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

Tag: Cork Page 3 of 7

Elizabelle, Jazzy Halloween in Cork, Table to Tidy Towns and The North Pole express 2018

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On November 2, 2018

In Uncategorized

St. John’s from the grounds of The Seanchaí

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Stylish Shop at Halloween


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Thought for the Emigrants



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Christmas Comes Early to Cork

Brown Thomas on Patrick Street, Cork, skipped right over Halloween and went straight to Christmas. I took this photo on October 26th 2018. 

Meanwhile on the street the Jazz Festival Halloween Parade was getting started.

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Sowing the seeds of Tidy Town Success.


Before there was a Listowel Tidy Towns Committee there was TABLE.

This picture from 1994 shows Ned O’Sullivan, chairman of TABLE planting a tree in Feale Drive. He is watched by JoanMcCarthy, John O’Keeffe, Bill Walsh, Michael O’Connor, Krystal and Jackie Stack, Ann Sloan, Christy Hartnett and Eileen Worts.

TABLE was established in 1992. It was the Listowel Tidy Town Committee in all but name. It’s first work was flower baskets and tree planting and the encouragement of everyone to get behind the movement to promote  Listowel and to do well in the then Bord Fáilte Tidy Town competition.

The officers of TABLE in 1994 were Ned O’Sullivan, Cathal Fitzgerald, Mary Hanlon, Anne Hartnett, Sr. Kathleen and Louis O’Connell.

( Information and photo from Kerryman Christmas supplement December 1994.The photograph was taken by Brendan Landy)

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Planning Ahead?


You will need to book if you plan on taking the páistí to this.

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Moyvane in Mourning


DEATH took place of David Stack, Keylod, Moyvane, on 27th October 2018 peacefully at the University Hospital, Kerry. Beloved brother of the late Tommy. Deeply regretted by his loving parents Michael & Mary, brother Daniel, grandparents, uncles, aunts, relatives, neighbours and friends. Reposing Tuesday October 30th from 5pm to 7pm at his home. Requiem Mass for David was celebrated by Fr. Kevin, assisted by Fr. Brendan on Wednesday in the Church of the Assumption, Moyvane. In the choir were Mary and Selena Mulvihill and Laura Stack.


The Well, Coburg St. Cork, Beano and Storied Kerry

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On November 1, 2018

In Uncategorized

Main Street, Listowel

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Water fromThe Well

The following extract is taken from Jim Costelloe’s great rural memoir of Asdee in the 1940’s and ’50s



In the days before group water schemes were introduced to rural areas, domestic water was sourced from wells and pumps. If the water supply lasted through the summer and into October it was the sign of a good spring. I well remember trips to the local well with a white enamel bucket and trying to move the green moss on the surface of the well water so that it would not get into the bucket and make the water in the pure white bucket appear dirty.

Getting clear water into the bucket was a skilful job, between trying to avoid the green moss on the surface and the “dirt” at the bottom of the well. How wonderfully cool and refreshing a mug of water was straight from the well. There was always a mug beside the well and we often drank from it during those warm summers that we seemed to get long ago.

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Random Item


From Random Cork Stuff on Twitter


Incredible snap of Coburg St, Cork, with Shandon in the background, from 1905. (found by Joe Healy)
Random fact: Coburg was the old family name of the British royal family before they changed it to Windsor to make it sound less German.



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When I Made a Little Girl’s day



Yesterday I told you about my child minding on polling day in Ballincollig and the find we made in the charity shop.

These pictures were taken when we got home with our haul.




Oh to be nine again!



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Storied Kerry Meitheal Saturday October 27 2018




This man is Professor Joseph Sobol, professor of storytelling at the University of South Wales and, as far as we know, the only professor of storytelling . He was reluctant to claim that distinction as he sees everyone as a storyteller. He told us about story tellers who have influenced him and he told us how the story is centralised in all our lives.



At the seminar we were divided into eight districts to discuss where we go from here.


Mary Kennelly was the board member of Storied Kerry in charge of our North Kerry breakout group.



Here we are, ready to discuss the North Kerry story. We got a bit bogged down in the story of decline, pub, shop and post office closures, rural decline and rural isolation. We touched on the rambling house and festivals as a way of keeping the story alive. We decided on tourism as the most likely industry to keep our story going. we decided to meet again and to spread the word.

Group Cert English, Listowel people at Raceweek and Peggy Rorke’s cure

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On September 11, 2018

In Uncategorized

Robin on bramble Photographed by Chris Grayson

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Group Cert English paper 1963

The Group Cert was an exam that was taken by pupils in Vocational schools. There used to be a segregation of pupils into academic schools which taught subjects like Latin and Greek as well as the core subjects, and vocational schools which prepared pupils for the world of work. These vocational schools alone had an exam after two years called Group Cert. Many pupils then left to take up apprenticeships or to go into jobs.


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…And Lion




This iconic piece of stucco is being refurbished.

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Raceweek Back in the Day


Seamus Buckley’s photos show spectators watching the barmen’s race during race week sometime in the 1950s or 60s

Yesterday’s Raceweek photos brought this response from Gerard Leahy;

Great memories Mary, and you are correct, all of us emigrants cast our minds back to Listowel during Race Week. I loved seeing the old Race Cards. Stuart Stack ( Damian Stack ‘s father) used to distribute bundles of cards to us kids on Race morning and we would sell them up and down the street, the square and the pubs for a shilling, making 100% profit. So many memories of Race Week but Jimmy Hennessy, King of the Wrenboys will always stand out!!!


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Did Her Sister make a Miraculous Recovery?



I photographed this headstone in the nuns’ graveyard at the Nano Nagle Centre in Cork. The Nano Nagle Centre, which is well worth a visit, holds the graves of both  Presentation and the Ursuline sisters. It is on the site of the old South Pres. I’ll be coming back to it here because I made a second visit there recently and was fascinated by the marvellous work of preservation and information that The Presentation Sisters have done at this site which is a museum, a peaceful garden and a visitor centre. I’ll have to go back a third time because, by bad timing, I missed the guided tour by Sr. Bride Given, formerly of Listowel whom I am told is an excellent guide.

Back to this child, Anne Rorke of County Dublin who was buried with the nuns.

Dave O’Sullivan did a bit of research for us and the story he found refers to Anne’s sister but sheds enough light for us to  surmise about Anne and her fate.

The Andrew Rorke referred to in this cutting is obviously Anne’s father. In 1840 he belonged to the ‘Friends of Civil and Religious Liberty”,  was a follower of O’Connell’s and obviously wealthy enough to be able to send his daughters to the Ursuline Boarding School  in Cork to be educated.

The next newspaper story is the fascinating one.

For those of you who have difficulty reading the newspaper cutting, here is the gist of it;

Margaret (Peggy) Rorke of Tyrrellstown in Co. Dublin contracted measles while a boarder in the Ursuline Convent School in Cork. This is 1823 when an outbreak of measles could result in deaths in a crowded community. Anyway Margaret was in a bad way, couldn’t sleep, couldn’t eat,  could only sit in a chair because to lie prone would have resulted in her lungs filling up with fluid.

In this state she is attended by the nuns and is preparing for death, when they send for a famous priest and miracle worker to give her the Last Rites, then called Extreme Unction or Holy Viaticum (Bread for the journey to heaven). 

This priest is Prince Alexander Leopold Franz Emmerich of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg-Schillingsfürst


He performs the last rites on the dying girl, she spends some time in prayer and, lo and behold, she throws off the covers and walks for the first time in three months. She is completely and undeniably cured.

The newspaper comments


“Peggy Rorke’s cure will ne’er be forgot

By those who were there and those who were not”

From this story we can surmise that her sister Anne died of some complication of measles in 1815.  Because they had suffered the loss of one daughter, the family would have done anything to save the life of Margaret, including bringing a miracle priest from Germany. Daniel O’Connell may even have had something to do with it.

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Sunday at the Races


Sean and Killian were with me in Kerry for the weekend. We went to The Island on Sunday and we had a great time. Not too much luck with the horses but a good time nonetheless.

There was a great crowd in attendance.

A Glimpse of Heritage Day in Cork and a few other odds and ends

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On August 27, 2018

In Uncategorized

Christopher Grayson on Carrantuathail

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A Shady seat in Childers’ Park, Listowel in August 2018


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St. Patrick




On a pillar in St. Mary’s Listowel

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Heritage Day, August 18th 2018



In my youth the Echo boy was a strong symbol of Cork. Everyone bought the two local papers, The Cork Examiner and The Evening Echo. I can hear the distinctive cry of the paper sellers in my head as I remember them. ‘Twas far from Tommy Hilfiger gear the Echo boy was reared.

Cork puts on a great programme for Heritage Day and I was lucky enough to enjoy lots of it this year.

One of the happenings was a talk at the Carpenter’s Hall.

This was a kind of olde worlde guild hall but nowadays it’s home to other trades was well.

The trade manuals look well used.

This is an example of a dry stone wall, built without cement or mortar.

This man was the main attraction. He is an expert on stoves and he frightened the bejesus out of half those present. He told us that he takes out more stoves nowadays than he puts in.

He explained the plumbers and other stove fitters are not lining the chimneys properly. They put the flue liner directly into the outlet of the stove. There should be a length of pipe between the outlet and the liner and this pipe should have a cooling section in it. Smoke going into a flue liner should be cold he told us.

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A St. Michael’s Old Boys reunion



Below is the email I received from Ned O’Sullivan.

Hi Mary


The Class of ‘68 Re-union is all set for the weekend 7th to 9th September. We have a nice mix of events for participants with a banquet on Sat 8th in Listowel Arms Hotel. 

We are still trying to contact a few elusive colleagues who may not be aware of it. 

We’d be grateful if you would include it in listowelconnection blog which is a must read for exiles all over the world. 

Many thanks Mary,

Ned O Sullivan – on behalf of organizing committee. 

Organizing Committee. 


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Boxing for Pope Francis



Saol Ó Dheas on Twitter shared this great picture of two of the Beglley family getting ready to play for Pope Francis on Saturday August 25 2018

Mangans’ Garage, Cork City

By

On June 1, 2018

In Uncategorized

Photographer Ita Hannon took this photo of a robin at sunset…wow!

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Mangan’s Garage from John Hannon’s Archive

P.J. Kenny identified two people in this old photo. The lady is a Miss Hickey from Ballybunion and the man on the far right is Seamus Buckley from Patrick Street.

Mangan’s garage was where Spar, Market Street is now.



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ACorner of Cork



I recently chanced to spend a few minutes here. This is Opera House Square in Cork.

These signs are all over the city directing tourists to places of interest.


This last picture is the Crawford Art gallery. It is one of the many beautiful old buildings in this plaza. But unlike The Crawford most of these attractive houses are now home to garish multinational chains.

The planners have obviously imposed strict guidelines on Nandos and Starbucks but Sticky Donuts seems to have slipped under the radar. If they were to pass by now there is no fear they’d miss it!

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