Who lived Where in Boyle
in the 30's - 40's
‘Someone should write it
down’’ is the earnest phrase which often attends a conversation with
knowledgeable people on the subject of Old Boyle from decades back. There are a
number of people who are in the premier division in terms of traversing the
streets of Boyle in their memories and nominating who ‘lived there’ and what
they did. My ‘go to ‘ people in that respect are Frankie Tarpey and Christy
Wynne. I know there are a number more also like Frank Tivnan, Mick Harrington,
Paddy Daly, Hal Cawley, Barry Feely, John Mcloughlin, Paddy Toolan and more.
There have to be a number of ladies also. And one can be surprised by some
people who have a deep knowledge of the town.
It is difficult for me, ‘a
blow in’, to grasp the generational sequence and context of those times. The
native who has grown up with all that is king in that respect. Anyway
I’ll make a shot at trying committing to paper the information that I have
received. The template which I will use is a map of Boyle from circa the late
forties carefully drawn by Paraic Beisty formerly of Ledfordspark Carrick Road
who has been in the United States for a considerable time. Paraic’s
house-numbered map goes from street to street nominating those living there and
what they did circa 1950. As I would not know any of this I act as the scribe.
There will be mistakes I’m sure and omissions and hopefully this will be just
the beginning and that people will add, subtract and forward corrections to
enhance Boyle Town Project to give it a working title. It may not work at
all of course but we’ll try it and see.
So….for no particular reason I
start with
ELPHIN St. West Side from the current Health Centre. Paraic Beisty had
each street numbered so
1.
The Gate House to
the Workhouse Grounds occupied by a ‘Spud’ Murphy’ of then. (The present
Plunkett Home was the site of the Old- historic- Workhouse an insightful
article on which can be accessed in the invaluable Moylurg Writers Vol. 1 1988
page 78 written by Sr. Patricia Kelly.
2.
Workhouse, later
a hospital, now The Plunkett Home. (There is a whole history there of its own).
3.
Pump House For
water pressure booster. Doctor Collins built a house there whose son Peter is a
Solicitor in Carrick-on-Shannon. Doctor Fallon and family were there until
recently and it is now a food outlet.
4.
Richard Murray
–carpenter later moved to Marian Rd. His brother Johnny a painter and family
lived there then. Josie lived in Felton. Phil Murray was caretaker of King
House for the period of the 30s’ when the Free State army vacated and then
returned to King House during The Emergency. Members of the Murray family
were prominent in the town in the Republican movement of the time.
5.
Randal Rice &
Mary Anne (Coen) & family. Carpenter & Masonry. Also a sweet shop and
provided food on fair days. Randal had a brother Robert who had a forge behind
Paddy Daly’s; involved with horses and lived near ‘the Quarry’.
6.
Paddy Kennedy
N.T. & School Principal and All-Ireland handballer & family, after some
time living on the Crescent,.
7.
Tom McCabe a
former member of the R.I.C. police. There were a number of former R.I.C. men
living on this street such as Gillen/McCabe/Griffin. Tom is referenced as
associated with a glove factory behind where Wynnes' Solrs. are now. One
of my sources say he had a son a judge in Dublin. (Mrs. Nicholson former
Roscommon Herald employee and Comhaltas & Fleadh Committee member).
8.
Pat Spellman,
originally from Keash, builder and fire brigade officer. Prior to him Mr.
Turbett from Ballinamore.
9.
Kilfeather’s one
of whom joined the Christian Brothers. A number of houses here, it is
suggested, were known collectively as ‘Drury Terrace’. Paraic Beisty has
Guard Vaughan nominated here also.
10.
John and Mrs.
Dwyer. A busy and popular lodging house. Some of the people who stayed there
settled in Boyle subsequently such as Paddy Purcell and Martin Mc Loughlin who
were initially employed as lorry drivers during The Lime Campaign’ of the early
50s’. Later John McGowan a stalwart of Boyle GAA in the 60s’ and 70s’.
11.
Miko
Finneran from Ballinagare a builder who had returned from New York acquired
Griffins and then Moran’s sweet shop. (Reference to Roger Gray here)
12.
Mrs.
Griffin married to a member of the R.I.C. kept boarders also. Dr. Gibbons who
was working in the hospital stayed there for a time. A member of the Griffin
family was an officer in the army and a second son Christy, after a time as a
barman in Dublin, established a bar in Woodquay in Galway City.
13.
Mister Christy
Callan had a house here.
14.
James Turbett a
noted Old IRA person. A sister Cassie a dedicated gaelgoir and Irish dance
teacher. Another sister married to a publican and Co. Clr. in Fuerty outside
Roscommon.
15.
Danny Cunnion
(sold to Murphy’s later. Mister Murphy came from B’Shannon) from Leitrim a
baker inherited from his uncle Mr. Sharkey. Provided
lovely confectionary and such. Martin Mc Loughlin later acquired a
residence-St. Anne’s- there. Mrs. Mahon wife of Garda Mahon. ( A Mister Young
).
16.
Bertie Devine
worked in insurance. A brother of Agnes/Aggie Devine-Conlon of Devine Conlon’s
St. Patrick’s Street. Father of Michael, Dermott, Willie, Sister Mary and
Father Tom in New Jersey. They later moved to The Crescent. Bertie was the son
of Tom J. Devine who was one of the three candidates in the famous 1917
bye-election won by Count Plunkett. So the Devine family are part of a very
significant event in Irish History.
17.
Ignatius Sullivan
in the National Bank and the Bank of Ireland on amalgamation. Also referenced, a Mister Devane a civil servant
18.
Detective Bill
Doyle and wife Sophie. Very active in Boyle organisations.
19.
Coleman’s
(Postmaster) where dentist Boland is now.
20.
Mr. Mc Clean from
Northern Ireland worked with F.X. Burke Sol. in Main St. (Mr. Burke was for a
time owner of the Royal Hotel). There is also mention of the following in this
area: 1. Barry Owens from Fermanagh and son Vincent Owens who was later
domiciled in Birmingham and was a contact person for a lot of Boyle people
going to that city. Their house was accessed to the rear of others. 2. Mr.
Flanagan, Mr. Redmond and Andy Fee who was a manager in Sloan’s and later had a
shop in a premises of Paddy Daly where Jackie Tighe was
later.
Corrections and submissions
welcome. In 2 weeks’ time-hopefully- we will cross to the East Side of Elphin
St. !
Gerry O’Malley
I have had some reaction to
my Gerry O’Malley piece from last week. Christy Dolan remembers the day well
having particular reason to do so. Christy was on the Mayo minor team that
defeated Galway that day and so had a close view of proceedings and remembers
it clearly.
Christy later played for
Roscommon and was a top player with Boyle, nearly always at centre back, in the
early seventies. I intend to talk to Christy about all this in due course.
**As I mentioned last
week there are tickets available from the club proceeds going towards the Gerry
O’Malley Commemoration Fund in his native place of Brideswell in the St.
Brigid’s Club area.
Sports Discipline
Boyle Seniors v Creggs
I attended as Boyle defeated
Creggs in the O’Gara Cup in the Abbey Park last Saturday evening. There was the
usual mix of good and not so good football. Boyle have a good number of special
players at the moment but perhaps the panel is not deep enough. I did come away
very impressed by an aspect of the game however. That was the demeanour and
calmness of the team managers involved. We in Boyle are well aware of those
qualities in the Creggs manager, Boyle stalwart, Jonathan Conroy, always a
gentleman. This was also very much in evidence in the Boyle manager Tom Morley.
I watched as he passed on instructions to his players in a quiet, polite and
unfussy manner while still confirming that he was in charge. And he did not
react to mistakes by throwing the bottle out of or into the dug- out. The
attitude of team managers is in the news at the moment with the o.t.t. actions
of Davy Fitzgerald. Most quality managers recognise that self- discipline is a
necessary quality if they are to have a similar response from their players.
One sees this exemplified in current county managers of Dublin, Kerry, Tyrone
and I cannot think of one sinner in this respect apart from Fitzgerald who is
probably deliberately theatrical.
While it nice to see at adult
level the pity is that down the years a small number of managers
of under-age teams have not shown the necessary self-discipline that should
obtain when dealing with young people during close games. There is a short
monologue which I tried to source there now about praising the child and he/she
will prosper or words to that effect. I hope that my own record when I was
involved was in line with the note I write now. We can hardly teach our kids to
be respectful by treating them with disrespect. Kids rarely do not try hard.
They make mistakes but hardly do so deliberately. They are as good as they are.
Encouragement is key in improving ‘weaker’ players.
I know of a parent of a young
county player who found going to inter-county games very stressful due to the
criticism hurled at his son. A parent hearing his/her boy/girl being overly
criticised, feels it just as much as the young person or perhaps more. So
wouldn’t it be nice if the example of Messrs Conroy and Morley became the norm
as of best practise.
The Boyle Celtic Journey
It does not shorten, this Boyle
Celtic journey. Next Saturday, yes Saturday not Sunday, the team play in
Killarney in the preliminary round of the FAI Senior Cup. The game was
understood by all on this side of the equation (and earlier on the other side)
as being down for decision on Sunday but apparently it was ‘inconvenient’ for
the Killarney Club for whatever reasons. To change, arrange and advertise the
game for late on a Saturday without appropriate consultation with the club
having to travel such a long journey, shows how little consideration that the
host club, Killarney, has shown for Boyle. To expect a team to travel the 4/5
hour trip to Kerry and then play an important/historic match demonstrates an
arrogance and lack of consideration of some magnitude. With the game at 7 it
would be over in normal time at near 9, with extra time this would extend to
9.30 or later. Then whatever supporters travel have to face the 4/5 hour
journey back to Boyle. Allowing for a burger stop it would be 3am before one
would arrive in Boyle. I haven’t been this late coming home from a match for a
very long time.
Obviously sportsmanship is a
spare commodity with this Killarney club. One would have expected that a town
which prospers on the philosophy of friendliness and welcome would not be the
practitioners of such low standards as in this case.
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