James Joseph O'Byrne, Irish patriot
Last week the Irish Times carried an article on the closure of Ardscoil Eanna in Crumlin, Dublin. Founded in 1939 by James Joseph O’Byrne, a former teacher in the Christian Brothers School in Athy, it...
View ArticleAthy magazines and newspapers of hte 19th century and todays Athy Lions Club...
It was Francis Bacon who claimed that ‘reading maketh a full man’. At the same time he advised us‘read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and...
View ArticleEdward Keegan Irish Volunteer and Robert Gourley World War 1 soldier
The First World War and the Easter Rising of 1916 cast shadows which despite the passing of several generations have tended to obscure our understanding and appreciation of what enlisted soldiers and...
View ArticleJohn McCormack Principal Ardscoil na Tríonóide
John McCormack was appointed principal of Ardscoil na Tríonóide in 2013. His appointment was one of huge importance in terms of the history of education in the town as John, or Johnny as he is...
View ArticleKevin Barry and the Kevin Barry exhibition in Athy's Heritage Centre
Kevin Barry was born in Dublin on the 20th January 1902, the fourth child of Thomas Barry and his wife Mary Dowling both of whom were natives of County Carlow. In 1919 Kevin entered University...
View ArticleAthy's Regenertion Plan and the launch of Athy's tourist boat
The recent launch of the Athy Tourist Boat “Freedom on the Water” drew a small crowd of spectators to the site of what was once Athy’s busy river harbour. The harbour was developed some years after...
View ArticleDanny Kane and Mary Fleming
Danny Kane and Mary Fleming came from a similar rural background in South Kildare. Danny was from Oldgrange, while Mary was from the nearby townland of Fontstown. In age they were a generation apart...
View ArticleDominican Church bell and the Dominican Church Athy
Our former Dominican Church has been in the news recently. Under the front page banner headline “For Whom Will The Bell Toll”, this newspaper recounted the story of Kildare County Council’s efforts to...
View ArticleSir Roger Casement
August 3rd marks the 100th anniversary of the execution of Roger Casement in Pentonville Prison, England. As a student many years ago in the Kings Inns I passed every day on my way into lectures John...
View ArticleMemorial, plaques and signs in and around South Kildare
Kildare County Council has recently embarked on a survey of memorials, plaques and signs throughout the County of Kildare. They are part of our cultural heritage, marking as they do people of the...
View ArticleLocal history research
I have had a lifelong fascination with reference books. From an early age these compendiums of facts and figures fascinated me. Haydn’s Dictionary of dates was one such book and although last...
View ArticleLocal benefactors to Athy's Christian Brothers
During the week I received a query relating to Mark Hill from County Clare, a Christian Brother whose teaching career ran from the late 1860s to 1919 when he died. His name was not familiar to me and...
View ArticleDanny Flood
One of the great sporting heroes of my teenage years passed away last week. Danny Flood was one of several young Athy men who lined out with the Kildare County Senior football team during the 1950s...
View ArticleThe role of the local authority in the economic, social and cultural...
The role and functions of local authorities have evolved and changed enormously over the years. Borough Councils were brought into existence, usually by royal charters, as in Athy, where the 1515...
View ArticleVernacular artefacts of another age
At no time in Irish history has interest in local history been so popular. Here in south Kildare we can see everywhere around us the outlines of man’s work on the landscape or in the streets of our...
View ArticleThe Great Famine in Athy
It’s a quote I have used before but its use again is justified when announcing the holding of Athy’s annual Famine Commemoration Day to take place on Sunday 25th September at 3.00 p.m. in St. Mary’s...
View ArticleClem Roche and his World War I book
Volunteers to help with the work of the local Heritage Centre are always welcome. The Centre, which this year received full museum accreditation from the Heritage Council, is limited in what it can do...
View Article1916 in Athy
1916 was a difficult year for the town of Athy. The Great War had entered its third year and there was no sign of it ending. The patriotic fervour and martial ardour that greeted the outbreak of war...
View ArticleTour of World War I sites in Flanders
Last week I travelled to Belgium with a group of local historians from Northern Ireland and from the Republic to visit sites associated with the Great War. The human evidence of the tragedies of that...
View Article2016 Shackleton Autumn School
The October Bank Holiday weekend will see many overseas visitors arriving in Athy for the Shackleton Autumn School. Now in its 16th year the school brings together international and Irish polar...
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