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 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.
Photo: Chris Grayson in Killarney National Park…2024 rut
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Where I was Yesterday
Volunteers were everywhere, Selling tickets, baking and serving, playing the piano, finding chairs for the huge crowd who came to support and generally ensuring that the annual Kerry Hospice coffee morning was an outstanding success.
I took lots of photos, so you will be seeing lots of the lovely people who attended in upcoming posts.
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The Sales
In the days before online shopping, shops used to hold much anticipated end of season sales. A few hot ticket items would be greatly reduced and these would be available to shoppers on a first come first served basis. This led to competitive queueing and a mad scramble once the doors opened.
The queue at Roches Stores, Cork for one such sale. The queues and, in this case, the shop is no more.
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My Weekend in Ballincollig
Last weekend found me in this little theatre for a festival of one act plays. The calibre of play and of acting was very varied but it was a worthwhile exercise and I enjoyed a return to live theatre which I had missed for a while.
Saturday saw me in Belgooley where hundreds of underage lady footballers from local clubs were trying out for mid Kerry teams. It is heartwarming to see so many young girls actively involved in Gaelic games. The turn out was a great credit to the mentors who coach and encourage these young ladies week in week out.
Sunday and I was in Lakewood tennis club supporting my daughter in the first round of the winter league tennis. Cora joined us after victory with her soccer team in their first round national championship soccer game.
Sunday lunch in Kanturk with my Kanturk besties.
The book tour is due in Kanturk on Friday, October 25th at 7.30 in the Linn gorm Community Hall (P51 YC57). Stuart, the bull, who is one of the stars of Moments of Reflection, won’t be in attendance but his family will. If you are reading this in North Cork, do join us. We won’t have any music this time but we will have a party, hosted by my star baker sister-in-law.
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Sad story from the Internet
Did you sing this as a child? .
Explanation below, where this song came from..
This old man he played one
He played nick nack on my drum
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played two
He played nick nack on my shoe
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played three
He played nick nack on my tree
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played four
He played nick nack on my door
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played five
He played nick nack on my hive
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played six
He played nick nack on my stick
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played seven
He played nick nack on my deven
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played eight
He played nick nack on my gate
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played nine
He played nick nack on my vine
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This old man he played ten
He played nick nack on my hen
With a nick nack paddy whack
Give a dog a bone
This old man came rolling home
This rhyme is thought to relate to Irish beggars who arrived in England during the British genocide which lasted between 1845 to 1852 and resulted in millions of deaths. Paddies’ as they were known would sell ‘knick knacks’ door to door, also playing a rhythm of ‘nick nack’ using spoons, in the hope of receiving some pennies. According to the tale, they’d be given a ‘whack’ and sent on their way, while their dog would be given a bone.
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Last few photos from Listowel Harvest Festival of Racing 2024
John tries to get back to his native Listowel every year during race week.
I met Eileen at the parade ring spotting form.
Bridget and John always enjoy a day at the races.
Niamh and friends with their inventive headgear.
These Ballyduff sisters were reunited for Listowel Races.
The sunny side of the street….Church St. in October 2024
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Changes at St. Mary’s
When I visited the church on October 10 2024, the usual peace was broken by noises of drilling and hammering. It will all be much appreciated in time as the reason for the workmanlike noises was the installation of comfy cushions on the seats and kneelers.
The choir and the folk group are in future going to sing from the side altar. Comfy seats, carpet underfoot and microphones were being put in place.
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Brehon Laws
Here are two more “laws” from old Ireland.
This seems a very genteel way of pawn broking.
Silence is golden unless you have a good reason to talk.
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Listowel Races on Saturday, September 28th 2024
Great crowd for a Saturday. The sun shone and everyone was in good spirits.
These are the finalists in the sustainable fashion competitions
While the judges were deliberating I discovered that the people beside me in the crowd were none other than this year’s Kerry Rose, Emer Dineen and her family.
Winner alright… Niamh (Kenny) Lordan looked the epitome of style in her preloved Louise Kennedy suit. Orla Winters who is interviewing her, didn’t look too bad either.
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The Playpen
This was a health and safety device. When you wanted to keep baby out of harm’s way you put them in this small prison, where they could see everything but couldn’t get at it.
Shane Lowry once claimed in an interview that his grandmother used to put him in the turf box. A tea chest was my play pen.
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August 25 2011
This is the very first picture I posted on Listowel Connection and here is the very first post….
This is the scene today in Listowel. Minister for Heritage, Tourism and The Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan officially launched an exhibition of photographs and memorabilia related to the work of Listowel’s famous stucco artist, Pat McAuliffe. This is appropriate for my first post on this blog because it marries the old and the new.
What I intend to do with this blog is to post news from Listowel along with some of my photos and every now and again to post some old stories, anecdotes and anything else I find interesting.
For whom am I blogging?
Mainly the Listowel diaspora but really for anyone with an interest in Listowel.
While on the subject of the diaspora I have to here plug our new community organisation, North Kerry Reaching Out. This is a local history, genealogy and tourism venture. We hope to reach out to people everywhere with any link to North Kerry. We will help people as best we can to research their family tree. We hope to set up a website with lots of local news and lore and then…. we hope to organise A Week of Welcomes when some of our new friends would come to North Kerry and we would lay on a programme of entertainment for them.
That was then. This is now.
The organisation, North Kerry Reaching Out, has fallen by the wayside. The Week of Welcomes was poorly enough attended as the Listowel diaspora want to choose their own week to come home. The website has gone because there was no money to host it anymore.
BUT
I’m still blogging.
Blog followers sometimes ask me how they can help me. I have to pay an annual fee for the domain, for hosting and for the ssl certificate.
The best way to help me at the moment is to buy the book, Moments of Reflection. It is available in Woulfe’s, Eason, Listowel Garden Centre, PRIFMA and Super Valu. It costs €20. Woulfe’s will post it abroad or in Ireland.
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A Fact
Every known breed of dog, except the chow, has a pink tongue. The chow’s tongue is jet black.
Kerry County Council held an Age Friendly Conference for older drivers in The Rose Hotel on Tuesday October 8 2024.
If you are wondering at what age you become an “older’ driver: 55, apparently. You may have noticed since Covid the term Age Friendly appearing in parking spaces. It’s a kind of euphemism for “Reserved for Old People”. It’s a misleading term as it’s certainly not friendly to twenty somethings.
Now this seminar was free for us oldies but you had to reserve your place through the booking site, Eventbrite. It doesn’t really take a genius to know that that alone is off-putting for many older people. Next time you, Kerry County Council, organise a seminar for older people make it ring to book your place or even send a text message. Eventbrite is fine for concerts and shows.
90 year old Anna May McHugh was the guest of honour. Anna May is seated beside the Cathaoirleach of Kerry County Council, Breandán Fitzgerald. Breandán welcomed us and told us that Kerry is an Age Friendly County. The newly appointed chair of the Older People’s Council, Kerry, Catherine Lenihan, addressed us as well.
Then followed some excellent speakers. I’m not going to go through it all but here are a few facts:
Environmental factors are usually weather related, e.g. icy roads or sun glare.
Even if you are old and one of the above is an issue for you, you may still be able to get a restricted driving licence, e.g restricted to driving in daylight or to a radius of 30 kms from your home.
Having listened to all the really good speakers we then got tea and a scone or two and we were free to find our inner child and visit the stands gathering a bag of swag to take home. I felt like a child at the summer show with my free pen and my trolley token, my air freshener and my hi viz jacket.
It was a really worthwhile event, well worth repeating.
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From the Swap Box
In Listowel Library there is this marvellous resource. It’s a swap box, where you can leave a book and collect a book. You don’t have to donate to collect. Sometimes it’s oversubscribed, and you have to take home your “donation”. I love it and I have found many treasures there. Last week I took three old Ballydonoghue Magazines from the box. Look what I found:
Two very promising footballers receiving an award from a former footballer who too fulfilled his young promise.
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From Jer’s Archive Trawl
May 1936
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A Few More from Listowel Races 2024
Mostly local people, friends and neighbours today
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A Corner in Abbeyfeale
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A Fact
In 1737, a cyclone in Calcutta, India is believed to have killed 300,000 people and caused 40 foot waves.
According to Wikipedia a jostle stone is “A guard stone, jostle stone or chasse-roue (French lit. “wheel chaser”), is a projecting metal, concrete, or stone exterior architectural element located at the corner and/or foot of gates, portes-cochères, garage entries, and walls to prevent damage from vehicle tires and wheels.”
Nineteenth century towns were very dependent on the horse. These stones were put in place at entrances in order to jostle the cart wheels away from walls.
There are many jostle stones still in place in Listowel. Look out for them is you are walking in town.
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Listowel, an Autism Friendly Town
This sign is at Garvey’s Super Valu. Many businesses in town are adapting to make Listowel a more welcoming town for people with autism.
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At the October HorseFair
Market Street
A young horse man
These little miniature horses are Falabella. They cost about the same as your high end puppy. Of course you can’t ride them as they are far too small but they make lovely outdoor pets or companions for horses or donkeys.
This man from Galbally in Co. Limerick introduced these little ponies to this part of the world. Business was slow at the October horse fair but he says that there is steady demand for these lovely creatures.
These men were on hand to inform people about fire safety in the home this winter.
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One Hundred Years since The Lartigue
The beautiful replica train before its centenary run on Sunday September 29 2024. Pat Brodbin at the controls.
One of four flying gate wheels now it the museum
Martin Griffin and Jimmy Deenihan, two men who are passionate about the monorail and museum
Jimmy and Sean greeting the first passengers of the day
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People at Listowel Races 2024
The judges were Heidi Higgins and Rosanna Davison
Suitable shoes for racing?
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1945 death of a lady with a Listowel Connection
The Telegraph
Aug 16 1945 • Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Late Miss C. Hewson The death has occurred of Miss Caroline Hewson, at the home of her late sister, Mrs F. J. Macgillycuddy, at Eagle Junction. Some weeks ago Miss Hewson fell and broke her hip. After several weeks in a private hospital she returned to her home at Eagle Junction, but did not rally from shock, which was too great for her advanced years. the Miss Hewson was second daughter of the late Mr William Minchin Hewson, and was borne at Finuge House, Listowel, Co. Kerry, Ireland. some years she lived at Stanthorpe, where she was widely known. Her surviving sisters are Mesdames For R M. King (Brisbane), and Murdo Mackenzie (Southport).
