Listowel Connection

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

Knitters party, Tidy Towns Unveiling, Wren boys part 4 and some photos of local people

By

On December 16, 2016

In Uncategorized



Knitwits Christmas Party in Scribes




Una Hayes and Maureen Connolly

Patricia Borley and Mary Boyer

Katie Heaton and Anne Moloney

Helen O’Connor and Pat Barry

Peggy Brick, Kathleen McCarthy and Una Hayes

Jane Anne Sheehy, Eileen O’Sullivan and Eileen Fitzgerald



Maria Leahy, Anne Moloney and Joan Carey

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New Kids on The Block




This business  has opened at the corner of William Street and Charles Street in the premises that used to be Jerome Murphy’s



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Sunday December 11 2016 at the Unveiling of the Tidy Towns’ Sculpture




At 5.00 p.m.we turned our backs on the Coca Cola truck and headed across the Square to the island outside The Listowel Arms for the unveiling of the sculpture to celebrate the work of Listowel Tidy Towns Committee in bringing glory to town. Readers of Listowel Connection already knew what the piece looked like but the committee covered it up again for the big reveal.

Kerry County Council and the Enterprise office had a hand in funding so Aoife Thornton gave the first speech on their behalf.

Canon Declan O’Connor, P.P. Listowel blessed the piece and blessed the work of the Tidy Town committee.

Ta da! There it is.

The artist, Darren Enright stood proudly among the onlookers as his work was praised.

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That was then; this is now



When another sculpture was unveiled in The Square in December 2010 we had snow on the ground

This year the sun shone and we had temperatures of 13 and 14.

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A Few More People I photographed on November 25

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North Kerry Wren Boys by Wm. Molyneaux in Shannonside Annuals

Part 4

We had great times with the
same Wren, so we did.  One St Stephen’s
Day I was out with Coolkeragh.  They were
a good crowd.  We were travelling on,
whatever.  I don’t know that anyone of us
knew the names of the people where we were at all. 
But still is was a good place. 
Well, any torn down house or anything, we’d say to ourselves that we
wouldn’t go in there at all.  

So this
house, anyway, we crossed it.  It was a
small little pokeen of a  house.  Myself and the player were talking.  We said to ourselves we wouldn’t go in there
at all-you know.  There would hardly be
no one there at all- poor looking. “Cripes,” says I (as if I had the knowledge)
“ “I imagine,” says I, “but I see an old woman walking around
the house, and now  that old woman might
only get insulted.  We want nothing from
her,” says I, “but she might get insulted if we didn’t go into with
the Wren.”  “Well, by God, that’s
right, Williameen.  “We go in
then.”  

In we went.  This poor little woman was inside.  A very small little house entirely.  She had a few coals down.  I went up to the fire, myself and the player.  He was Willie Mahoney over in Coolkeragh and
a good player he was.  The Dickens, I
went up.  I was inclined to
“hate” the tambourine over the coals. 
There wasn’t as much fire there as would heat it.  Stay, I told him play away.  He played away.  He played, I think, a hornpipe.  God he was a good player!  We were at it for a bit, and with that,
whatever look I gave, there was the poor woman and the tears rolling down her
face.  “Stop, let ye,” says I
to the crowd.  “Stop, let ye, there
must be something wrong here.  Will ye
stop!”  I turned around to the old
woman: “well, poor woman,” says I “there must be something wrong
with you or with someone belonging to you. 
And if we knew anything like that,” says I, “we were not going to come in at all” says I “if
we knew what we know now….  When we see
the tears in your eyes we wouldn’t have come in at all….

At that she started, at the
top of your voice: “Yerra,Wisha, Weenach!oh!oh!OH!..It isn’t any dohall I have
at all about the Wran Boys!….Yerra, Wisha…..my husband, Tom….he’s inside in
the Listowel ‘ospital with a sore leg. 
And, and if Tom was here today, wouldn’t he be delighted to see the fine
crowd of fine respectable Wren boys that made so much of me as to come in here!
Wait a fwhile ‘til Tom ‘ll come home and if I don’t be  telling him that…..oh!oh!oh! and she went on
at the top of her voice.

I turned around to the crowd:
“lads,” says I, “have ye much money around ye? “agor, we have”
says the captain,  we could have up to
about five pounds, (it was early in the day) “Are ye all satisfied to give
this poor woman,” says I, “half of what ye have?  The day is long” says I, “and
we  will make enough to maintain us
through the night.”  And they said
they were agreeable.  The cashier was
just starting to pull out his purse and off she started again: “oh!  No! 
No!  Wait awhile now and I must
turn around and give ye something.  She
had long stockings on her, and she stuck down her hand in one of them-down,
down, and then she got hold of something and she started pulling and pulling
til she pulled up a big cloth purse-as sure as I’m telling you there would a
quarter sack of male fit inside it!  And
I couldn’t tell you what money was inside it. 
Up she pulled the bag anyway and reached a shilling to myself.  “No, ma’am,” says I, “put that in
your own pocket.”  Then she started
again: “oh!  No!  No! 
No!  If you don’t take that now,
decent boy!  Oh,Yerra  Wisha 
after what ye had done for me! 
Yerra, Wisha, the best friend I ever had in all my life would not do
what ye’re after doing for me.  That the
Almighty God and the Blessed Virgin Mary may save and guard ye! Bless and
protect ye! And that you and yer crowd might be going around on the Wran,”
says she, “ for the next 100 years without a feather ou of ye.”

That happened, for a God’s
honest fact.

(more tomorrow)

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Home Alone


A Christmas poem from Mary McElligott

HOME ALONE

‘What will I do Mrs Claus?”

Santa rubbed his head.

He really was exhausted.

His legs felt like lead.

His head was pounding,
throbbing.

He was frozen to the bone.

Mrs Claus was too busy
cleaning,

To listen to him moan.

He was like this every
year,

I suppose you’d say,
stressed.

She’d listen, support and
encourage,

Take out his long sleeved
vest.

Christmas Eve was looming,

Three more sleeps to go.

Was it his age? She
wondered,

Gosh, t’was hard to know.

Mrs Claus was high
dusting,

Changing sheets and beds.

Five hundred elves was no
joke,

The last time she counted
heads.

One hundred stayed all
year

But in October that count
went up,

Hard work for Mrs. Claus,

To get it all set up.

She cooked and cleaned
their dorms.

She worked out their Rota,

24/7 their job,

Hard, juggling that quota.

She loved it though, being
busy,

Loved caring for the
elves,

They were like their
children,

When they didn’t have any
themselves.

Some poor elves were
homesick,

In the North Pole for a
whole twelve weeks.

She often saw tears
flowing,

Down their little cheeks.

She had one big job to
sort.

She did it through the
year.

It was she who got the
elves their gifts,

Brought them their
Christmas cheer.

She made several trips
down south.

There was a great service
from The Pole

But her favorite place to
go,

Was a place called
Listowel.

It was so tidy and clean,

So pretty, down by the
park

And even more beautiful at
night,

What with all those blue
lights in the dark.

She’d buy all their gifts,

Hats, scarves and gloves
for the elves.

She’d pack them in huge
cases,

Leaving a bit of space for
a few bits for themselves.

She loved Christmas Eve,

Santa gone, the elves in
bed.

She’d open up her cases,

Deliver gifts as she’d
quietly thread,

Up and down, between the
beds,

One hundred in each dorm,

Over and back until the
cases were empty,

Finishing up near dawn.

They all get a Christmas
bonus,

50 Euros and of course,
some sweets,

After all it was Christmas

And you’d have to give
them treats.

She’d only just be gone to
bed,

When Santa would land in,
FROZEN..

She’d leave out coke and
cake,

Waiting for him, dozing.

‘How was it Santa?’ she’d
ask,

‘Everything go all right
with the reindeer?’

“Absolutely perfect Mrs
Claus,

Thanks to you. Merry
Christmas, my dear.”

<<<<<<<


Friends Reunited


I had a lovely morning meeting with some old friends recently. Some I met by arrangement and some by chance. It was delightful to renew old acquaintance at the end of 2016

I first met these ladies when we were all teenagers. Heres to the next time, Jill, Assumpta, Eileen and Peggy. 

Little did we think back in the 1970s that we would sit in The Malton, Killarney in 2016 discussing the merits of free travel.

Séan McCarthy, more on the wren boys and some more Listowel people in November 2016

By

On December 15, 2016

In Uncategorized

Listowel Castle 2016





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Seán McCarthy at Christmas


Seán McCarthy’s poems about Christmas were gathered into an anthology sometime in the 1970s. Junior Griffin has a copy. Below is another of the poems. In it Seán is writing about Christmas in his U.S. home in South Carolina.


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Human sisters

I snapped Alice and Catherine Moylan at the BOI expo back in late November 2016.

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Wm. Molyneaux’s recollections of the Wrenboys of his youth

 Part 3 

But then, about the
Wren.  How the wren derived her dignity
as the king of all birds.  That was the
question.  An eagle issued a challenge
between all birds, big and small as they were-wrens, robins, sparrows,
thrushes, blackbirds, jackdaws, magpies, or else.  They commenced their flight this
day-Christmas Day-The eagle, being the bravest continues her flight and was
soaring first.  All the other birds were
soaring after, until, in the finish, after a lapse of time in her flight, the
weaker birds seemed to get weary and could not continue their flightsome  ways further. 
But the Wren pursued to the last. 
The other birds got weak and worn out and in the heel of fair  play, the eagle said that she was the king of
all birds herself now.  The wren
concealed yourself under the Eagles feathers, in the end of  fair play the Eagle got worn out.  The wren flew out from under the Eagles
feathers and declared yourselves the king of all birds.  That is how the Wren derived her dignity as
being the king of all birds.  So we hunted
her for the honour of it.  Also, when St
Stephen was in prison and as he was liberated the band went out against St
Stephen, and it was a daylight performance and the wren, when she heard the
music and the band, came out and perched yourselves on the drum.  That’s how we heard the story.

Anyway we made our
tambourines.  You’d get a hoop made (in
them days) by a cooper.  There is no
cooper hardly going now.  You’d get this
made by cooper for about half a crown.  I
used to make my tambourines always  of goat’s
skin.  You could make them of an ass foal’s
skin-anything young, do you see.  How?  I’d skinned the goat, get fresh lime and put
the fresh lime on the fleshy side of the skin-not that hairy side but the
fleshy side of the skin-fold it up then and double it up and twist it again and
get a soft string and put it around it and take it with you then to a running
stream and put it down in the running stream where the fresh water will be
always running over it, and leave it so. 
You could get a flag and attach it onto the bag, the way the water
wouldn’t carry it.  Leave it there for
about nine days and you come then and you can pull off the hair and if the hair
comes freely you can take up the skin and pull off the hair the same as you
would shave yourself.  And then you
should moisten with lukewarm water.  You
should draw it the way it wouldn’t shrink. 
You should leave it for a couple of hours.  You would get your ring and you’d have the
jingles and all in-the bells-you’d have them all in before you put the skin to
the rim. You should have two or three drawing the skin to keep it firm-pull it
from half-width, that would be the soonest way t’would stiffen.  Let the skin be halfwidth and put it down on
the rim and  have a couple  pulling it
and another man tacking it with brass tacks. 
That’s the way I used make my tambourines, anyway.  Ther’d be no sound out of it the first night.  I used always hang my tambourines
outside.  And then the following morning
t’would be hard as a pan  and a flaming
sound out of it.  And then after a bit
t’would cool down.  T’would be bad to
have them too hard, they’d crack.  Ah,
sure I made several tambourines that way.

To be continued…

<<<<<,


People at the BOI expo in November 25 2016


Maurice Hannon and his delicious cakes all available at the Market on Fridays.

 Why not let Claire pamper your pup for Christmas?

 Sharon was giving a make over.  Just the thing for Christmas.

 One of my favourite coffee shops, The Flying Saucer.

I bought some wooden tree decorations from an enterprising Tarbert girl. The tree fell in a storm, her father cut the branches into slices and she decorated them with Christmas images…lovely!

Wren boys continued, a Christmas poem, the Clauses of The Seanchaí and people at the Coca Cola truck event

By

On December 14, 2016

In Uncategorized

Abbey at Rattoo photographed a few years ago by Padraig O’Connor

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A Very Sad Seasonal poem from Seán McCarthy



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Wren boys in North Kerry by Wm. Molyneaux as reported in The Shannonside Annuals in the 1950s

Part 2

He (The Man from the BBC) asked me then what way we used to dress in the Wren boys. I told him we used dress in green and gold or any colour. I told him we had a Wren Cross (which we had in them days) and we had the Wren Cross painted in green and gold and we often took out two wrens in the morning and brought them back alive and restored them to liberty. I told him when we go in to a farmer’s house that we’d say those words to the farmer-the farmer’s houses where we’d expect to get a good reach the captain of the Wrenboys would address the man of the house by saying these words:

The man of the house is a very good men

And it was to him we brought the wran,

Wishing you a happy Christmas and a merry New Year

If you give us the price of a gallon of beer,

We’d continue on until we go to the next house-which was the landlady’s house. The captain addressed the landlady in these words

the wran, the wran, the king of all birds-

St Stephen’s Day she was cought in the furze;

although she be little, her family being great,

Rise up, landlady, and give us a trate;

Up with the kittle and down with the pan

We’ll thank your subscription to bury the Wren!

That’s the way the captain would address if he went into a big farmer’s house or into a landlady’s house.

(more tomorrow)

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Humans



John (Junior) Griffn and Billy Keane at the launch of Billy’s novel some years ago.


<<<<<<


The Seanchaí Claus family at the BOI Enterprise Town expo



Joe’s been a good boy.


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Gala Christmas Sunday in Town


Eoin Enright’s photo gives a good idea of the scene in The Square as the light was fading on Sunday December 11 2016.







Here are some people I met at the Coca Cola truck on Sunday December 11 2016



October Stocktaking launch, Wrenboys Long Ago and West Limerick Journal

By

On December 13, 2016

In Uncategorized

Millenium Arch and Bridge Road after Neodata



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Pat Given’s Book Launch





It was November 3 2016 in St. John’s Listowel and a very popular retired teacher, Pat Given was launching a collection of poetry in aid of the North Kerry Literary Trust. In retirement, Pat Given is still contributing to the literary heritage of Listowel, a town he adopted when his family moved here from Mayo in the 1930s.

Pat and his wife, Lisha, are regular patrons of St. John’s so it was fitting that this should be the scene for the launch of  his anthology.

It was Jimmy Deenihan who encouraged Pat to publish another collection of his poems. Pat had previously published 2 anthologies but he had been silent for many years. Jimmy knew that he was still writing daily so he determined to help him to get back into print. The result is October Stocktaking.

Jimmy was the MC for the night and joining him on stage were four of Pat’s past pupils who had gone on to success in literary and dramatic endeavours.

Joe Murphy recalled Pat’s great Greek language and history lessons. Learning by rote was a feature of  education in the 20th century and Joe could still decline a Greek verb and rattle off the dates of Greek battles after a gap of nearly forty years.

Billy Keane was a pupil in later years and he remembered Pat with fondness. Pat and John B. Keane grew up as part of that great gang of boys in Church Street. Billy read the poem which gave the book its name, October Stocktaking.

Gabriel Fitzmaurice donned the old school tie and took us back to the heyday of St. Michael’s. He recalled inspirational teachers and memorable classmates. He indulged his love of sonnets by reading one of Pat’s.

Christian O’Reilly was there to represent the younger generation of Pat’s pupils who remember him more as a teacher of English than of the classics. Christian is a very successful playwright and TV and film screenwriter and he was happy to return to his native Listowel to celebrate with his former English teacher.

John Mc Auliffe, poet and Reader in Modern Literature and Creative Writing at the University of Manchester, is also a part pupil. He was not in St. John’s for the launch but he contributed a testimonial to the book as well.

We all know that St. Michael’s College was not a bed of roses for all of its pupils but it did provide a classical education to compare with the best schools in the land at one time in its history. These bright, successful past pupils form a very loyal old boys network and it was well in evidence on December 3 in St. John’s to thank and celebrate with a gentle giant of St. Michael’s academic history, Mr. Given.






Pat posed for photos with Lisha, Seamus, Peter and John and his extended family.




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Humans of Listowel Bank of Ireland


Nov 25 2016 in Listowel Community Centre

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What I’m Reading



Christmas time is a great time for annual local history journals. This one is new to the scene and is a great read…probably also a collectors item, a first edition



You will spot a few faces familiar to Listowel people at the launch of this magazine.

Photos posted by Eamon Doody

<<<<<<<<

Christmastime in Kerry Long Ago


This account of Wrenboys is taken from an account by WM. Molyneaux in Shannonside Annuals.

With Tambourines and Wren
boys

Wm. Molyneaux

I was questioned one time by
the BBC one night behind at Cantilons. 
They sent me word “can you 
come to Cantillons the same night to give them any information I had
about the Wren.  I promised I would.  I went back and They came.  There are just three of them come-one of them
was a publican inside in the town of Listowel, John Keane.  But I didn’t know the headman at all of the
BBC.  And that was the man that was
questioning me.  The way he questioned me
was-he asked me what I knew about the Wren. 
He asked me how long I was going with the Wren boys.  I answered him and I told him “I’m
going, sir,” says I, “from boyhood to manhood”.  “What were you doing,” says he,
“in the Wren?”  “I used to
tip, Sir,” says-“I was a drummer.”  He asked me what class of a drum-“was it
a big drum or a tambourine?”  I told
him I drummed either one or the other of them. 
He asked me had I got a tambourine. 
“No sir,” says I “I’m out of them” “well, we’ll
get you one,” says he they went and they searched the same night and they got
a tambourine for me as any case and the BBC man asked me what would I drum.  I told him I’d drum reels, jigs, marches, or
hornpipes.  He asked me what special tune
used we play going with the Wren.  I
answered him and told him it was the Wrens hornpipe.  He asked me could I hum it.  “I will,sir,” says I. There was no
music there but the tambourine.  I drummed
the hornpipe and it was taken down. 


(more tomorrow)

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Coca Cola Trucks in Listowel



Niamh Stack snapped the Coca Cola truck being towed by  Listowel Transport tractor cab as it left town on Sunday night, December 11 2016. Apparently they needed the help of Listowel Transport as the big American tractor that was attached to it in the Square is not really great for manoeuvring it on Irish roads.


Damien Stack shared this photo on Facebook as Listowel bad farewell to the truck that brought so much excitement to town for one day only on Sunday December 11.

Damien O’Mahony is the local hero who made it happen. It was because of his putting of the case on 2FM for a stop in Listowel that the bandwagon rolled into town. 

From mid morning till nightfall families queued for a taste of the magical experience. We got a can of Coca Cola, our photo taken with the truck and a virtual reality sleigh ride, all for free. A Gospel choir set the atmosphere and 2fm broadcast live from The Square.

In the afternoon the Love Listowel activities kickstarted the street party. Traders mounted a Christmas Market, a céilí swung into life on William Street (which was temporarily reclosed for the party) and local actors played out a scene in McKenna’s window.

The town was jam packed with happy people, full of Christmas good spirits. The word I heard often was  “proud”. For one day everyone was proud of the town, the town’s people and everyone’s ability to put on a show.

All roads lead to Listowel and the Coca Cola event.

As dawn broke over Listowel on Sunday December 11 2016, people realised that, like a Santa in the night, the truck had arrived in town and had taken up position outside St. John’s in The Square.

At 12.00 noon Damien declared the show open and the first families stood on the plinth for their photo.

 While in the queue you could play ice cube Jenga.

When you got to the top of the queue, you stood on the step and obeyed the elves instructions to smile and pose. The snapper snapped and within seconds you had a lovely souvenir photo to take home.

BOI Enterprise Town photos,Plum Pudding and paying for water in 1895

By

On December 12, 2016

In Uncategorized

Photo by Chris Grayson, photographer to the robins

<<<<<<<<

Holidays Are Coming

They came yesterday

Everyone got in on the act of welcoming the Coca Cola trucks on Sunday December 11 2016. I’ll try to organise my photos for tomorrow. Meanwhile I’m sharing the very best welcoming the trucks picture. It is the work of our local artist, Olive Stack. We didn’t get the snow. The weather was very mild and ideal for outdoor frolicking. And we frolicked in huge numbers. The likes of the crowds was only last seen at a fleadh cheoil. I took lots of photos of the truck and of the unveiling of the Tidy Town seat sculpture.

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Some of the Exhibitors at BOI Enterprise Town Expo on November 26 2016





The vey successful Listowel Taekwando

 Thai message is available in Ballybunion.

 Tina Hayes was there with her family promoting her new business. Tina will take small groups or individuals and help them to get started on the internet or social media. Her business is called Teapot Computer Solutions.

 These are the Trojan Boxers.

Ella O’Sullivan had a beautiful display of her hand crafts.

The Garda stand was popular. I got a hi vis vest there.

 KDYS were offering sweets  and Christmas tree decorations to hand paint.

Damien was promoting Listowel Board Gaming Club.

Martin Griffin, Stationmaster, and Paddy Keane volunteer guardsman were manning the Lartigue stand.

My friends, Mary and Noelle were raising awareness of the work of the local branch of the Multiple Sclerosis Society.


My photo of the great men of The Men’s Shed Movement is a bit shaky.

<<<<<<<


Why does a Plum Pudding have no plums in it?


The answer is a fact gleaned from The Ireland’s Own Annual 2016.

In the nineteenth century raisins were called plums. A Christmas or plum pudding is traditionally made with dried fruit held together with eggs  and suet, moistened with treacle and flavoured with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger.

It started life as plum porridge. People used to fast on Christmas Eve and they ate this plum porridge beforehand to line their stomachs.

Fact as learned in this year’s Ireland’s Own!

<<<<<<<


Humans of Listowel (in times past)



Junior Griffin gave me this happy photo of himself (a younger self) and his friend the late Garda Denis O’Donovan R.I.P.

<<<<<<<



One from the Archives; Back in 1895 paying for water was an issue in Listowel





Saturday, November 23, 1895



LISTOWEL TOWN COMMISSION



Listowel, Monday. An adjourned meeting of the Town Commissioners was

held this evening at 7.30 p.m., the chair being occupied by Mr. F.

Creagh, solicitor, chairman. The other commissioners present

were—Messrs. M. W. Mulvihill, M. O’Connor, D. Barry, R H. M’Carthy, J.

Cahill, T. Buckley



Mr. D. J. Potter applied for permission to put  stained glass in one

of the sides of the street lamp outside the door of his hotel in

William Street, for the purpose of advertising his establishment.



The Chairman considered the commissioners should be very slow to allow

their property be used for private advertising purposes, and if they

acceded to Mr. Potter’s request others would probably make similar

ones. Mr. Potter could put up a lamp on his own account.



The other commissioners concurred, and the application was unanimously refused.



Dr. O’Connor wrote complaining of the unsanitary condition of his

house in The Square, which was a source of danger to himself and the

other residents in the locality.



The Chairman said they could not very well ask the landlord to do

anything pending the putting down of a sewer from the National School

to the old mill stream, as at present there was no outlet for Dr.

O’Connor’s.



The matter was referred to the sanitary committee, the members of

which were urged to have the sewer constructed without delay.



The Clerk asked what water rent would be put on Mr- Dissette who was

carrying on a mineral factory in Church Street, in the house recently

occupied by Daniel Guerin, whose rent was 10s a year. Mr. M’Carthy

proposed that a rent of £3 per year be charged in future. Mr. Dissette

would use more water than ten ordinary houses. Mr. Cahill seconded.

Mr. Mulvihill considered £3 too high, and thought they should not

handicap Mr. Dissette in starting his industry. He proposed that it be

given for £2, Mr. Leahy seconded. On a division, the rent was fixed at

££. It was decided that the water rents be collected half-yearly for

the future. Mr. Mulvihill asked if Mr. Fealy would get a cheque for

the coals he had delivered. The Chairman said the matter was in the

hands of the Finance Committee, who refused to sign a cheque, and the

board was consequently powerless. Adjourned.

Page 406 of 669

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