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

May Day

By

On May 1, 2024

In History, Listowel

Wild garlic in Gurtinard in April 2024

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Today is May 1 2024

Mayday, according to tradition is a day when the fairies are up to mischief. They might steal dairy produce or even children at this time so it was a time for vigilance.

May day was also the day for the hiring fair. Extra labour would be needed for saving the hay and cutting the turf so men in search of work came into town to meet up with potential employers.

“Im’ spailpín fánach fágadh mise

Ag seasamh ar mo shláinte…”

May was a time for the young and the strong. May poles, bonfires, May queens are symbols of this time of year.

In Ireland we have turned the tables and Bealtaine is a time for celebrating age and maturity.

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Thomas F. O’Sullivan

Who was Thomas F. O’Sullivan who trolled John J Foley in the pages of the Kerry newspapers for a short time in 1901?

In my opinion he is a man who should have known better. He let himself down badly in continuing to torment a popular local entertainer.

If you have ever taken one of Vincent Carmody’s informative walking tours you will have heard of this man. He was a very well respected journalist, so highly regarded that there was a suggestion that he deserved a memorial erected in his memory. His best known work is his history of the GAA

Here is what David O’Sullivan found about him.

O’Sullivan was born in Listowel in 1874. He developed an early interest in the GAA and in 1893 at the age of nineteen became secretary of the newly formed Listowel Temperance Football Team. In 1899 he became secretary of the Listowel GAA. He was appointed county secretary after the Kerry board was reformed in 1900. In 1903 he was appointed president of the Munster GAA council. He continued as secretary of the Kerry board until he moved to Dublin to write for the Freeman’s Journal in 1907. O’Sullivan held a number of positions for that newspaper, including a spell as parliamentary correspondent in London from 1916, until its demise in 1924. His Story of the GAA (1916) was the first ever history of the association.

O’Sullivan wrote several books and was a frequent contributor to The Kerryman.

John J. Foley passed away in 1941

Our thanks are due to Christan Bush, whose email sparked our interest in this local spat.

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Commemorative Seats in Town

Listowel, like many Irish towns has come up with ways of remembering local people who we loved and lost. One of these ways is the placing of seats in memory of the loved one in the park or by the river.

Here are a few I see regularly on my walk.

Along the banks of the Feale are these two;

My picture of the tree is dark and shadowed even though the day was sunny.

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A Favourite Poem

Mossbawn or Gneeveguilla, poet or storyteller, we all mine our childhood experiences for inspiration.

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A Fact

Pluto takes 248 years to orbit the sun.

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The Saga of Thade Kelly’s Hin (continued)

By

On April 30, 2024

In Listowel

St. Michael’s graveyard in April 2024

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Trees in the Park

This beautiful cherry blossom is in the pitch and putt course.

I met Denis O’Rourke on his morning walk. I photographed him against the backdrop of this magnificent tree.

This one will forever remind me of picnics in the park during Covid.

This fairly bare one is in the middle of the car park.

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Thade Kelly’s Hen and the furore that followed

You’ll have to go back to yesterday’s post for the text of the poem and what David O’Sullivan found about the poet.

David discovered a very interesting joust in the papers between Foley (poet) and OSullivan (journalist) as to the merits or demerits of the ballad of the hen.

Here is some of the marvellous commentary in the newspapers of the time, mainly The Kerry Sentinel.

In October 26 1889 Foley got a good review from his own Tralee paper,

In March 1901 at a big Listowel Concert, Foley was going grand while he was singing familiar songs by other composers. However his encore, his own composition, Thade Kelly’s Hen, drew the ire of a local journalist who was prompted to write (anonymously) to the paper. Foley took offence and replied in his own defence.

Back came ” Your Correspondent’s” reply

The boys were going at it hammer and tongs in the local paper when, from beyond the Ganges, a retired Captain O’Sullivan enters the debate. He launches his scud at the poor hin while writing at a temperature of 105 degrees

But who was this Thomas F. O’Sullivan who took such exception to poor Foley’s attempt at local humour?

Dave found that out too and I’ll tell you tomorrow.

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May Eve

In the old Celtic belief, the new day began a sunset, so Bealtaine began on May Eve, April 30. Bealtaine celebrates the return of the light after the dark days of Winter. It is the first day of summer and traditionally it was celebrated with dancing and feasting.

The Christian tradition built on the old Celtic one and May became the month of Our Lady. May altars were built and decorated and processions were held in honour of the Blessed Virgin.

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A Fact

In some parts of Ireland where a lot of store is set by folk cures, a man who had never seen his father was thought to have a cure for many ailments.

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A Poet’s Hen, a Memorial and some Gaeilge

By

On April 29, 2024

In Listowel

Centra and Circle K in Cahirdown

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Gaeilge

Irish on Listowel Streets from a TY project in 2007

Gaeilge ag Seachtain na Scríbhneoirí 2024;

An Satharn Meitheamh 1

Cúirt Filíochta: Irish language poetry event. Filí na Gaeilge ag léamh a gcuid filíochta. Eagraithe ag Matt Ó Maonaigh, cléireach na Cúirte, i gcomhar le Seachtain na Scríbhneoirí, le Glór na nGael Lios Tuathail agus le tacaíocht Oifig na Gaeilge, Comhairle Co. Chiarraí.

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Thade Kelly’s Hen

A man called John Foley lived in Tralee at the turn of the century.

“It seems John J Foley was also an established painter and decorator based in Moyderwell, Tralee. In 1901 he was aged 34 and lived with his wife Martha (Knowling) and family. He died in April 1941, obit attached listing his active part in the town’s social activities including choirs, musical and philharmonic society.(account from 1889 attached). He is buried in Rath Cemetery, Tralee. He appears to be well established performer and famed in amateur circles for his performances.” David O’Sullivan.

One hundred years later a lady called Christan Bush in Georgia in the USA is doing a doctorate on Victorian literature. Her professor encourages her to study “unknown” writers from the period. Christan loves Ireland so she decided to research an unknown Irish poet.

Here the two stories converge. John J. Foley, as well as a performer was a writer of comic verses.

Where does Listowel Connection come in?

Every now and again Jer. Kennelly sends me snippets from old newspapers. One such snippet contained an account of a concert in Listowel in 1901 at which John Foley recited his poem, Thade Kelly’s Hen.

Christan found the text of the poem in an old Cork Examiner and here it is….

Now Christan had the poem but nothing about the poet. Enter our good friend and super researcher, David O’Sullivan.

Thade Kelly’s Hen garnered an amount of notoriety in these parts between March and April of 1901 due to a correspondence in the newspapers between Foley and Thomas F. O’Sullivan of Listowel, who took exception to the poem. David has researched it all for us and I’ll bring it to you tomorrow.

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Lest We Forget

Heads bowed in reverence, a staggering 1,475 giants now stand among the fields of the British Normandy Memorial, overlooking Gold Beach. 

: S. Frères / Normandy Tourism 

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A Fact

The time around Bealtaine was regarded by the Celts as a liminal time, a time when the spirit world and the earth world were close. At this time people who were in league with evil inhabitants of the spirit world could invoke their help to harm their neighbours. This belief was known as Piseogs.

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The Pen is Mightier

By

On April 26, 2024

In Listowel

KDYS Young Centre in April 2024

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Maurice Walsh Memorial Event in 1995

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Gaeilge ar Sráideanna Lios Tuathail

A 2007 school project

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A Soldier of The Great War

This is the flag of The Royal Munster Fusiliers

Eamonn Dillon found this Listowel man on a Fusiliers internet site.

2nd LT. EDWARD JAMES KEANE, 8th BATTALION
Joined the 8th Battalion as a 2nd Lieutenant in France on the 27th of August 1916. Wounded at the Battle of Ginchy, on the Somme, 9th September 1916. We do not hear of him with the Munsters after this but a Lt. E.J. Keane was placed on the Royal Air Force ‘unemployed list’ in December 1919. His home address, on his medal index card, was ‘The Square, Listowel, Co. Kerry.’

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Ballyseede Castle

I was in Ballyseede Castle for lunch last week. What a treat to feel like an aristocrat for a few hours.

It’s a beautiful place inside and out.

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A Fact

Before Christianity came to Ireland in the 5th century A.D., the year in Ireland was divided into quarters. This is often referred to as the Celtic calendar. The first days in these quarters, February 1, May 1, August 1 and November 1 were referred to as “gale days” and were the days on which the rent had to be paid.

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Dick Spring’s Favourite Poem

By

On April 25, 2024

In Listowel, Poem

Bunting at St. Mary’s to welcome the bishop and the young people who were confirmed on Friday last

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Redevelopment of the Neodata Site

Jimmy Moloney sent us this letter…

Dear Cllr.,

Thank you for attending the briefing today on this project. As discussed, please find attached plans and particulars for the proposed Trailhead Facility at the Neo-Data site.

This project is going out for Part 8 public consultation tomorrow 24th of April 2024 – with a closing date of submissions on the 5th of June 2024.  The plans will be available online and on display at the Council Offices in Listowel.

The Project is for the development of fully accessible ‘Trailhead Facilities’ at the former Neo-Data site at Bridge Road Listowel to service members of the public,  users of the North Kerry Greenway and users of the Childer’s Park amenities. The construction of the Trailhead Facilities is funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development under the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS) and Kerry County Council (€550k). In summary the proposed facilities will provide vital infrastructure for people of all ages and abilities who enjoy walking, cycling, fishing, nature and spending time outdoors. 

Alongside this project, Kerry County Council is currently developing a masterplan for the larger riverside sites including the remainder of the Neo Data site, the Ball Alley and the Town Council Depot (see figure below). The masterplan shall examine and propose the potential other uses of the area as possible location for other outdoor recreation and sporting facilities which will add to the existing offering of sporting facilities in the surrounding area. These further sporting facilities will include for a hub building including showers and changing facilities which could also service users of the proposed Blueway on the River Feale. The development of the masterplan for the area is funded Under the Department of Rural and Community Development under Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) and Kerry County Council. 

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Regards

Micheál Lyons

SE

Capital Development Unit North

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Gaeilge ar na Sráideanna

More photos from a 2007 TY project

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Lifelines

This book was compiled by students at a Dublin secondary school. They wrote to well known people and asked them to nominate their favourite poem for inclusion in a fundraising book.

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Flowers of the Fairest

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Maurice Walsh

I’ve told you before that discovering treasures in the swap box at the library has become a delightful occurrence in my life .

(N.B. If you are a Maurice Walsh fan you won’t want to miss this;

Public lecture on the Listowel literary tradition by Dr Deirdre Serjeantson: ‘Landscape and Memory in the Novels of Maurice Walsh’. on Sunday June 2 at 3.00 p.m…part of the Writers Week programme)

Look what I found last week. Thank you to the donor.

More tomorrow

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Sad Tale from the Newspaper Archives

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Today’s Fact

In April 1843 William Wordsworth was appointed Poet Laureate to Queen Victoria.

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