local Government in a move clearly designed to encourage economy in the cost of house building submitted to Athy Urban District Council plans of houses which were to be built in other parts of the country. A three roomed house in Ardee, Co. Louth costing £166. A four roomed house serviced with water and sewerage in Clonmel for £200 and a similar type house in Mullingar for £250. These figures compared very favorably with the £316 which Athy Urban District Council had paid for each of the recently completed houses in St. Patrick’s Avenue. The Council Members attention was however diverted to an issue of greater importance to them as local representatives and that was whether any new houses should be built in concrete or brick. Athy’s brick industry was in the doldrums and the Council agreed to ask the Minister for Local Government to have Athy Brick used in all future housing schemes. At the same time Peter P. Doyle, Proprietor of Athy Tile & Brick Company, the only survivor of the once flourishing brick industry in South Kildare, offered to dispose of a small portion of his field at the rear of McHugh’s Malt Store in Woodstock Street which the Council wanted to acquire if Athy Brick was used in any houses built there. The offer was accepted with the Council agreeing to buy Athy Brick at £3/15 s. per 1,000 bricks delivered on site.
When work commenced on the building of houses in Rathstewart in what was subsequently called “St. Joseph’s Terrace” the Architect on the Scheme advised the local Council that an adequate supply of Athy Brick was not available. He sought permission to use Dolphin’s Barn Brick until the Athy Brick was available. The Council directed that only Athy Brick was to be used, a wise decision at a time when a special meeting of the Council and the local St. Vincent de Paul Society was being arranged to discuss measures to alleviate “present distress prevailing amongst the poor of Athy owing to the recent bad weather”.
Following the official opening of St. Joseph’s Terrace on 5th April, 1934 the Council hosted a luncheon in the Leinster Arms Hotel for Minister Sean T. O’Ceallaigh. One of the guest speakers that afternoon was Peter P. Doyle who thanked the local Council for it’s decision to use local material in the new houses as a result of which he had been able to employ 20 men constantly in the brick yard for over two years.
Before long the relationship between Peter P. Doyle and the local Urban District Council soured somewhat after local carpenter and Councillor Tom Carbery attempted but failed to get his Council colleagues to support his Motion not to use Athy bricks for any housing schemes unless Mr. P.P. Doyle paid trade union wages to the workers he employs in manufacturing the bricks. Clearly there was concern at the issue raised by Councillor Carbery, but apart from Councillor J.P. Dillon who seconded his Motion, none of the other Councillors felt able to vote one way or the other on the issue. The Athy Tile & Brick Company was the only surviving member of the extensive brick industry which had existed in and around Athy at the beginning of the century. Despite the huge increase in Council house building from 1932 onwards the brick industry found it difficult to compete in the face of competition from onsite manufacture of concrete blocks which were cheaper and easier to use. Because of the special efforts made by Athy Urban District Council to use brick in it’s fourth housing scheme, Athy Tile & Brick Company had prospered briefly. Councillor Carbery’s Motion, although not passed by the Council, pointed to difficulties in Doyle’s brick yard and it was not long before those difficulties were to lead to the closure of Athy’s last brick yard.
Following the appointment of tenants to the Convent View houses in January 1936 Peter P. Doyle wrote to the local Council :-
“I noted that at a recent meeting of the Council was a report from the Architect on the floors of the houses in St. Patrick’s Avenue which are affected with dry rot. These houses were built of concrete four years ago and numerous complaints have been made by the tenants since they were occupied. The floors rotting after four years, particularly when the boards were laid on concrete, is a practical proof of the unsuitability of concrete for building purposes and shows concrete is only suitable for engineering purposes or boundary walls. The sum saved by building in concrete will be found to be penny wise and with cost of repairs many pounds foolish. The houses erected in brick at Bleach over ten years ago have given every satisfaction. The cottages in the rural district built over 50 years ago are still as good as ever. All Architect’s agree that bricks are the ideal building material and the firms that use them are a good index of their superiority. We have supplied Athy Bricks to the Christian Brothers, Messrs Guinness, The Great Southern Railway Branch in Athy which is a classic in architecture. The noted Architect Messrs William H. Byrne & Son states :- “We use Athy Brick in the Hibernian Bank, Athy and in several other buildings and we also found them first quality bricks which are the only bricks we use. They are in our opinion good, strong, hard brick and are excellent for facing as well as for backing up walls.” Messrs Bradbury & Evans, Architects & Engineers state :-
“Athy Bricks are harder and better burned than other bricks used in Dublin and their appearance is in our opinion vastly superior.
It is therefore up to the Council to see that the best material is obtained for the erection of houses.
Yours truly,
Peter P. Doyle.”
The struggling brick industry was dealt a mortal blow when in October 1936 the Department of Local Government approved the tender of D. & J. Carbery, Building Contractors of St. John’s Athy to erect 25 houses in Holland’s site on the Geraldine Road. The houses were to be built of concrete blocks rather than Athy Brick for a price which was only marginally cheaper. There is nothing in the Minute Book of Athy Urban District Council to indicate that the local Councillors were in any way concerned at the likely closure of the town’s only brick yard resulting from the proposed use of blocks rather than bricks in the new house scheme. The eventual closure of Athy Tile & Brick Company was inevitable and almost immediate.
Several persons have contacted me about last weeks article inquiring as to the names of some of the original tenants of St. Patrick’s Avenue. Those appointed at tenants included as I wrote last week several whose connection with Athy is unclear. These included :-
Mr. J. O’Connell Lacka, Kildare
Mr. J. O’Regan Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim
Mr. P. Mulcahy Blackpool, England
Mr. Burke 6 Hardwick Street, Dublin
Mrs. E. Healy Drumcondra, Dublin
Nurse O’Donoghue Newbridge
Mr. J.J. Flanagan Portarlington
Mrs. M. O’Brien Enniskillen
Garda M. Noonan Aughrim, Ballinasloe.
Mr. J. Donoher of Leixlip refused the offer of a tenancy as he had no means of keeping animals on the premises, while two Dubliners, one from Blackrock, the other from Rathmines, also turned down the opportunity to move to Athy.
How many of my readers recognise these families who moved into St. Patrick’s Avenue and Athy in 1931? Clearly Garda Noonan transferred to Athy Garda Station and his descendants are still living in Athy but what of the other families? What connection, if any, did they have with Athy. I would like to hear from anyone who could throw some light on the subject.
When work commenced on the building of houses in Rathstewart in what was subsequently called “St. Joseph’s Terrace” the Architect on the Scheme advised the local Council that an adequate supply of Athy Brick was not available. He sought permission to use Dolphin’s Barn Brick until the Athy Brick was available. The Council directed that only Athy Brick was to be used, a wise decision at a time when a special meeting of the Council and the local St. Vincent de Paul Society was being arranged to discuss measures to alleviate “present distress prevailing amongst the poor of Athy owing to the recent bad weather”.
Following the official opening of St. Joseph’s Terrace on 5th April, 1934 the Council hosted a luncheon in the Leinster Arms Hotel for Minister Sean T. O’Ceallaigh. One of the guest speakers that afternoon was Peter P. Doyle who thanked the local Council for it’s decision to use local material in the new houses as a result of which he had been able to employ 20 men constantly in the brick yard for over two years.
Before long the relationship between Peter P. Doyle and the local Urban District Council soured somewhat after local carpenter and Councillor Tom Carbery attempted but failed to get his Council colleagues to support his Motion not to use Athy bricks for any housing schemes unless Mr. P.P. Doyle paid trade union wages to the workers he employs in manufacturing the bricks. Clearly there was concern at the issue raised by Councillor Carbery, but apart from Councillor J.P. Dillon who seconded his Motion, none of the other Councillors felt able to vote one way or the other on the issue. The Athy Tile & Brick Company was the only surviving member of the extensive brick industry which had existed in and around Athy at the beginning of the century. Despite the huge increase in Council house building from 1932 onwards the brick industry found it difficult to compete in the face of competition from onsite manufacture of concrete blocks which were cheaper and easier to use. Because of the special efforts made by Athy Urban District Council to use brick in it’s fourth housing scheme, Athy Tile & Brick Company had prospered briefly. Councillor Carbery’s Motion, although not passed by the Council, pointed to difficulties in Doyle’s brick yard and it was not long before those difficulties were to lead to the closure of Athy’s last brick yard.
Following the appointment of tenants to the Convent View houses in January 1936 Peter P. Doyle wrote to the local Council :-
“I noted that at a recent meeting of the Council was a report from the Architect on the floors of the houses in St. Patrick’s Avenue which are affected with dry rot. These houses were built of concrete four years ago and numerous complaints have been made by the tenants since they were occupied. The floors rotting after four years, particularly when the boards were laid on concrete, is a practical proof of the unsuitability of concrete for building purposes and shows concrete is only suitable for engineering purposes or boundary walls. The sum saved by building in concrete will be found to be penny wise and with cost of repairs many pounds foolish. The houses erected in brick at Bleach over ten years ago have given every satisfaction. The cottages in the rural district built over 50 years ago are still as good as ever. All Architect’s agree that bricks are the ideal building material and the firms that use them are a good index of their superiority. We have supplied Athy Bricks to the Christian Brothers, Messrs Guinness, The Great Southern Railway Branch in Athy which is a classic in architecture. The noted Architect Messrs William H. Byrne & Son states :- “We use Athy Brick in the Hibernian Bank, Athy and in several other buildings and we also found them first quality bricks which are the only bricks we use. They are in our opinion good, strong, hard brick and are excellent for facing as well as for backing up walls.” Messrs Bradbury & Evans, Architects & Engineers state :-
“Athy Bricks are harder and better burned than other bricks used in Dublin and their appearance is in our opinion vastly superior.
It is therefore up to the Council to see that the best material is obtained for the erection of houses.
Yours truly,
Peter P. Doyle.”
The struggling brick industry was dealt a mortal blow when in October 1936 the Department of Local Government approved the tender of D. & J. Carbery, Building Contractors of St. John’s Athy to erect 25 houses in Holland’s site on the Geraldine Road. The houses were to be built of concrete blocks rather than Athy Brick for a price which was only marginally cheaper. There is nothing in the Minute Book of Athy Urban District Council to indicate that the local Councillors were in any way concerned at the likely closure of the town’s only brick yard resulting from the proposed use of blocks rather than bricks in the new house scheme. The eventual closure of Athy Tile & Brick Company was inevitable and almost immediate.
Several persons have contacted me about last weeks article inquiring as to the names of some of the original tenants of St. Patrick’s Avenue. Those appointed at tenants included as I wrote last week several whose connection with Athy is unclear. These included :-
Mr. J. O’Connell Lacka, Kildare
Mr. J. O’Regan Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim
Mr. P. Mulcahy Blackpool, England
Mr. Burke 6 Hardwick Street, Dublin
Mrs. E. Healy Drumcondra, Dublin
Nurse O’Donoghue Newbridge
Mr. J.J. Flanagan Portarlington
Mrs. M. O’Brien Enniskillen
Garda M. Noonan Aughrim, Ballinasloe.
Mr. J. Donoher of Leixlip refused the offer of a tenancy as he had no means of keeping animals on the premises, while two Dubliners, one from Blackrock, the other from Rathmines, also turned down the opportunity to move to Athy.
How many of my readers recognise these families who moved into St. Patrick’s Avenue and Athy in 1931? Clearly Garda Noonan transferred to Athy Garda Station and his descendants are still living in Athy but what of the other families? What connection, if any, did they have with Athy. I would like to hear from anyone who could throw some light on the subject.
Thursday, March 30, 2000
St. Patricks Avenue Housing Scheme
In October 1929 Athy Urban District Council under the Chairmanship of Patrick Dooley, Proprietor of a bakery in Leinster Street, sought to advance it’s plans for additional Council housing in the town with the appointment of Mr. D. Heaney of Thurles as it’s Architect. At the same time the Council’s Housing Committee consisting of Patrick Dooley, Francis Jackson, Tom Carbery and Brigid Darby were asked to carry out an inspection of the town and to report back to a full meeting of the Council with recommendations regarding suitable housing sites. They subsequently advised the Council to acquire what was known as the Gaol field on the Carlow Road consisting of approximately 2 acres and 26 perches then owned by Miss Kilbride. The site was subsequently purchased by the Council and in January 1930 Mr. Strahan, Housing Inspector with the Department of Local Government visited Athy and accompanied by the Town Clerk John W. Lawler did a house to house inspection of the town and found 316 houses unfit for habitation and 72 houses considerably below normal standards but which could be made fit.
Despite receiving a report that the towns water supply scheme was inadequate to meet the demands of businesses in Athy the Council pressed ahead with it’s housing Plans and on 2nd March passed a Motion proposed by Michael Malone, Publican of Woodstock Street, Athy and seconded by Tom Carbery, Carpenter of St. Martin’s Terrace :- “When advertising for the building of houses in Athy that local labour be employed and local housing labour wages be paid and also that all doors, windows and window frames and cement blocks be made in Athy.”
The following month Athy Urban District Council advertised for tenders to build 36 houses in the Gaol field and local firm D. & J. Carbery of St. John’s, Athy were employed. Work on what was the Council’s third housing scheme commenced on 30th June with Captain H.B. Foy of 7 Percy Place, Dublin employed as Clerk of Works at a salary of 5 guineas a week. In October 1930 the Council Minute Book recorded the Architect’s Report on the progress of the houses under construction in what was referred to as “St. Patrick’s Avenue, Carlow Road”. Strangely this was the first and only reference to the naming of the Gaol field housing site after the country’s patron saint and no record exists of the Councils decision to use that name. While the houses were still in the course of construction the Council agreed to have electricity and Liffey ranges installed. The local electrician J. Hutchinson of Leinster Street was employed to put electric lights in the 36 houses for which he was to receive £175.00. The possible installation of baths in 12 of the houses was also considered but deferred until tenants were appointed and their views canvassed on the issue. Subsequently the provision of “flush lavatories” in all of the new houses was agreed and this work was completed in September 1931 some months after the tenants had gone into occupation.
In January 1931 the Clerk of Works reported that 10 plasterers, 10 carpenters and 16 labourers were employed on the building works. The final cost for the 36 houses amounted to £11,366.10 or £315 per house. A.L. Spiers of Burtown was subsequently engaged by the Council to provide lime and plane trees for the Avenue, and at the same time similar trees were to be planted by him at Rathstewart, Woodstock Street and St. Michael’s Terrace.
The day before St. Patrick’s Day 1931 the Urban Councillors meeting in their Chamber in the Town Hall considered the Applications received for tenancies of the newly built houses in St. Patrick’s Avenue. Reviewing the names and addresses of those allocated houses on the Avenue it is noteworthy that 17 of the original tenants were not from Athy. One of the successful Applicants was from Blackpool, England, another from Enniskillen in Northern Ireland while no less than four Dublin residents were successful in their Applications to be re-housed in Athy. The geographical spread of the remaining non-Athy applicants showed addresses in Kildare Town, Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim, Leixlip, Newbridge, Portarlington, Clonmel, Cobh, Birr, Ballinasloe, Maryborough and Ballickmoyler, Co. Carlow.
It is little wonder that the following July the Department of Local Government was moved to write to Athy Urban District Council suggesting that :- “You should endeavour to let the Council houses in the best interests of the public health of the District as they do not seem to have been let to families living in unsanitary districts.” It must be said in defence of the local Council that the people of Athy living in what the Department described as “unsanitary conditions” did not apply for the vacant tenancies, presumably because they would not have been able to afford the rent. The Council had decided on the sum of 6/3 per week as the minimum rent necessary to repay the monies borrowed from the Local Loans Fund.
The Urban Council itself recognised the impoverished conditions of the time when on 30th November, 1931 it passed a Motion calling on the Government for “payment of a special Grant for Athy out of the £250,000 fund for the relief of unemployment, as there is no part of County Kildare suffering so much on account of the grave unemployment due to the beet collapse year and the serious agricultural depression prevailing”.
The Motion referred to local workers depending mainly on agriculture for employment and that “an abnormally large number of workers and their families are congregated in the Athy Urban District.” The unemployed Barrow workers of Athy sent a deputation to a Council meeting complaining that undue preference was given to Laois men for employment on the Barrow Drainage Scheme. Further deputations were later received from the unemployed of the town regarding the inadequacy of home help which was given in the form of tickets and vouchers rather than cash.
Just before the St. Patrick’s Avenue houses were completed two local men were believed to have died of starvation and the Local Council called upon the Minister for Local Government to hold a sworn enquiry “in the interests of the poor of the town” into the cause of their deaths and the manner in which home help was administered in the area. The events leading up to that enquiry and it’s outcome will be dealt with in a future Eye on the Past.
Whatever the difficulties of 70 years ago in Athy they have now passed out a memory and the future of the town is one of great expectation. The future development of Athy and an assessment of what lies ahead will be addressed in a lecture by Ian Lumley to be held in the Town Hall on Thursday, 27th April at 8.00pm. Mr. Lumley has made a study of Irish Towns for a forthcoming book and his illustrated talk will surely be of interest to everyone living in South Kildare.
The financial difficulties faced by many people at that time was reflected in the number of tenants who after a short time in the new houses gave up their tenancies.
Despite receiving a report that the towns water supply scheme was inadequate to meet the demands of businesses in Athy the Council pressed ahead with it’s housing Plans and on 2nd March passed a Motion proposed by Michael Malone, Publican of Woodstock Street, Athy and seconded by Tom Carbery, Carpenter of St. Martin’s Terrace :- “When advertising for the building of houses in Athy that local labour be employed and local housing labour wages be paid and also that all doors, windows and window frames and cement blocks be made in Athy.”
The following month Athy Urban District Council advertised for tenders to build 36 houses in the Gaol field and local firm D. & J. Carbery of St. John’s, Athy were employed. Work on what was the Council’s third housing scheme commenced on 30th June with Captain H.B. Foy of 7 Percy Place, Dublin employed as Clerk of Works at a salary of 5 guineas a week. In October 1930 the Council Minute Book recorded the Architect’s Report on the progress of the houses under construction in what was referred to as “St. Patrick’s Avenue, Carlow Road”. Strangely this was the first and only reference to the naming of the Gaol field housing site after the country’s patron saint and no record exists of the Councils decision to use that name. While the houses were still in the course of construction the Council agreed to have electricity and Liffey ranges installed. The local electrician J. Hutchinson of Leinster Street was employed to put electric lights in the 36 houses for which he was to receive £175.00. The possible installation of baths in 12 of the houses was also considered but deferred until tenants were appointed and their views canvassed on the issue. Subsequently the provision of “flush lavatories” in all of the new houses was agreed and this work was completed in September 1931 some months after the tenants had gone into occupation.
In January 1931 the Clerk of Works reported that 10 plasterers, 10 carpenters and 16 labourers were employed on the building works. The final cost for the 36 houses amounted to £11,366.10 or £315 per house. A.L. Spiers of Burtown was subsequently engaged by the Council to provide lime and plane trees for the Avenue, and at the same time similar trees were to be planted by him at Rathstewart, Woodstock Street and St. Michael’s Terrace.
The day before St. Patrick’s Day 1931 the Urban Councillors meeting in their Chamber in the Town Hall considered the Applications received for tenancies of the newly built houses in St. Patrick’s Avenue. Reviewing the names and addresses of those allocated houses on the Avenue it is noteworthy that 17 of the original tenants were not from Athy. One of the successful Applicants was from Blackpool, England, another from Enniskillen in Northern Ireland while no less than four Dublin residents were successful in their Applications to be re-housed in Athy. The geographical spread of the remaining non-Athy applicants showed addresses in Kildare Town, Ballinamore, Co. Leitrim, Leixlip, Newbridge, Portarlington, Clonmel, Cobh, Birr, Ballinasloe, Maryborough and Ballickmoyler, Co. Carlow.
It is little wonder that the following July the Department of Local Government was moved to write to Athy Urban District Council suggesting that :- “You should endeavour to let the Council houses in the best interests of the public health of the District as they do not seem to have been let to families living in unsanitary districts.” It must be said in defence of the local Council that the people of Athy living in what the Department described as “unsanitary conditions” did not apply for the vacant tenancies, presumably because they would not have been able to afford the rent. The Council had decided on the sum of 6/3 per week as the minimum rent necessary to repay the monies borrowed from the Local Loans Fund.
The Urban Council itself recognised the impoverished conditions of the time when on 30th November, 1931 it passed a Motion calling on the Government for “payment of a special Grant for Athy out of the £250,000 fund for the relief of unemployment, as there is no part of County Kildare suffering so much on account of the grave unemployment due to the beet collapse year and the serious agricultural depression prevailing”.
The Motion referred to local workers depending mainly on agriculture for employment and that “an abnormally large number of workers and their families are congregated in the Athy Urban District.” The unemployed Barrow workers of Athy sent a deputation to a Council meeting complaining that undue preference was given to Laois men for employment on the Barrow Drainage Scheme. Further deputations were later received from the unemployed of the town regarding the inadequacy of home help which was given in the form of tickets and vouchers rather than cash.
Just before the St. Patrick’s Avenue houses were completed two local men were believed to have died of starvation and the Local Council called upon the Minister for Local Government to hold a sworn enquiry “in the interests of the poor of the town” into the cause of their deaths and the manner in which home help was administered in the area. The events leading up to that enquiry and it’s outcome will be dealt with in a future Eye on the Past.
Whatever the difficulties of 70 years ago in Athy they have now passed out a memory and the future of the town is one of great expectation. The future development of Athy and an assessment of what lies ahead will be addressed in a lecture by Ian Lumley to be held in the Town Hall on Thursday, 27th April at 8.00pm. Mr. Lumley has made a study of Irish Towns for a forthcoming book and his illustrated talk will surely be of interest to everyone living in South Kildare.
The financial difficulties faced by many people at that time was reflected in the number of tenants who after a short time in the new houses gave up their tenancies.
Thursday, March 23, 2000
Borough of Ardreigh
The century’s old roadway which runs through the cutting at Ardreigh bringing traffic to and from Carlow will soon be no more. Kildare County Council has announced that work will start in the Summer on the new roadway which will run at the rear of Ardreigh Cemetery.
Ardreigh is and remains an ancient place. At one time it was even more important than the medieval village of its near neighbour Athy. It was itself a village, the lands and area having being granted by Strongbow to Thomas Le Fleming, one of the many Norman adventurers who came to Ireland in 1169. The grantee Fleming was in all probability Thomas of Flanders for whom Hugh de Lacy built a Castle in1182 by the waters of the River Barrow. The Castle was probably a Motte located on the high ground at Ardreigh and more likely than not in the area now occupied by Ardreigh House. It was here that Thomas Le Fleming or perhaps his successor Milo de Stanton established a borough similar to that later established in Athy. It was the same de Stanton who in or about 1200 gave “the Church at Ardria” to St. Thomas’s Abbey, Dublin the advowson of which the Bishop of Glendalough later gave to the same Abbey. Very soon after the initial gift by de Stanton, Archbishop Henri de Loundres assigned Ardreigh Church to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin. The stones of the Church of Ardreigh just visible below the ground and lying within the cemetery of the same name are the only remains of the twelfth century Ardreigh settlement.
In 1318 King Edward II allowed a weekly market to be held at Ardreigh which was then in the ownership of Milo de Poer. In 1303, an Inquisition was held to value the property of Ralph de Manton late Treasurer of Scotland who had died some time previously. It found that amongst other property, de Manton held a farm at Ardreigh, Athy but that his Steward John Tonjours sold most of the stock on it and converted the sale proceeds to his own use.
The borough of Ardreigh continued into the fourteenth Century as the register of the Hospital of St. John the Baptist, Dublin makes reference to Nicholas Fitz Austin Provost of Ardreigh borough. The earliest extant reference to a Provost in Athy followed the chartering of the village of Athy by King Henry V111 in 1515 over a century after the earlier mentioned reference to the Ardreigh Provost. Does this perhaps indicate that the early medieval Settlement in Ardreigh was more substantial and of greater importance that that at Athy?
When the borough of Ardreigh went into decline one cannot say with certainty. Clearly the adjoining settlement of Athy continued to grow and the granting of Athy’s charter in 1515 might indicate the earlier demise of the borough of Ardreigh.
Following the rebellion of Silken Thomas in 1534, the Earl of Kildare’s property was attained and not restored until 1554 when Queen Mary granted to Gerald 11th Earl of Kildare his ancestors honours and estates. The Earls allegiance was perhaps unnecessarily subjected to continual examination and in 1575, he was arrested on a charge of treason. Amongst the allegations against him were that he colluded with the O’Connors, O’Mores and the Keatings who were then in revolt and allowed them to attack and destroy castles in Co. Kildare including that of William FitzGerald of Ardreigh. The Earl who was imprisoned for two years was eventually released after it was found that the allegations against him were exaggerated.
Before long, the castle of Ardreigh was again in the limelight when reports reached Dublin Castle of its destruction following an unexpected attack. Walter FitzGerald who was married to a daughter of Feagh MacHugh O’Byrne of Wicklow was banned by Sir Piers FitzGerald the high sheriff of the County from entering County Kildare. Some claim that the ban was imposed because of his marriage to a daughter of an Irish Rebel while others give the cause as the outlaw activity of Walter who was otherwise known as “the swarthy” FitzGerald. Although a son of Maurice FitzGerald of Glassealy and a relative of the Earl of Kildare who in turn was related to Sir Pier’s FitzGerald, Walter “the swarthy” exacted a terrible revenge on his distant cousin.
On St. Patrick’s day 1593, Sir Pier’s and his wife Elinor a daughter of Sir Maurice FitzGerald of Lackagh whose effigy lies in St. Brigid’s Cathedral, Kildare were living in Ardreigh Castle with two of their daughters, Ann and Catherine. The castle in contemporary records was described as being “a little castle that was but thatched with straw or sedge”. Walter “the swarthy” accompanied by his brothers in law, Felim and Redmond sons of Fiach MacHugh O’Byrne with their followers attacked Ardreigh Castle and set it alight. We are told that all the occupants of the small castle perished in the flames including Sir Pier’s, his wife Elinor and their two daughters.
The FitzGerald’s were survived by their son, James who was married and aged 30 years when Ardreigh Castle was destroyed. He was later appointed High Sheriff of County Kildare and Sheriff of County Carlow in which latter capacity in 1597 he accompanied the Lord Deputy on an expedition against the O’Byrne’s. James FitzGerald later rebelled against the crown and when on the 12th May 1599 the Earl’s of Essex and Ormonde met at Athy with their armies ready to pass into Laois, FitzGerald pulled down the Bridge of Athy and garrisoned White’s Castle in order to hinder the Earl’s horsemen. He later however, capitulated and surrendered to the Earl of Essex.
Ardreigh Castle was not rebuilt after the fire of 1593 and a Report of a Commission established in 1626 to enquire into the Estate of Philip Bushen, late of Grangemellon made no reference to Ardreigh Castle but rather to Ardreigh Mill and Weir, clear evidence of the changing face of Medieval Ireland.
The Urban Archaeology survey carried out some years ago in County Kildare by John Bradley, Andrew Halpin and Heather King noted that “Archaeology is concerned with the past of ordinary people --- with the life and death of communities ancestral to our own”. It would be appropriate if during the roadworks to be carried out at Ardreigh later this year, some elements of the hidden past of the borough and the Church of Ardreigh which existed on this ancient site over 800 years ago were revealed.
Ardreigh is and remains an ancient place. At one time it was even more important than the medieval village of its near neighbour Athy. It was itself a village, the lands and area having being granted by Strongbow to Thomas Le Fleming, one of the many Norman adventurers who came to Ireland in 1169. The grantee Fleming was in all probability Thomas of Flanders for whom Hugh de Lacy built a Castle in1182 by the waters of the River Barrow. The Castle was probably a Motte located on the high ground at Ardreigh and more likely than not in the area now occupied by Ardreigh House. It was here that Thomas Le Fleming or perhaps his successor Milo de Stanton established a borough similar to that later established in Athy. It was the same de Stanton who in or about 1200 gave “the Church at Ardria” to St. Thomas’s Abbey, Dublin the advowson of which the Bishop of Glendalough later gave to the same Abbey. Very soon after the initial gift by de Stanton, Archbishop Henri de Loundres assigned Ardreigh Church to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin. The stones of the Church of Ardreigh just visible below the ground and lying within the cemetery of the same name are the only remains of the twelfth century Ardreigh settlement.
In 1318 King Edward II allowed a weekly market to be held at Ardreigh which was then in the ownership of Milo de Poer. In 1303, an Inquisition was held to value the property of Ralph de Manton late Treasurer of Scotland who had died some time previously. It found that amongst other property, de Manton held a farm at Ardreigh, Athy but that his Steward John Tonjours sold most of the stock on it and converted the sale proceeds to his own use.
The borough of Ardreigh continued into the fourteenth Century as the register of the Hospital of St. John the Baptist, Dublin makes reference to Nicholas Fitz Austin Provost of Ardreigh borough. The earliest extant reference to a Provost in Athy followed the chartering of the village of Athy by King Henry V111 in 1515 over a century after the earlier mentioned reference to the Ardreigh Provost. Does this perhaps indicate that the early medieval Settlement in Ardreigh was more substantial and of greater importance that that at Athy?
When the borough of Ardreigh went into decline one cannot say with certainty. Clearly the adjoining settlement of Athy continued to grow and the granting of Athy’s charter in 1515 might indicate the earlier demise of the borough of Ardreigh.
Following the rebellion of Silken Thomas in 1534, the Earl of Kildare’s property was attained and not restored until 1554 when Queen Mary granted to Gerald 11th Earl of Kildare his ancestors honours and estates. The Earls allegiance was perhaps unnecessarily subjected to continual examination and in 1575, he was arrested on a charge of treason. Amongst the allegations against him were that he colluded with the O’Connors, O’Mores and the Keatings who were then in revolt and allowed them to attack and destroy castles in Co. Kildare including that of William FitzGerald of Ardreigh. The Earl who was imprisoned for two years was eventually released after it was found that the allegations against him were exaggerated.
Before long, the castle of Ardreigh was again in the limelight when reports reached Dublin Castle of its destruction following an unexpected attack. Walter FitzGerald who was married to a daughter of Feagh MacHugh O’Byrne of Wicklow was banned by Sir Piers FitzGerald the high sheriff of the County from entering County Kildare. Some claim that the ban was imposed because of his marriage to a daughter of an Irish Rebel while others give the cause as the outlaw activity of Walter who was otherwise known as “the swarthy” FitzGerald. Although a son of Maurice FitzGerald of Glassealy and a relative of the Earl of Kildare who in turn was related to Sir Pier’s FitzGerald, Walter “the swarthy” exacted a terrible revenge on his distant cousin.
On St. Patrick’s day 1593, Sir Pier’s and his wife Elinor a daughter of Sir Maurice FitzGerald of Lackagh whose effigy lies in St. Brigid’s Cathedral, Kildare were living in Ardreigh Castle with two of their daughters, Ann and Catherine. The castle in contemporary records was described as being “a little castle that was but thatched with straw or sedge”. Walter “the swarthy” accompanied by his brothers in law, Felim and Redmond sons of Fiach MacHugh O’Byrne with their followers attacked Ardreigh Castle and set it alight. We are told that all the occupants of the small castle perished in the flames including Sir Pier’s, his wife Elinor and their two daughters.
The FitzGerald’s were survived by their son, James who was married and aged 30 years when Ardreigh Castle was destroyed. He was later appointed High Sheriff of County Kildare and Sheriff of County Carlow in which latter capacity in 1597 he accompanied the Lord Deputy on an expedition against the O’Byrne’s. James FitzGerald later rebelled against the crown and when on the 12th May 1599 the Earl’s of Essex and Ormonde met at Athy with their armies ready to pass into Laois, FitzGerald pulled down the Bridge of Athy and garrisoned White’s Castle in order to hinder the Earl’s horsemen. He later however, capitulated and surrendered to the Earl of Essex.
Ardreigh Castle was not rebuilt after the fire of 1593 and a Report of a Commission established in 1626 to enquire into the Estate of Philip Bushen, late of Grangemellon made no reference to Ardreigh Castle but rather to Ardreigh Mill and Weir, clear evidence of the changing face of Medieval Ireland.
The Urban Archaeology survey carried out some years ago in County Kildare by John Bradley, Andrew Halpin and Heather King noted that “Archaeology is concerned with the past of ordinary people --- with the life and death of communities ancestral to our own”. It would be appropriate if during the roadworks to be carried out at Ardreigh later this year, some elements of the hidden past of the borough and the Church of Ardreigh which existed on this ancient site over 800 years ago were revealed.
Thursday, March 16, 2000
U.D.C. Centenary Celebrations
Athy Urban District Council had a splendid celebration of its Centenary last weekend to coincide with its first ever meeting of the Council on the 2nd April 1900. The current Council Chairman and First Citizen of the town, Frank English did an excellent job of hosting the gathering, firstly in the Council’s Chamber and later in the Leinster Arms Hotel which had witnessed many previous events associated not only with the Urban Council but also with its predecessors Athy Town Commissioners and Athy Borough Council. I have to admit to some disappointment however with the performance of some elected representatives who, when their turn came to speak in the Council Chamber on this historic occasion, prefaced their perfunctory remarks with an apologetic disclaimer “I have nothing prepared.” This, despite having being told well in advance that each of the Councillors who were elected last year to represent their constituents would be asked to make a contribution on the occasion of the special meeting arranged for the Council’s Centenary Celebration.
You know nothing seems to change when it comes to the business of the local Council. That is your business and mine - our business which we entrust to the Councillor’s to deal with in our best interests. Little or no preparation is seemingly ever given by some Councillor’s to the matters they have to deal with at Council meetings. However, this does not deter them from saying their tuppence worth but as you can expect, its never likely to make any worthwhile contribution to the business in hand.
Really I should not cast aspersions on the good men whose job it is to guide the town’s destiny over the next five years or so but, their performance last weekend, with some exceptions, left me saddened. Even more so when I consider the shambles which has developed around the local demand for a plebiscite on the new road plans for the town. “No, you can’t have a plebiscite” So spoke the Council official who gave dire warning of surcharges to be imposed on any Councillors who had the temerity to stand up for the rights of the local people. We who live in Athy and whose future and indeed, whose past, are rooted in the bricks and mortar of this place, can only wonder at the power that officials can exercise over the rights of the natives. We may live in Athy, we may regard this historic town as our place but, our voices are silenced by the words of officials who, to paraphrase Robin Day’s famous description during John Knott’s interview some years ago “Are transient officials, here today, gone tomorrow”. Makes you wonder about the state of democracy in this little island of ours.
My support for the right of the local people to have a say in the future road development plans for the town by way of a plebiscite or referendum received a welcome boost when I recently perused the Urban District Council’s own records. The first Urban District Council under the Chairmanship of Matthew P. Minch of Rockfield House, held a referendum of the local people of Athy when plans were first mooted for the development of a water supply scheme for the town. One would have thought that the town people, whose only supply of water came from a number of contaminated public wells, would have eagerly seized the opportunity to ensure access to a healthy and wholesome water supply. Amongst the Urban Council of the day there was disagreement on this very important issue and the most vociferous opponent of the proposal was local publican and future author of “The Annals of Athy” Michael or “Crutch” Malone of Woodstock Street. His objection to the scheme would appear to have been based on the likely rates increase which would have resulted. The Council of the day in their wisdom, decided to have a referendum of the local rate payers and ballot papers were distributed on a Friday and collected the following Monday in which two questions were asked.
“1. Are you in favour of a water supply for the town of Athy?
2. If you are do you approve of Mr. Reades Modubeagh Water Scheme?”
The ballot papers, when collected and counted, showed that an overwhelming majority of the rate payers were not in favour of the Scheme. The result reviewed in hindsight was surprising but at least it was democratic and it recognised the right of the local people to participate in local government.
We have come a long way since but in some ways we have fossilised as today the elected representatives of our town spurn the request of the local people for a referendum on whether the Inner Relief Road proposal should go ahead. Their failure to accede to the legitimate and reasonable request clearly demonstrates that local government in Ireland, hyped by successive governments and ministers as based on democracy and partnership is nothing but a sham. The present Minister spoke last week of the need to strengthen the link between local government and local communities but, truly Athy stands as living proof that local government does not always serve the local community and that democracy and local government do not co-exist in our midst.
The Urban Council will have met to discuss yet again, the Town Development Plan with its Inner Relief Road proposal before this appears and may well have decided the issue in the same way as it was decided nine years and sixteen years ago. For you see the much vaunted hype about the Development Plan and the Inner Relief Road is an issue which comes up for review every five years or so and there is nothing to suggest that a decision by the Council to include the Inner Relief Road in the Development yet again will bring that particular piece of tarmacadamed lunacy any closer than it has been for the last twenty years.
The by-pass road for Athy has a better prospect of being put in place and much more quickly than the Inner Relief Road if only the town fathers would read the signs and follow the common sense route for the future development of the town. If some of them haven’t the time to prepare a few suitable words to celebrate the Centenary of local government in our town, then its hardly likely that they will have the foresight to look to the future and assess what needs to be done now to enable the commercial and residential elements of our town develop in a complementary and harmonious way.
You know nothing seems to change when it comes to the business of the local Council. That is your business and mine - our business which we entrust to the Councillor’s to deal with in our best interests. Little or no preparation is seemingly ever given by some Councillor’s to the matters they have to deal with at Council meetings. However, this does not deter them from saying their tuppence worth but as you can expect, its never likely to make any worthwhile contribution to the business in hand.
Really I should not cast aspersions on the good men whose job it is to guide the town’s destiny over the next five years or so but, their performance last weekend, with some exceptions, left me saddened. Even more so when I consider the shambles which has developed around the local demand for a plebiscite on the new road plans for the town. “No, you can’t have a plebiscite” So spoke the Council official who gave dire warning of surcharges to be imposed on any Councillors who had the temerity to stand up for the rights of the local people. We who live in Athy and whose future and indeed, whose past, are rooted in the bricks and mortar of this place, can only wonder at the power that officials can exercise over the rights of the natives. We may live in Athy, we may regard this historic town as our place but, our voices are silenced by the words of officials who, to paraphrase Robin Day’s famous description during John Knott’s interview some years ago “Are transient officials, here today, gone tomorrow”. Makes you wonder about the state of democracy in this little island of ours.
My support for the right of the local people to have a say in the future road development plans for the town by way of a plebiscite or referendum received a welcome boost when I recently perused the Urban District Council’s own records. The first Urban District Council under the Chairmanship of Matthew P. Minch of Rockfield House, held a referendum of the local people of Athy when plans were first mooted for the development of a water supply scheme for the town. One would have thought that the town people, whose only supply of water came from a number of contaminated public wells, would have eagerly seized the opportunity to ensure access to a healthy and wholesome water supply. Amongst the Urban Council of the day there was disagreement on this very important issue and the most vociferous opponent of the proposal was local publican and future author of “The Annals of Athy” Michael or “Crutch” Malone of Woodstock Street. His objection to the scheme would appear to have been based on the likely rates increase which would have resulted. The Council of the day in their wisdom, decided to have a referendum of the local rate payers and ballot papers were distributed on a Friday and collected the following Monday in which two questions were asked.
“1. Are you in favour of a water supply for the town of Athy?
2. If you are do you approve of Mr. Reades Modubeagh Water Scheme?”
The ballot papers, when collected and counted, showed that an overwhelming majority of the rate payers were not in favour of the Scheme. The result reviewed in hindsight was surprising but at least it was democratic and it recognised the right of the local people to participate in local government.
We have come a long way since but in some ways we have fossilised as today the elected representatives of our town spurn the request of the local people for a referendum on whether the Inner Relief Road proposal should go ahead. Their failure to accede to the legitimate and reasonable request clearly demonstrates that local government in Ireland, hyped by successive governments and ministers as based on democracy and partnership is nothing but a sham. The present Minister spoke last week of the need to strengthen the link between local government and local communities but, truly Athy stands as living proof that local government does not always serve the local community and that democracy and local government do not co-exist in our midst.
The Urban Council will have met to discuss yet again, the Town Development Plan with its Inner Relief Road proposal before this appears and may well have decided the issue in the same way as it was decided nine years and sixteen years ago. For you see the much vaunted hype about the Development Plan and the Inner Relief Road is an issue which comes up for review every five years or so and there is nothing to suggest that a decision by the Council to include the Inner Relief Road in the Development yet again will bring that particular piece of tarmacadamed lunacy any closer than it has been for the last twenty years.
The by-pass road for Athy has a better prospect of being put in place and much more quickly than the Inner Relief Road if only the town fathers would read the signs and follow the common sense route for the future development of the town. If some of them haven’t the time to prepare a few suitable words to celebrate the Centenary of local government in our town, then its hardly likely that they will have the foresight to look to the future and assess what needs to be done now to enable the commercial and residential elements of our town develop in a complementary and harmonious way.
Thursday, March 9, 2000
April/May 1915 - World War I
This week the people of Dublin have as their greatest worry the sorry state of public transport in the Capital, while their neighbours in County Kildare share worries and concerns of even more mundane nature. Eighty five years ago both shared a common cause of concern as the Great War which had been confidently expected to end before Christmas 1914 rumbled on, with no sign of any early conclusion. In the town of Athy which had seen so many young men succumb to the blandishments of the local recruiting officer, concern was deeply felt amongst the families living in the lanes and alleyways of the ancient town. That concern was not misplaced.
Between 21st April and 31st May, 1915 twenty-seven men from the town of Athy were killed on the battlefields of the First World War. In the same period approximately 108 men from the town were wounded.
It is a startling figure when you consider that they died over a 35 day period. Some days were worse than others. Four were killed on 26th April. Three men lost their lives on both 30th April and 25th April. The remainders of those who died did so during the month of May 1915, the bloodiest month for Athy in all the four years of the Great War.
War had raged in Europe since August 1914 but the opposing armies entrenched and facing each other across the battle lines of France and Belgium were stalemated. The Allies planned to break the deadlock with an attack on Turkey by means of an assault at Gallipoli in the South-West of the country. On 25th April the steam collier the River Clyde stood off the shores of Gallipoli. Within its hold among many regiments was the 1st Battalion of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers, whose home barracks was at Naas. The regiments consisted mainly of men drawn from Dublin City and the County of Kildare.
That same morning, its sister Battalion, the 2nd Royal Dublin Fusiliers, was formed up in the trenches near the town of Ypres in Belgium. Both battalions were to attack enemy positions later that same day.
At daybreak the men of Kildare in the Dublin Fusiliers cooped up in the hold of the River Clyde launched themselves onto the Beach at Cape Helles in Gallipoli. They were met by the devastating fire power of the Turkish Army who, forewarned of the proposed landing, had brought up reinforcements. One Officer wrote :-
`The boats came in, they were met by a perfect tornado of fire, many men were killed and wounded in the boats, and wounded men were knocked over into the water and drowned, but they kept on, and the survivors jumped into the water in some cases up to their necks, and got ashore; but the slaughter was terrific’.
The men from Athy were lucky, although many were wounded, none would die that day. Five days later in defending the beachhead from a ferocious counter-attack by the Turks, John Farrell, Christopher Hanlon and Larry Kelly, all from Athy, were killed.
On that same day as the River Clyde steamed into Cape Helles the men of the first battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers marched in the early hours of the morning to the outskirts of the Belgian town of Ypres. The march by the heavily armed men was an extraordinary achievement. They struggled on the cobbled Belgian roads in the dark, burdened with all the trapping of an infantryman but still managed to march 30 miles to reach their intended positions. At 6.30am with the morning still shrouded in mist, the men of the Dublin Fusiliers left their trenches with the objective of capturing the town of St. Julien. Advancing in parade ground fashion towards the German trenches they were mowed down by the intense German machine gun fire. The Dublin Fusiliers suffered 510 casualties that morning.
Among the dead were Athy men William Supple, Moses Doyle, and Martin Halloran. Martin Halloran was a Sergeant with the Dublin Fusiliers. The Kildare Observer on the 10th July, 1915 published a description of the fighting at St. Julien by James Rogers, a soldier from Naas. Rogers who was severely wounded himself reported that Sergeant Halloran who had served in the regiment before the war had both his legs blown off by a shell during the German bombardment.
On the following day the German artillery went into action. In the ensuing bombardment Joseph Byrne, James Dillon, Christopher Power and Patrick Tierney, all from Athy were killed. Owen Kelly from Mount Hawkins, Athy was seriously wounded in this action and died of his wounds in a French Hospital on the 3rd May. His brother John Kelly serving with the Leinster Regiment in France would be killed in action almost three weeks later. The loss for the Kelly family at home in Athy would be compounded by the death in action of another of their sons, Denis Kelly of the Leinster Regiment. Denis died on 30th September, 1918, six weeks before the Great War came to an end.
It is difficult for us nowadays to imagine the devastation and loss felt at the time by parents and families in Athy as news of local mens’ deaths in April and May of 1915 filtered back to the town. What is certain is that the initial enthusiasm that had existed for enlisting in the Army quickly dissipated.
Frank Laird, an officer in the Royal Dublin Fusiliers who was wounded in Gallipoli found himself on a recruiting drive in Kildare in 1916. Recruitment meetings were regularly held in Naas, Athy and Castledermot. He described the meetings as being large with imposing platforms of speakers. However, they met with little success. He did not feel aggrieved at this lack of success. As Laird put it :-
`To do Kildare justice it should be said that many parts, such as Naas and Athy in particular had already sent a noble proportion of volunteers to the front’.
The social and economic life of Athy did not easily recover from the losses suffered during the four years of the First World War. Indeed it might well be claimed with some justification that the consequences of the loss of so many local men effected successive generations to the extent that the social equilibrium of the town has never recovered. It’s an interesting thesis and one to which I propose to return at another time.
Between 21st April and 31st May, 1915 twenty-seven men from the town of Athy were killed on the battlefields of the First World War. In the same period approximately 108 men from the town were wounded.
It is a startling figure when you consider that they died over a 35 day period. Some days were worse than others. Four were killed on 26th April. Three men lost their lives on both 30th April and 25th April. The remainders of those who died did so during the month of May 1915, the bloodiest month for Athy in all the four years of the Great War.
War had raged in Europe since August 1914 but the opposing armies entrenched and facing each other across the battle lines of France and Belgium were stalemated. The Allies planned to break the deadlock with an attack on Turkey by means of an assault at Gallipoli in the South-West of the country. On 25th April the steam collier the River Clyde stood off the shores of Gallipoli. Within its hold among many regiments was the 1st Battalion of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers, whose home barracks was at Naas. The regiments consisted mainly of men drawn from Dublin City and the County of Kildare.
That same morning, its sister Battalion, the 2nd Royal Dublin Fusiliers, was formed up in the trenches near the town of Ypres in Belgium. Both battalions were to attack enemy positions later that same day.
At daybreak the men of Kildare in the Dublin Fusiliers cooped up in the hold of the River Clyde launched themselves onto the Beach at Cape Helles in Gallipoli. They were met by the devastating fire power of the Turkish Army who, forewarned of the proposed landing, had brought up reinforcements. One Officer wrote :-
`The boats came in, they were met by a perfect tornado of fire, many men were killed and wounded in the boats, and wounded men were knocked over into the water and drowned, but they kept on, and the survivors jumped into the water in some cases up to their necks, and got ashore; but the slaughter was terrific’.
The men from Athy were lucky, although many were wounded, none would die that day. Five days later in defending the beachhead from a ferocious counter-attack by the Turks, John Farrell, Christopher Hanlon and Larry Kelly, all from Athy, were killed.
On that same day as the River Clyde steamed into Cape Helles the men of the first battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers marched in the early hours of the morning to the outskirts of the Belgian town of Ypres. The march by the heavily armed men was an extraordinary achievement. They struggled on the cobbled Belgian roads in the dark, burdened with all the trapping of an infantryman but still managed to march 30 miles to reach their intended positions. At 6.30am with the morning still shrouded in mist, the men of the Dublin Fusiliers left their trenches with the objective of capturing the town of St. Julien. Advancing in parade ground fashion towards the German trenches they were mowed down by the intense German machine gun fire. The Dublin Fusiliers suffered 510 casualties that morning.
Among the dead were Athy men William Supple, Moses Doyle, and Martin Halloran. Martin Halloran was a Sergeant with the Dublin Fusiliers. The Kildare Observer on the 10th July, 1915 published a description of the fighting at St. Julien by James Rogers, a soldier from Naas. Rogers who was severely wounded himself reported that Sergeant Halloran who had served in the regiment before the war had both his legs blown off by a shell during the German bombardment.
On the following day the German artillery went into action. In the ensuing bombardment Joseph Byrne, James Dillon, Christopher Power and Patrick Tierney, all from Athy were killed. Owen Kelly from Mount Hawkins, Athy was seriously wounded in this action and died of his wounds in a French Hospital on the 3rd May. His brother John Kelly serving with the Leinster Regiment in France would be killed in action almost three weeks later. The loss for the Kelly family at home in Athy would be compounded by the death in action of another of their sons, Denis Kelly of the Leinster Regiment. Denis died on 30th September, 1918, six weeks before the Great War came to an end.
It is difficult for us nowadays to imagine the devastation and loss felt at the time by parents and families in Athy as news of local mens’ deaths in April and May of 1915 filtered back to the town. What is certain is that the initial enthusiasm that had existed for enlisting in the Army quickly dissipated.
Frank Laird, an officer in the Royal Dublin Fusiliers who was wounded in Gallipoli found himself on a recruiting drive in Kildare in 1916. Recruitment meetings were regularly held in Naas, Athy and Castledermot. He described the meetings as being large with imposing platforms of speakers. However, they met with little success. He did not feel aggrieved at this lack of success. As Laird put it :-
`To do Kildare justice it should be said that many parts, such as Naas and Athy in particular had already sent a noble proportion of volunteers to the front’.
The social and economic life of Athy did not easily recover from the losses suffered during the four years of the First World War. Indeed it might well be claimed with some justification that the consequences of the loss of so many local men effected successive generations to the extent that the social equilibrium of the town has never recovered. It’s an interesting thesis and one to which I propose to return at another time.
Thursday, March 2, 2000
Female Councillors and Athy U.D.C.
The first woman elected as a member of Athy Urban District Council was Miss Brigid Darby of Leinster Street, a National School teacher. Her name first appeared in the Minute Book of the Town Council when in November 1918 the Council passed a vote of thanks to Miss Darby and her colleague Miss Murphy “for their unselfish attention bestowed without hope of monetary reward and irrespective of class or creed on our afflicted townspeople during the present terrible influenza epidemic.” This was typical of the woman, of whom it was said when the unemployment money for Athy failed to arrive on one occasion and the poor of the town were left to face the following week without the means of buying food, went down to the office and paid in the amount required for the towns weekly dole payout.
Brigid Darby was an active secretary of the Gaelic League in Athy up to the mid-1920’s and almost inevitably found herself allied with the Fianna Fail party for whom she stood as a candidate in the Urban Council elections of 1928. She was duly elected and holds the distinction of being the first woman to sit on any of the corporate bodies having charge of the towns affairs since Athy was first chartered in 1515. She paid a very active part in the affairs of the town during her term of office as an Urban Councillor and she was re-elected for a further term of office in 1936. On that latter Council she was joined by Mrs. S. Doyle of The Bleach and when Miss Darby stood down at the August 1942 Election Mrs. Doyle was re-elected and also elected for the first time on that occasion was the third ever woman Councillor, Mrs. B. Whelan of Holmcroft.
Brigid Darby was also a member of Kildare County Council and many of it’s subsidiary bodies such as the County Board of Health, the Vocational Education Committee and the County Committee of Agriculture. She became a Director of the Tourist Development Association and was elected in the late 1930’s to the governing body of the National University of Ireland. She stood for the Dail in three occasions, each time failing to secure election. However, the 4,000 preference votes she obtained on her last attempt was sufficient to secure two Dail seats in County Kildare for the Fianna Fail party.
A firm believer in womens rights she was a prominent voice on the Urban Council during her period of office and the minutes of the Council meetings record her concern for the poor and underprivileged of Athy. Brigid Darby after her retirement as principal of Churchtown National School continued to live in Leinster Street until her death in April 1958.
The Urban Council elected in 1948 consisted of males only and so it remained in the elections of 1950, 1955, 1960 and 1967. It was not until 1974 that Mrs. Megan Maguire, wife of the local G.P., Dr. Brian Maguire was first elected to the Urban Council. Born in Manchester of Welsh parents, Megan a graduate of London University and a qualified social worker came to Athy with her husband in 1958. She was very involved in a number of community projects in the town and in 1966 she one of those responsible for the formation of the Care of the Elderly Committee. On the basis of her involvement in community matters Megan offered herself as an independent candidate in the local elections of 1974. She topped the poll and in June 1975 was elected by the members of the Urban Council as their Chairperson. To Megan Maguire fell the honour of being the first woman Chairperson of Athy Urban District Council and the first woman to be elected first citizen of the town since the town was incorporated by Henry VIII in 1515. Megan received the “Person of the Year Award” in 1976 for her voluntary services to Athy community and to the travelling people. Re-elected to the Council in 1979 she served from 1975 to 1985 and was joined for that second term by Mrs. Lenore O’Rourke-Glynn who was herself re-elected in 1985. Lenore served as Chairperson of the Urban District Council in 1986 but did not seek re-election in 1992. She is now an Assistant Secretary of the Irish Nursing Organisation and a Member of a number of important government agencies.
On Saturday 1st April, Athy Urban District Council will celebrate its centenary. The Urban Council was not of course the first Town Council but rather a refinement of what had gone before. The first Council for the town of Athy was established in 1515 by Henry VIII whose charter authorised the appointment of a Town Provost. Elected annually on the feast of St. Michael, the Arch angel, the Town Provost was to utilise the tolls collected on goods sold within the town boundaries for the purpose of building and maintaining the town walls. Incidentally, that same charter of 1515 gave to the townspeople the right to hold a town market every Tuesday, a right which is still exercised, but now by traders none of whom are residents of the town. A further Charter granted in 1613 by King James replaced the Provost with a Town Sovereign, although with somewhat similar powers. He was to head up a Borough Council consisting of twelve Burgesses all of whom were nominated for life by the town’s Landlord, the Duke of Leinster. It was not until the abolition of the Borough Council in 1840 and its replacement a few years later by a popularly elected Town Commissioner that Local Government as we know it today first emerged.
The function and role of the Town Commissioners were very limited and it was not until the setting up of the Urban District Council with extensive powers in 1900 that a potentially powerful tool of Local Government was first put in place. The Council’s affairs are managed by nine elected councillors with an executive headed up by the County Manager. The powers and functions of the councillors are reserved functions which only they can exercise while the County Manager has executive functions, the exercise of which is his perogative, by and large, free of the councillors control. The respective roles of the elected members and the County Manager can be broadly related to that of a Board of Directors and a Chief Executive. The elected Members determine policy and the level of funding while the County Manager deals with the day to day functions of the Council.
Local Government as an expression of the right of local people to have a say in how they are governed is only as good as those elected to safeguard the publics interest. Local Government in Athy has by and large being well served over the last 100 years even if the Council’s decisions or lack of them has at times created the illusion rather than the reality of Local Government.
Brigid Darby was an active secretary of the Gaelic League in Athy up to the mid-1920’s and almost inevitably found herself allied with the Fianna Fail party for whom she stood as a candidate in the Urban Council elections of 1928. She was duly elected and holds the distinction of being the first woman to sit on any of the corporate bodies having charge of the towns affairs since Athy was first chartered in 1515. She paid a very active part in the affairs of the town during her term of office as an Urban Councillor and she was re-elected for a further term of office in 1936. On that latter Council she was joined by Mrs. S. Doyle of The Bleach and when Miss Darby stood down at the August 1942 Election Mrs. Doyle was re-elected and also elected for the first time on that occasion was the third ever woman Councillor, Mrs. B. Whelan of Holmcroft.
Brigid Darby was also a member of Kildare County Council and many of it’s subsidiary bodies such as the County Board of Health, the Vocational Education Committee and the County Committee of Agriculture. She became a Director of the Tourist Development Association and was elected in the late 1930’s to the governing body of the National University of Ireland. She stood for the Dail in three occasions, each time failing to secure election. However, the 4,000 preference votes she obtained on her last attempt was sufficient to secure two Dail seats in County Kildare for the Fianna Fail party.
A firm believer in womens rights she was a prominent voice on the Urban Council during her period of office and the minutes of the Council meetings record her concern for the poor and underprivileged of Athy. Brigid Darby after her retirement as principal of Churchtown National School continued to live in Leinster Street until her death in April 1958.
The Urban Council elected in 1948 consisted of males only and so it remained in the elections of 1950, 1955, 1960 and 1967. It was not until 1974 that Mrs. Megan Maguire, wife of the local G.P., Dr. Brian Maguire was first elected to the Urban Council. Born in Manchester of Welsh parents, Megan a graduate of London University and a qualified social worker came to Athy with her husband in 1958. She was very involved in a number of community projects in the town and in 1966 she one of those responsible for the formation of the Care of the Elderly Committee. On the basis of her involvement in community matters Megan offered herself as an independent candidate in the local elections of 1974. She topped the poll and in June 1975 was elected by the members of the Urban Council as their Chairperson. To Megan Maguire fell the honour of being the first woman Chairperson of Athy Urban District Council and the first woman to be elected first citizen of the town since the town was incorporated by Henry VIII in 1515. Megan received the “Person of the Year Award” in 1976 for her voluntary services to Athy community and to the travelling people. Re-elected to the Council in 1979 she served from 1975 to 1985 and was joined for that second term by Mrs. Lenore O’Rourke-Glynn who was herself re-elected in 1985. Lenore served as Chairperson of the Urban District Council in 1986 but did not seek re-election in 1992. She is now an Assistant Secretary of the Irish Nursing Organisation and a Member of a number of important government agencies.
On Saturday 1st April, Athy Urban District Council will celebrate its centenary. The Urban Council was not of course the first Town Council but rather a refinement of what had gone before. The first Council for the town of Athy was established in 1515 by Henry VIII whose charter authorised the appointment of a Town Provost. Elected annually on the feast of St. Michael, the Arch angel, the Town Provost was to utilise the tolls collected on goods sold within the town boundaries for the purpose of building and maintaining the town walls. Incidentally, that same charter of 1515 gave to the townspeople the right to hold a town market every Tuesday, a right which is still exercised, but now by traders none of whom are residents of the town. A further Charter granted in 1613 by King James replaced the Provost with a Town Sovereign, although with somewhat similar powers. He was to head up a Borough Council consisting of twelve Burgesses all of whom were nominated for life by the town’s Landlord, the Duke of Leinster. It was not until the abolition of the Borough Council in 1840 and its replacement a few years later by a popularly elected Town Commissioner that Local Government as we know it today first emerged.
The function and role of the Town Commissioners were very limited and it was not until the setting up of the Urban District Council with extensive powers in 1900 that a potentially powerful tool of Local Government was first put in place. The Council’s affairs are managed by nine elected councillors with an executive headed up by the County Manager. The powers and functions of the councillors are reserved functions which only they can exercise while the County Manager has executive functions, the exercise of which is his perogative, by and large, free of the councillors control. The respective roles of the elected members and the County Manager can be broadly related to that of a Board of Directors and a Chief Executive. The elected Members determine policy and the level of funding while the County Manager deals with the day to day functions of the Council.
Local Government as an expression of the right of local people to have a say in how they are governed is only as good as those elected to safeguard the publics interest. Local Government in Athy has by and large being well served over the last 100 years even if the Council’s decisions or lack of them has at times created the illusion rather than the reality of Local Government.
Female Councillors and Athy U.D.C.
The first woman elected as a member of Athy Urban District Council was Miss Brigid Darby of Leinster Street, a National School teacher. Her name first appeared in the Minute Book of the Town Council when in November 1918 the Council passed a vote of thanks to Miss Darby and her colleague Miss Murphy “for their unselfish attention bestowed without hope of monetary reward and irrespective of class or creed on our afflicted townspeople during the present terrible influenza epidemic.” This was typical of the woman, of whom it was said when the unemployment money for Athy failed to arrive on one occasion and the poor of the town were left to face the following week without the means of buying food, went down to the office and paid in the amount required for the towns weekly dole payout.
Brigid Darby was an active secretary of the Gaelic League in Athy up to the mid-1920’s and almost inevitably found herself allied with the Fianna Fail party for whom she stood as a candidate in the Urban Council elections of 1928. She was duly elected and holds the distinction of being the first woman to sit on any of the corporate bodies having charge of the towns affairs since Athy was first chartered in 1515. She paid a very active part in the affairs of the town during her term of office as an Urban Councillor and she was re-elected for a further term of office in 1936. On that latter Council she was joined by Mrs. S. Doyle of The Bleach and when Miss Darby stood down at the August 1942 Election Mrs. Doyle was re-elected and also elected for the first time on that occasion was the third ever woman Councillor, Mrs. B. Whelan of Holmcroft.
Brigid Darby was also a member of Kildare County Council and many of it’s subsidiary bodies such as the County Board of Health, the Vocational Education Committee and the County Committee of Agriculture. She became a Director of the Tourist Development Association and was elected in the late 1930’s to the governing body of the National University of Ireland. She stood for the Dail in three occasions, each time failing to secure election. However, the 4,000 preference votes she obtained on her last attempt was sufficient to secure two Dail seats in County Kildare for the Fianna Fail party.
A firm believer in womens rights she was a prominent voice on the Urban Council during her period of office and the minutes of the Council meetings record her concern for the poor and underprivileged of Athy. Brigid Darby after her retirement as principal of Churchtown National School continued to live in Leinster Street until her death in April 1958.
The Urban Council elected in 1948 consisted of males only and so it remained in the elections of 1950, 1955, 1960 and 1967. It was not until 1974 that Mrs. Megan Maguire, wife of the local G.P., Dr. Brian Maguire was first elected to the Urban Council. Born in Manchester of Welsh parents, Megan a graduate of London University and a qualified social worker came to Athy with her husband in 1958. She was very involved in a number of community projects in the town and in 1966 she one of those responsible for the formation of the Care of the Elderly Committee. On the basis of her involvement in community matters Megan offered herself as an independent candidate in the local elections of 1974. She topped the poll and in June 1975 was elected by the members of the Urban Council as their Chairperson. To Megan Maguire fell the honour of being the first woman Chairperson of Athy Urban District Council and the first woman to be elected first citizen of the town since the town was incorporated by Henry VIII in 1515. Megan received the “Person of the Year Award” in 1976 for her voluntary services to Athy community and to the travelling people. Re-elected to the Council in 1979 she served from 1975 to 1985 and was joined for that second term by Mrs. Lenore O’Rourke-Glynn who was herself re-elected in 1985. Lenore served as Chairperson of the Urban District Council in 1986 but did not seek re-election in 1992. She is now an Assistant Secretary of the Irish Nursing Organisation and a Member of a number of important government agencies.
On Saturday 1st April, Athy Urban District Council will celebrate its centenary. The Urban Council was not of course the first Town Council but rather a refinement of what had gone before. The first Council for the town of Athy was established in 1515 by Henry VIII whose charter authorised the appointment of a Town Provost. Elected annually on the feast of St. Michael, the Arch angel, the Town Provost was to utilise the tolls collected on goods sold within the town boundaries for the purpose of building and maintaining the town walls. Incidentally, that same charter of 1515 gave to the townspeople the right to hold a town market every Tuesday, a right which is still exercised, but now by traders none of whom are residents of the town. A further Charter granted in 1613 by King James replaced the Provost with a Town Sovereign, although with somewhat similar powers. He was to head up a Borough Council consisting of twelve Burgesses all of whom were nominated for life by the town’s Landlord, the Duke of Leinster. It was not until the abolition of the Borough Council in 1840 and its replacement a few years later by a popularly elected Town Commissioner that Local Government as we know it today first emerged.
The function and role of the Town Commissioners were very limited and it was not until the setting up of the Urban District Council with extensive powers in 1900 that a potentially powerful tool of Local Government was first put in place. The Council’s affairs are managed by nine elected councillors with an executive headed up by the County Manager. The powers and functions of the councillors are reserved functions which only they can exercise while the County Manager has executive functions, the exercise of which is his perogative, by and large, free of the councillors control. The respective roles of the elected members and the County Manager can be broadly related to that of a Board of Directors and a Chief Executive. The elected Members determine policy and the level of funding while the County Manager deals with the day to day functions of the Council.
Local Government as an expression of the right of local people to have a say in how they are governed is only as good as those elected to safeguard the publics interest. Local Government in Athy has by and large being well served over the last 100 years even if the Council’s decisions or lack of them has at times created the illusion rather than the reality of Local Government.
Brigid Darby was an active secretary of the Gaelic League in Athy up to the mid-1920’s and almost inevitably found herself allied with the Fianna Fail party for whom she stood as a candidate in the Urban Council elections of 1928. She was duly elected and holds the distinction of being the first woman to sit on any of the corporate bodies having charge of the towns affairs since Athy was first chartered in 1515. She paid a very active part in the affairs of the town during her term of office as an Urban Councillor and she was re-elected for a further term of office in 1936. On that latter Council she was joined by Mrs. S. Doyle of The Bleach and when Miss Darby stood down at the August 1942 Election Mrs. Doyle was re-elected and also elected for the first time on that occasion was the third ever woman Councillor, Mrs. B. Whelan of Holmcroft.
Brigid Darby was also a member of Kildare County Council and many of it’s subsidiary bodies such as the County Board of Health, the Vocational Education Committee and the County Committee of Agriculture. She became a Director of the Tourist Development Association and was elected in the late 1930’s to the governing body of the National University of Ireland. She stood for the Dail in three occasions, each time failing to secure election. However, the 4,000 preference votes she obtained on her last attempt was sufficient to secure two Dail seats in County Kildare for the Fianna Fail party.
A firm believer in womens rights she was a prominent voice on the Urban Council during her period of office and the minutes of the Council meetings record her concern for the poor and underprivileged of Athy. Brigid Darby after her retirement as principal of Churchtown National School continued to live in Leinster Street until her death in April 1958.
The Urban Council elected in 1948 consisted of males only and so it remained in the elections of 1950, 1955, 1960 and 1967. It was not until 1974 that Mrs. Megan Maguire, wife of the local G.P., Dr. Brian Maguire was first elected to the Urban Council. Born in Manchester of Welsh parents, Megan a graduate of London University and a qualified social worker came to Athy with her husband in 1958. She was very involved in a number of community projects in the town and in 1966 she one of those responsible for the formation of the Care of the Elderly Committee. On the basis of her involvement in community matters Megan offered herself as an independent candidate in the local elections of 1974. She topped the poll and in June 1975 was elected by the members of the Urban Council as their Chairperson. To Megan Maguire fell the honour of being the first woman Chairperson of Athy Urban District Council and the first woman to be elected first citizen of the town since the town was incorporated by Henry VIII in 1515. Megan received the “Person of the Year Award” in 1976 for her voluntary services to Athy community and to the travelling people. Re-elected to the Council in 1979 she served from 1975 to 1985 and was joined for that second term by Mrs. Lenore O’Rourke-Glynn who was herself re-elected in 1985. Lenore served as Chairperson of the Urban District Council in 1986 but did not seek re-election in 1992. She is now an Assistant Secretary of the Irish Nursing Organisation and a Member of a number of important government agencies.
On Saturday 1st April, Athy Urban District Council will celebrate its centenary. The Urban Council was not of course the first Town Council but rather a refinement of what had gone before. The first Council for the town of Athy was established in 1515 by Henry VIII whose charter authorised the appointment of a Town Provost. Elected annually on the feast of St. Michael, the Arch angel, the Town Provost was to utilise the tolls collected on goods sold within the town boundaries for the purpose of building and maintaining the town walls. Incidentally, that same charter of 1515 gave to the townspeople the right to hold a town market every Tuesday, a right which is still exercised, but now by traders none of whom are residents of the town. A further Charter granted in 1613 by King James replaced the Provost with a Town Sovereign, although with somewhat similar powers. He was to head up a Borough Council consisting of twelve Burgesses all of whom were nominated for life by the town’s Landlord, the Duke of Leinster. It was not until the abolition of the Borough Council in 1840 and its replacement a few years later by a popularly elected Town Commissioner that Local Government as we know it today first emerged.
The function and role of the Town Commissioners were very limited and it was not until the setting up of the Urban District Council with extensive powers in 1900 that a potentially powerful tool of Local Government was first put in place. The Council’s affairs are managed by nine elected councillors with an executive headed up by the County Manager. The powers and functions of the councillors are reserved functions which only they can exercise while the County Manager has executive functions, the exercise of which is his perogative, by and large, free of the councillors control. The respective roles of the elected members and the County Manager can be broadly related to that of a Board of Directors and a Chief Executive. The elected Members determine policy and the level of funding while the County Manager deals with the day to day functions of the Council.
Local Government as an expression of the right of local people to have a say in how they are governed is only as good as those elected to safeguard the publics interest. Local Government in Athy has by and large being well served over the last 100 years even if the Council’s decisions or lack of them has at times created the illusion rather than the reality of Local Government.
Thursday, February 24, 2000
Dr. Kilbrides Campaign for Better Class Housing in Athy
On 3rd November, 1906 Dr. James Kilbride, the Medical Officer of Health reported to Athy Urban Council on the sanitary condition of what he termed “the houses of the working classes in Athy”.
“The floors in many houses are lower that the laneway in front and the fall of the yard is to the back door, consequently the floors are wet and sodden in rainy weather and frequently are flooded. In the yards are underground drains and they are found choked in most recent cases and quite ineffective. In less that a dozen cases was there found any sanitary accommodation ….. in some rooms the only light admitted is through a few [sometimes only one] small pane of glass found in the wall, sufficient light or air cannot find entrance to these rooms ….. there are many houses in more than one lane that if the poor people had other houses to go to should be closed as unfit for human habitation in their present condition ….. there is no main sewer in the west end of the town beyond Keating’s Lane ….. the Order of the Council with regard to the removal of manure heaps is not in force. In some yards there were accumulations for the greater part of the year.”
Having started work on the first water supply scheme for Athy just one month previously the Urban Councillors probably felt justified in leaving Dr. Kilbride’s report aside without taking any action. Instead the Council renewed its efforts to persuade the Inspector General of the R.I.C to have the local Police Barracks restored to the centre of the town as it was felt the old Military Barracks at Barrack Lane to where the R.I.C were re-located was too far away. Their efforts were in vain and the local Police were to continue to occupy the Military Barracks until the emergence of the Irish Free State.
Dr. Kilbride’s concern for the public health of the town found support in Lady Weldon of Kilmoroney who was instrumental in the formation in November 1907 of an Athy Branch of the Women’s Health Association. A Tuberculosis Committee was also formed and a series of health lectures organised for the town. In December 1907 a Tuberculosis Exhibition was held in the Town Hall at which members of the Tuberculosis Committee were on hand to explain the various exhibits to the general public who were summoned to attend by the local bellman. On 24th July, 1908 Lady Aberdeen, the Viceroy’s wife visited Athy to formally launch the newly established Women’s National Health Association in the town. The Leinster Street band met her at the Railway Station and paraded before her to the Town Hall. There she was presented with an address of welcome which referred to the formation of an Association “which is fervently hoped will tend to stem the ravages of a terrible disease that now annually claims such an appalling number of victims”.
The following year the Council appointed a Committee to recommend a scheme of houses under the Housing of the Working Classes Act. This Committee when it met on 26th February split into two groups to select suitable sites for housing in the east and the west urban areas of Athy. Within a month sites had been selected and the Council agreed to build three different classes of houses to be let at rents ranging from two shillings to 3/6 per week. The selected sites were at Matthew’s Lane [off Leinster Street], Meeting Lane and Woodstock Street. Public advertisements for plans suitable for housing in Athy elicited ten submissions and James F. Reade, already well known as the Architect of the towns Water Supply Scheme, won the five guineas prize for his designs.
By July 1910 The Council members were re-thinking their original housing plans and decided to build eleven “better class houses” on the Matthew’s Lane site, as well as five “better class houses” at Woodstock Street with five labourers houses at Meeting Lane. A public enquiry was held in the Town Hall on 15th February, 1911 under the auspices of J.F. MacCabe, a Local Government Inspector to consider the Council’s proposed compulsory purchase of lands for housing in the town. Following the enquiry advertisements were placed inviting tenders for the construction of twenty one houses, ten at Matthew’s Lane, five at Meeting Lane and six at Kelly’s field off Woodstock Street. The successful tender was received from H.A. Hamilton of Thomas St., Waterford, but when it was not acted upon after the elapse of ten months Mr. Hamilton withdrew his tender. The Council re-advertised on 26th of June, 1912, but not before Michael Malone, Secretary of Athy Town Tenants League had written to the Town Council protesting against “it’s inactivity in relation to house building”. Within a month Dr. James Kilbride had resigned as Medical Officer of Health due to health problems. His campaign for better housing for the people of Athy was reaching a successful conclusion as within four days of his resignation three builders submitted tenders for the three small housing schemes. D&J Carbery were to build ten houses at Matthew’s Lane for £2,544.7.11, Michael Sweeney of Portarlington six houses at Woodstock Street for £1,264.2.10 and D. Twomey of Leinster St. five houses at Meeting Lane for £704.10.
Work soon started on the first public housing scheme in Athy with the Council agreeing to build an additional house at Matthew’s Lane. By February 1913 the houses were ready for occupation and the Council members met in February to fix the rents which ranged from three shillings for Meeting Lane, four shillings for Woodstock Street and five shillings for Matthew’s Lane.
The following month the first Council tenants were appointed to the Matthew’s Lane houses which were renamed St. Michael’s Terrace, to the Meeting Lane houses and to the Woodstock Street houses which were renamed St. Martin’s Terrace.
In December 1913 the Town Clerk reported to the Council that 22 houses had been built as part of the towns first housing scheme. Despite the fact that these houses had been provided under the Houses of the Working Classes Act the Town Clerk was moved to say :- “the houses are all occupied principally by artisans. None of the tenants belong to the labouring classes”. Michael Malone at the same meeting acknowledged that the Council’s conscience in the matter of working class housing in Athy “was first awakened by a report by Dr. James Kilbride, late Medical Office of Health in 1906. In consequence of this report the Council took the matter up and appointed a Committee to examine the conditions of the houses and make recommendations. The Committee examined every house in Athy and prepared a lengthy report and recommended to the Council the immediate necessity of issuing notices under the Public Health Act to compel the landlords to deal with their houses properly in the ways recommended by Dr. Kilbride. The great majority ignored the notices and the Council at that time were not courageous enough to tackle the problem in the manner laid down in the Public Health Act. The Council were deterred by the threats of a few landlords that if they were compelled to spend money on the houses they would evict the tenants and close up the houses ….. private enterprise in house building has long since ceased in Athy …..”
The local people living in the unsanitary conditions outlined by Dr. Kilbride in his 1906 report had to wait for the housing initiative and Slum Clearance Programme which followed the general election of 1932 before they were re-housed out of the unhealthy slums which made up most of the town’s housing accommodation at the turn of the century. Dr. James Kilbride, for so long Medical Officer of Health for Athy and the man who spearheaded the drive to improve the sanitary conditions of Athy, died in 1925. He lived to see the town’s first piped water supply scheme and the construction of the first local authority houses in Athy.
“The floors in many houses are lower that the laneway in front and the fall of the yard is to the back door, consequently the floors are wet and sodden in rainy weather and frequently are flooded. In the yards are underground drains and they are found choked in most recent cases and quite ineffective. In less that a dozen cases was there found any sanitary accommodation ….. in some rooms the only light admitted is through a few [sometimes only one] small pane of glass found in the wall, sufficient light or air cannot find entrance to these rooms ….. there are many houses in more than one lane that if the poor people had other houses to go to should be closed as unfit for human habitation in their present condition ….. there is no main sewer in the west end of the town beyond Keating’s Lane ….. the Order of the Council with regard to the removal of manure heaps is not in force. In some yards there were accumulations for the greater part of the year.”
Having started work on the first water supply scheme for Athy just one month previously the Urban Councillors probably felt justified in leaving Dr. Kilbride’s report aside without taking any action. Instead the Council renewed its efforts to persuade the Inspector General of the R.I.C to have the local Police Barracks restored to the centre of the town as it was felt the old Military Barracks at Barrack Lane to where the R.I.C were re-located was too far away. Their efforts were in vain and the local Police were to continue to occupy the Military Barracks until the emergence of the Irish Free State.
Dr. Kilbride’s concern for the public health of the town found support in Lady Weldon of Kilmoroney who was instrumental in the formation in November 1907 of an Athy Branch of the Women’s Health Association. A Tuberculosis Committee was also formed and a series of health lectures organised for the town. In December 1907 a Tuberculosis Exhibition was held in the Town Hall at which members of the Tuberculosis Committee were on hand to explain the various exhibits to the general public who were summoned to attend by the local bellman. On 24th July, 1908 Lady Aberdeen, the Viceroy’s wife visited Athy to formally launch the newly established Women’s National Health Association in the town. The Leinster Street band met her at the Railway Station and paraded before her to the Town Hall. There she was presented with an address of welcome which referred to the formation of an Association “which is fervently hoped will tend to stem the ravages of a terrible disease that now annually claims such an appalling number of victims”.
The following year the Council appointed a Committee to recommend a scheme of houses under the Housing of the Working Classes Act. This Committee when it met on 26th February split into two groups to select suitable sites for housing in the east and the west urban areas of Athy. Within a month sites had been selected and the Council agreed to build three different classes of houses to be let at rents ranging from two shillings to 3/6 per week. The selected sites were at Matthew’s Lane [off Leinster Street], Meeting Lane and Woodstock Street. Public advertisements for plans suitable for housing in Athy elicited ten submissions and James F. Reade, already well known as the Architect of the towns Water Supply Scheme, won the five guineas prize for his designs.
By July 1910 The Council members were re-thinking their original housing plans and decided to build eleven “better class houses” on the Matthew’s Lane site, as well as five “better class houses” at Woodstock Street with five labourers houses at Meeting Lane. A public enquiry was held in the Town Hall on 15th February, 1911 under the auspices of J.F. MacCabe, a Local Government Inspector to consider the Council’s proposed compulsory purchase of lands for housing in the town. Following the enquiry advertisements were placed inviting tenders for the construction of twenty one houses, ten at Matthew’s Lane, five at Meeting Lane and six at Kelly’s field off Woodstock Street. The successful tender was received from H.A. Hamilton of Thomas St., Waterford, but when it was not acted upon after the elapse of ten months Mr. Hamilton withdrew his tender. The Council re-advertised on 26th of June, 1912, but not before Michael Malone, Secretary of Athy Town Tenants League had written to the Town Council protesting against “it’s inactivity in relation to house building”. Within a month Dr. James Kilbride had resigned as Medical Officer of Health due to health problems. His campaign for better housing for the people of Athy was reaching a successful conclusion as within four days of his resignation three builders submitted tenders for the three small housing schemes. D&J Carbery were to build ten houses at Matthew’s Lane for £2,544.7.11, Michael Sweeney of Portarlington six houses at Woodstock Street for £1,264.2.10 and D. Twomey of Leinster St. five houses at Meeting Lane for £704.10.
Work soon started on the first public housing scheme in Athy with the Council agreeing to build an additional house at Matthew’s Lane. By February 1913 the houses were ready for occupation and the Council members met in February to fix the rents which ranged from three shillings for Meeting Lane, four shillings for Woodstock Street and five shillings for Matthew’s Lane.
The following month the first Council tenants were appointed to the Matthew’s Lane houses which were renamed St. Michael’s Terrace, to the Meeting Lane houses and to the Woodstock Street houses which were renamed St. Martin’s Terrace.
In December 1913 the Town Clerk reported to the Council that 22 houses had been built as part of the towns first housing scheme. Despite the fact that these houses had been provided under the Houses of the Working Classes Act the Town Clerk was moved to say :- “the houses are all occupied principally by artisans. None of the tenants belong to the labouring classes”. Michael Malone at the same meeting acknowledged that the Council’s conscience in the matter of working class housing in Athy “was first awakened by a report by Dr. James Kilbride, late Medical Office of Health in 1906. In consequence of this report the Council took the matter up and appointed a Committee to examine the conditions of the houses and make recommendations. The Committee examined every house in Athy and prepared a lengthy report and recommended to the Council the immediate necessity of issuing notices under the Public Health Act to compel the landlords to deal with their houses properly in the ways recommended by Dr. Kilbride. The great majority ignored the notices and the Council at that time were not courageous enough to tackle the problem in the manner laid down in the Public Health Act. The Council were deterred by the threats of a few landlords that if they were compelled to spend money on the houses they would evict the tenants and close up the houses ….. private enterprise in house building has long since ceased in Athy …..”
The local people living in the unsanitary conditions outlined by Dr. Kilbride in his 1906 report had to wait for the housing initiative and Slum Clearance Programme which followed the general election of 1932 before they were re-housed out of the unhealthy slums which made up most of the town’s housing accommodation at the turn of the century. Dr. James Kilbride, for so long Medical Officer of Health for Athy and the man who spearheaded the drive to improve the sanitary conditions of Athy, died in 1925. He lived to see the town’s first piped water supply scheme and the construction of the first local authority houses in Athy.
Thursday, February 17, 2000
Athy First Water Supply Scheme
Athy was re-constituted as an Urban District Council under the Local Government Act, 1898 with effect from 1st April, 1900. The Members of the Town Commissioners, fifteen in all, remained on as Urban District Councillors under the Chairmanship of Matthew J. Minch M.P. Dr. James Kilbride as Medical Officer of Health for the area had consistently warned the Town Council of the need for a wholesome supply of water for the people of the town. On 20th October he wrote to the new Urban Council regarding the epidemic of gastro-enteritic in Athy which he felt was due to the impure water supply. At that time there were eight public wells to meet the needs of the locals and several of these were polluted. Dr. Kilbride who took samples of the local water and sent them to Sir Charles Cameron of Dublin for analysis could claim that “of the seventeen samples sent, not one could be classed as good potable water”.
The Local Government Board which had responsibility for all Local Authorities in Ireland at the time sent it’s Medical Inspector Dr. Edgar Flinn to Athy on 7th December, 1900 to report on the sanitary conditions of the town. What he found should have been a source of concern to the town fathers. “The present system of water supply to Athy cannot be regarded by any means as satisfactory. The main sources of supply are derived from pump wells situated within closely inhabited areas and from their filthy construction are liable to contamination ….. Athy has a population of about 5,000 people and the question of providing a supply of pure water for this large community is of most vital importance and should engage the serious and sustained attention of the Council”.
The Councillors subsequently received a proposal from Mr. James F. Reade, an Engineer from Kilkenny to take a water supply for the town from Modubeagh, but before proceeding decided to hold a referendum of the ratepayers on the issue. Ballot papers were distributed on Friday, 29th March 1901 and collected on the following Monday in which the following questions were put to the people.
1. Are you in favour of a water scheme for the town of Athy?
2. If you are, do you approve of Mr. Reade’s Modubeagh water scheme?
The ballot papers when counted proved a disappointment for Dr. Kilbride and the Local Government Board for while 190 ratepayers approved of the water scheme, 371 disapproved. The following May two deaths occurred due to typhoid fever, caused it was believed by the town’s contaminated water pumps. Dr. Kilbride was moved to castigate the Councillors for “neglecting their duty in not providing the people with pure water” after further cases of typhoid fever were later reported.
Some concerned ratepayers now petitioned the Local Government Board in relation to a water scheme and sewerage scheme for Athy. In reply the Urban Councillors responded that owing to the “adverse vote of the ratepayers nothing definite had been done towards providing a general water scheme, but that the Council had temporarily closed two of the eight sources of public water supply owing to their being unfit for drinking purposes”.
Again the Local Government Board sent down it’s Medical Officer, Dr. Edgar Flinn to Athy to hold another enquiry into the sanitary condition of the Town. As a result in November 1901 the Local Councillors agreed to adopt Mr. Reade’s Modubeagh Water Scheme, subject to Mr. Reade guaranteeing “it will not cost more than £7,000 when completed and fully equipped”. Mr. Reade confirmed his figure at £6,414.9.4.
In October 1902 plans for the proposed water scheme were received by the Urban Council. Councillor Michael Malone who was vehemently opposed to the water scheme sought to have the Council’s Application for Loan Approval rejected by the Local Government Board. Notwithstanding this a Bill to confirm the Provisional Order for Athy’s Water Works was read for the first time in the House of Commons in London on 6th May, 1903. There was no further development during 1903 and 1904 and two years were to pass before the Council passed a further Resolution “that the carrying out of the water scheme be deferred for the present owing to the unsatisfactory financial position of the Council”. Mr. Reade’s plans were returned to him and the disappointed man sued the Council for monies which were then due. He later withdrew the legal proceedings after receiving £48.17 shillings of the local ratepayers money. While protesting its inability to finance the water scheme the Council agreed to seek the views of the Local Ratepayers Protection Association on the water supply system for the town. The Association promptly replied that since the scheme was shelved “it was not necessary to offer any Opinion”.
The Local Government Board, frustrated at the failure of Athy Urban District Council to deal with the water supply crisis then wrote to the Town Clerk requiring his Council “to procure a supply of pure water for the town.” The letter received in August 1905 was not dealt with until 16th October when a Resolution was passed in line with the Board’s letter despite the opposition of Michael Malone and a few others.
Mr. Reade was again appointed as Engineer for the Scheme and tenders were invited for the construction of a service reservoir and the laying of 10 ¾ miles of 6inch to 3inch cast iron pipes, together with all ancillary works. Jeremiah Fitzpatrick and the Stanton Iron Works Company were the successful Contractors. Work on the Scheme commenced in October 1906 and was completed in April 1907.
Following the successful completion of Athy’s first piped water scheme the Metropolitan Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough Association presented two troughs to the town in 1907, one to be erected in Woodstock Street opposite Higginsons’ Lane, the other in Leinster Street. At the same time the Duke of Leinster presented a fountain for the use of the people of Athy which was positioned to the front of Emily Square. On 20th July, 1908 the Council recorded its satisfaction with the services of James F. Reade, the Author and Engineer of the Athy Waterworks Scheme. “His work has given constant satisfaction and are of great benefit.”
Dr. Kilbride noted with quiet satisfaction that the provisions of a piped water supply from Modubeagh had a beneficial effect on the public health of the town. Nevertheless, he was not about to embark on the second leg of his social crusade, the provision of adequate housing for the “working classes” of the town.
The Local Government Board which had responsibility for all Local Authorities in Ireland at the time sent it’s Medical Inspector Dr. Edgar Flinn to Athy on 7th December, 1900 to report on the sanitary conditions of the town. What he found should have been a source of concern to the town fathers. “The present system of water supply to Athy cannot be regarded by any means as satisfactory. The main sources of supply are derived from pump wells situated within closely inhabited areas and from their filthy construction are liable to contamination ….. Athy has a population of about 5,000 people and the question of providing a supply of pure water for this large community is of most vital importance and should engage the serious and sustained attention of the Council”.
The Councillors subsequently received a proposal from Mr. James F. Reade, an Engineer from Kilkenny to take a water supply for the town from Modubeagh, but before proceeding decided to hold a referendum of the ratepayers on the issue. Ballot papers were distributed on Friday, 29th March 1901 and collected on the following Monday in which the following questions were put to the people.
1. Are you in favour of a water scheme for the town of Athy?
2. If you are, do you approve of Mr. Reade’s Modubeagh water scheme?
The ballot papers when counted proved a disappointment for Dr. Kilbride and the Local Government Board for while 190 ratepayers approved of the water scheme, 371 disapproved. The following May two deaths occurred due to typhoid fever, caused it was believed by the town’s contaminated water pumps. Dr. Kilbride was moved to castigate the Councillors for “neglecting their duty in not providing the people with pure water” after further cases of typhoid fever were later reported.
Some concerned ratepayers now petitioned the Local Government Board in relation to a water scheme and sewerage scheme for Athy. In reply the Urban Councillors responded that owing to the “adverse vote of the ratepayers nothing definite had been done towards providing a general water scheme, but that the Council had temporarily closed two of the eight sources of public water supply owing to their being unfit for drinking purposes”.
Again the Local Government Board sent down it’s Medical Officer, Dr. Edgar Flinn to Athy to hold another enquiry into the sanitary condition of the Town. As a result in November 1901 the Local Councillors agreed to adopt Mr. Reade’s Modubeagh Water Scheme, subject to Mr. Reade guaranteeing “it will not cost more than £7,000 when completed and fully equipped”. Mr. Reade confirmed his figure at £6,414.9.4.
In October 1902 plans for the proposed water scheme were received by the Urban Council. Councillor Michael Malone who was vehemently opposed to the water scheme sought to have the Council’s Application for Loan Approval rejected by the Local Government Board. Notwithstanding this a Bill to confirm the Provisional Order for Athy’s Water Works was read for the first time in the House of Commons in London on 6th May, 1903. There was no further development during 1903 and 1904 and two years were to pass before the Council passed a further Resolution “that the carrying out of the water scheme be deferred for the present owing to the unsatisfactory financial position of the Council”. Mr. Reade’s plans were returned to him and the disappointed man sued the Council for monies which were then due. He later withdrew the legal proceedings after receiving £48.17 shillings of the local ratepayers money. While protesting its inability to finance the water scheme the Council agreed to seek the views of the Local Ratepayers Protection Association on the water supply system for the town. The Association promptly replied that since the scheme was shelved “it was not necessary to offer any Opinion”.
The Local Government Board, frustrated at the failure of Athy Urban District Council to deal with the water supply crisis then wrote to the Town Clerk requiring his Council “to procure a supply of pure water for the town.” The letter received in August 1905 was not dealt with until 16th October when a Resolution was passed in line with the Board’s letter despite the opposition of Michael Malone and a few others.
Mr. Reade was again appointed as Engineer for the Scheme and tenders were invited for the construction of a service reservoir and the laying of 10 ¾ miles of 6inch to 3inch cast iron pipes, together with all ancillary works. Jeremiah Fitzpatrick and the Stanton Iron Works Company were the successful Contractors. Work on the Scheme commenced in October 1906 and was completed in April 1907.
Following the successful completion of Athy’s first piped water scheme the Metropolitan Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough Association presented two troughs to the town in 1907, one to be erected in Woodstock Street opposite Higginsons’ Lane, the other in Leinster Street. At the same time the Duke of Leinster presented a fountain for the use of the people of Athy which was positioned to the front of Emily Square. On 20th July, 1908 the Council recorded its satisfaction with the services of James F. Reade, the Author and Engineer of the Athy Waterworks Scheme. “His work has given constant satisfaction and are of great benefit.”
Dr. Kilbride noted with quiet satisfaction that the provisions of a piped water supply from Modubeagh had a beneficial effect on the public health of the town. Nevertheless, he was not about to embark on the second leg of his social crusade, the provision of adequate housing for the “working classes” of the town.
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