This blog is a personal take on Listowel, Co. Kerry. I am writing for anyone anywhere with a Listowel connection but especially for sons and daughters of Listowel who find themselves far from home. Contact me at listowelconnection@gmail.com
The people at Mags’ Deli loved this year’s Christmas windows theme. They did a great job on their Fairytale of New York installation.
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Maura Laverty’s Cookery Bible
Talk of Maura Laverty and her recipes brought back memories for Judy MacMahon, who still refers to her mother’s copy of the book. Full and Plenty is a classic, no colour, few pictures, just recipes and instructions.
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The Proof is in….
Michael O’Callaghan sent us this recipe from Carmel Ní Ghairbhín…her grandmother’s recipe. This one sounds nice and spicy.
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A Little Rail Trip
Free travel is brilliant. What a pity we don’t still have a railway station in Listowel. I took my journey to Kildare from Kent Station in Cork.
Look at the gap I was asked to “mind”. The word mind in this case always fascinates me. In the case of Kent station I mind dreadfully for it is an understatement to call it a gap. It’s a chasm.
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A Poem
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Christmas Cards
A letter to The Irish Times…..
I’m posting this today because I agree with John.
This year’s Kerry Hospice cards are as beautiful as usual.
Kerry Hospice Christmas cards 2024
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A Fact
A 32p Irish stamp featuring a robin was issued by An Post in 1997.
Photo credit; Chris Grayson…Elegant stag in National Park
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Christmas Decorations
Innocent times in the 1950s and 60s when we made our own decorations. The only shop bought decorations I remember were paper streamers and what my mother called mottoes. There were glossy sheets of card with phrases like “God Bless our home at Christmas” and “Happy Christmas to All”. They were pinned under shelves and mantlepieces. Christmas cards were displayed as decorations as well.
The ESB booklet had a few suggestions for homemade decorations. People, particularly women, had loads of time for this caper when we had no TV or internet. Can you imagine anyone trying this today?
The following one predates The Sound of Music but it has a whiff of Maria Von Trapp about it.
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Mona Bradley R.I.P.
This is the story of a lady, part of whose life journey was a mirror image of mine. Mona spent her young life in Listowel and went over the border to Kanturk on marriage.
Here is her story as told to us by her son, John.
Listowel Connection
Nora Mary Duggan was born 08/05/1934 to parents Jack and Hannah Maria Duggan, Dirha West, Listowel. Nora Mary, better known as Mona, was the 4th youngest of a large family consisting of 8 girls and 5 boys.
Sadly, Mona lost her mother when she was only 13. Hannah Marie Duggan, nee Walsh, passed away at age 47.
Mona worked as a barmaid in Broderick’s Bar in Tae Lane, Listowel. During this time circa 1955 she met Michael Bradley from Kanturk who was a regular visitor to Listowel as the company he worked for (Fitzpatrick’s Hatchery) also had a premises/shop in Church Street, Listowel. Mona and Michael first began dating in September 1955 at the Race Dance.
Mona and Michael on their first date
She married Michael Bradley on 24th June 1959 and moved to Kanturk where she lived for the rest of life. In Michael’s marriage vows he promised to take Mona every week to Listowel, which he did every Sunday to visit her sisters and relatives. Even when Michael retired he continued with the Listowel visits every week.
June 24 1959
Mona and Michael had 4 children, John, Breda, Joan and Monica who also spent a lot of time in Listowel and Ballybunion of course. Mona always went to Listowel Races for the whole week and always looked forward to meeting all her relatives and neighbours.
While in Kanturk, Mona went back to her love of bar work taking a part-time job at The Alley Bar. Mona was always a Listowel (Kerry) woman, and her favourite times were Munster Final Days when more often than not Kerry would prevail. She would have her Kerry hat on when everyone would call that night in the bar and the slagging would start.
Behind the counter in The Alley Bar, Strand Street
Mona was a hugely popular woman in Kanturk where she made loads of friends and went on to have a very happy Life.
Mona Bradley outside The Alley Bar a few years before her death
Sadly, Mona’s husband, Michael, passed away in February 2002 after a short illness and Mona passed away in November 2019.
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For the Diary
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Decorating St. Joseph‘s
When I was in St. Joseph’s last week, Christmas decorating was underway.
Mary beside the Christmas tree in the cozy recreation room.
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A Fact
Birds sing mainly in spring and early summer but robins sing all year round.
The story of the floods in Listowel is a heartening story of neighbourliness, community solidarity and goodness.
An older lady was pulled through her window by her neighbours because opening the front door would have let in a deluge.
A quick thinking man knocked a few bricks out of the lower part of a perimeter wall. This allowed the water to run right through and saved some homes from flooding.
Teenage boys formed a meitheal to deliver sand bags and to help people to move their property to higher ground.
Then there was the group who came together to collect replacement clothes and toys for people who had lost theirs in the flood.
A local firm worked late into the night to pump water away from houses under threat.
Businesses gave soup and food to the emergency service workers and volunteers. Others offered accommodation.
The GAA put a call out for volunteers to redirect traffic away from Bridge Road
A local businessman organised a supply of industrial dehumidifiers and another local businessman delivered them to the flooded houses.
A restaurant offered lunch to families who are out of their homes.
A supermarket held a bucket cash collection.
These are only some of the many many stories of people helping people. I feel so blessed to live in Listowel.
Brenda OHalloran took this photo of myself and Jed Chute as we watched the story unfold.
Larry Guiney turning back traffic at the Custom Gap.
Traffic cop for a day on Church Street
Hurdles standing clear of the flooded racecourse
Listowel Town Park
Not such a green way today
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A Christmas Window
Fairytale of New York is the theme for 2024.
This is Finesse window
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From the ESB Christmas Cookbook
A few more from Maura Laverty
I love her use of household items like a bread grater, a jam jar or milk bottle.
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A Fact
On December 24 1929, during a party hosted by First Lady Lou Hoover for children of staff of The White House, a fire broke out in the West Wing. The press room was completely destroyed and some damage was done to the Oval Office.
My Kanturk family met these Two Crafty Kerry Ladies at the local fair. Lovely to see these women bringing their gorgeous wares over the border to Cork.
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More Reminders of Nature’s Destructive Power
Dandy Lodge surrounded by receding floodwater on November 23 2024
I took this before noon from the viewing platform by the river.
This is the river walk to the left of that path.
“I was there at the flood of 2024,” Will this little lad be telling his grandchildren that he witnessed with is own eyes historic levels of floodwater in The Feale. I hope that by then the river and its tributaries will be dredged and the awful event of Saturday last will just be a bad memory.
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Spotted earlier in the Week
In a Listowel garden
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An Ancient Harpist
Image and test from An Claíomh Solais
Pádraig Dall Ó Beirn was the last noted exponent in Ireland of the historical Gaelic wire strung harp and the first Irish traditional musician ever photographed.
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Postbox in Youghal
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A Fact
The only creature ever known to be killed by a meteor was a dog in Egypt in 1911.
Eddie Murphy , aged 14 in 1937 submitted a long list of prayers to the Folklore archive.
Here are a few;
“God bless us” is said when a person sneezes.
“God bless all here” is said when a person enters a house.
“God bless the hearers” is said when a person hears of an accident occuring or some other serious happening.
“I. P. R. I.” – a person puts those letters on his forehead when going to bed and repeats the following words: “My Jesus of Nazareth the King of the Jews save me from a sudden and unprepared death”. If those words are said a person will not get a sudden death.
“The Lord have mercy on the dead” Is said when a person dies.
“The Lord between us and harm” Is said when a person hears of some bad happening.
“God speed the work” is said when a person is seen hard working.
“God speed you” is said to a person going on a journey.
“God save all here” is said by a person when he enters a house.
“God bless the mark” is said when a person speaks of a máchail of another person.
“The Lord have mercy on the poor souls” is said when a person takes a pinch of snuff.
That the harms of the year may go with him” it is said when something dies.
When going to bed the following prayer is repeated: “Here I lay down my head to sleep, to God I give my soul to take. Wake now wake never, to God I give my soul for ever. There are four corners in my bed there are four angels at my head. St. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, God bless this bed that I lie on, and if any evil comes to me, the Lord of heaven protect me, and if I die before I wake to God I give my soul to take.
“The Lord forgive me my sins” is said when a person says a curse.
“As St. Peter was standing on a marble stone at the gate of Jerusalem our Lord Jesus said to him “What ails thee Peter?
O Lord Jesus I am suffering from a toothache.
Peter thou shall be healed.
Anyone that keeps this in memory or about them shall never suffer from a toothache”. This prayer is repeated nine times after each other. The person must have belief in the prayer.
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Saturday Nov. 23 2024 in Bridge Road
Bridge Road was closed to traffic.
Emergency service people were doing all they could.
The water edged further up the road and into the park after I left.
I lit a candle and said a prayer on my way home.
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History Repeats Itself
(from the National Archives)
NAI REFERENCE:
CSO/RP/1822/811
TITLE:
William Ponsonby, Listowel, County Kerry: request for financial aid as compensation for losses sustained by flood of 16 August
SCOPE & CONTENT:
Letter from William Ponsonby, chairman, District Committee, Listowel, County Kerry, to Henry Goulburn, Chief Secretary, Dublin Castle, pleading for financial aid as compensation for losses sustained by a flood of 16 August in the baronies of Clanmaurice and Iraghticonnor, an event that brought ‘most extensive distress in a district already severely impoverished’: encloses an account indicating in tabular format name of parish, number of persons effected and the ‘amount of Damage sustained’ as a direct result of the flood water.
EXTENT:
2 item; 4pp
DATE(S):
26 Aug 1822
DATE EARLY:
1822
DATE LATE:
1822
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Athea Church
St. Bartholomew’s Church was built by Fr. John Ryan in 1832 on a site donated by Thomas Goold. It is Gothic in style with its high pitched roof and tall elegant windows. In 1862, Fr. Martin Ryan consecrated, remodelled and enlarged the church at a cost of £650 and also installed a bell. Fr George Quain added a spire to the church in 1905 and a new bell. The entire church was renovated in 1986/87 by Fr Thomas O’Donnell P.P. and was completed by Fr. Patrick Kelly P.P. It was rededicated on October 18th 1987 by Bishop of Limerick Jeremiah Newman.
A window is Athea church
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Food for Thought
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A Fact
In 2005 Angela Merkel became the first female chancellor of Germany
