Pages Past: Landslide at Horsleap; and Finea telephone
Evening Herald, April 28 1894
Landslide at Horsleap
What the Evening Herald described as “an unusual spectacle” was witnessed at Gageboro between Horsleap and Clara a few days earlier. The report stated that an area of bog measuring a mile and a half square was seen in motion, passing slowly but steadily onwards.
“Adjoining was a large tract at a lower level, part of it having been cut away. This was filled with the great rolling mass, but strange to say, not from the surface. It was driven upwards from the force of the pressure below, and the process continued until an enormous mound was formed resembling an old rath, but ten times the size of the largest of these ancient relics.
“The movement then ceased.
“The site of the original bog where the area of disturbance was first noticed was left bare with its level reduced by eight or ten feet, and the consequence is that the farmers who previously got their supply of turf there can no longer do so as the turbary is entirely gone. The sufferers of this singular occurrence are farmers Keeley, Grennan, Curley, Gaffey, Wadsworth, McGrath and Roche.”
Westmeath Examiner, April 30, 1904
Rural Library Proposal
A public meeting was held at the Mansion House in Dublin on Friday, April 29, with a view to discussing the establishment of a public library network in rural Ireland. An account of the meeting was carried in the Westmeath Examiner the next day.
A Stephen Gwynne, speaking at the meeting, said the chief object of the association, at first, should be to influence rural councils, and more especially parish priests and schoolmasters, who are the leaders of thought in many districts.
Very often, he said, the knowledge of half a county was practically distributed by a few people, and if it were only to place a better class of reading at the disposal of such people, the association would be doing a good work.
Continuing, he said that all through the country districts there existed a hunger for knowledge, but very often it was that worst form of hunger when the hungry were unaware of their hunger. The association would not only have to distribute the food in the matter of reading, but they would also, in many cases, have to create an appetite, he said.
At the end of the meeting, resolutions were passed unanimously inaugurating the association, defining its objects, management, etc, limiting its duration to three years, and fixing the amount of the annual subscription for members at five shillings.
Westmeath Examiner, May 2 1914
Finea Telephone
The age of technology was arriving in Finea in 1914, it appears. The Westmeath Examiner had an item stating that the line of telephone communication to Finea was now almost complete and when completed would certainly prove a most beneficial advantage to the district.
The report said that Mr Patrick Fitzgerald, Finea, vice-chairman of the Coole Rural District Council, deserved much credit for his part in establishing this communication which would serve not only Finea District but the business people in Granard, Cavan, Mullingar and elsewhere.
The report went on to say that it was upon Mr Fitzgerald’s initiative that the project was successfully carried through by Coole Rural District Council. Even should the telephone not prove self-supporting, which undoubtedly it would, the burden on any individual ratepayer would not amount to 7d in 7 years and should that individual only have received one telegram there would have been 9d charge to pay heretofore.
This, the report concluded, was only one example of the advantage of the arrival of telephone communication in Finea.
Westmeath Examiner, May 3 1924
Trout Culture in Westmeath
The annual general meeting of the Lough Owel and Lough Ennel Preservation Association was held at the Greville Arms Hotel on Friday April 25 with a good attendance present.
Mr RJ Downes, Russellstown, was elected chairman of the association. Mr P Hand was elected treasurer and Mr H Weir, MPSI, was the new honorary secretary. Various matters in connection with the preservation of the lakes were dealt with, and the meeting decided to take active steps to prevent illegal netting on the lakes during the coming summer season.
The meeting heard that the previous year there had been good fishing on Loch Ennell during the dapping season, and this was due in great measure to the fact that the bays were protected from the poachers who, in former years, netted out the good rising trout.
The association also decided to devote most of their funds to the work of restocking.
The meeting heard that satisfactory progress had been made with the work of the hatcheries, and it was a source of much pleasure to the members to know that that year the association had been able to turn into the stream about 40,000 trout fry, 10,000 of those fry were alevins and were the result of a very successful experiment with the ova taken from local spawners. The balance was obtained from other fisheries. The successful stripping and hatching of ova obtained from Loch Ennell trout ought to give a great impetus to the work of trout culture in Westmeath, members heard. It was also stated that the system being used was one that had been adopted and developed with great success in other countries, and that there was no doubt that it should prove equally successful in the Westmeath lakes.
Westmeath Examiner, April 28 1934
English, Irish or Esperanto
Linguistic tribulations were occupying members of the Committee of Agriculture at their recent meeting, The Westmeath Examiner reported.
At the meeting, the secretary called the attention of the members to the manner in which Miss Hogan submitted her monthly reports, stating that the reports could not be dealt with as they were not in legible form, being written partly in English and partly in Irish, “or words that could not be read”.
Mr Finnerty said he thought there was an order made before that Miss Hogan send in her reports in English, as well as in Irish. He, however, was not an Irish scholar, but entitled to know what was in the reports.
The newspaper stated that the reports in question were submitted and examined by several members of the committee. Mr Pilkington, after examining them, said he thought they were in a mixture of English and Esperanto. Mr Finnerty said that they should insist on getting the reports in a proper legible form. After looking over the reports, Mr Gavin commented that they were in Irish, not Esperanto, as Mr Pilkington stated. Mr Grenham commented that Miss Hogan should be asked to furnish proper reports in English and, if she wished, also in Irish.
Mr Grenham’s motion was passed and the secretary was directed to write to Miss Hogan and ask her to send her reports in future entirely in English, and then, if she wished, in Irish also. A few minutes later, Mr Gavin said he wished to make it clear the reports were in Irish, not Esperanto, as suggested by Mr Pilkington.
Westmeath Examiner, April 29, 1944
Foxes causing annoyance
Foxes were causing some annoyance to the members of the agricultural community. It emerged at a meeting of the Westmeath Agricultural Committee. The members were discussing the means of putting into operation a scheme for the destruction of foxes.
The committee secretary, Mr M Corcoran, said there was a letter from John Semple of Irishtown complaining of the destruction of his fowl by foxes. Colonel Winter, Master of the Foxhounds, came before the Committee and said he was afraid he had not much progress to report. They had succeeded in doing away with 34 foxes, of which no claim was made against the committee.
On the proposition of Mr J Leavy, seconded by Mr J Grenham, it was decided that the scheme be put into operation for three months and limited to garda station areas of Delvin, Killucan and Kinnegad.
In the same issue of the paper, it was reported that at Masses in the Cathedral of Christ the King in Mullingar the previous Sunday, an appeal had been made to farmers to sow an extra row of potatoes as a contribution to the Red Cross drive. A similar appeal had been made at Ballymore on Sunday by Mr Michael Kennedy, TD, who said that if possible, farmers should help in raising Westmeath’s contribution to the Red Cross £500 fund. .
Westmeath Examiner, May 1, 1954
Father Matthew Feis
Twenty-five young singers from the age of 15 to 18 years competed in the junior solo competition at the Father Matthew Feis the previous week, a report in the Westmeath Examiner stated. The local interest was that in that competition, the young Mullingar soprano Kathleen Hynes tied for second place, coming in just one mark behind the winners, first place having also been tied. The maximum mark in the competition was 95, Kathleen’s total was 88; the winners had 89 points each. The remarks of the adjudicator on the report sheet read, “A nice lyrical voice did this song well. Good diction, good pace. She colours her voice very well.”
The newspaper commented that credit should go to Sheila McCormack for her painstaking care in preparing Miss Hynes for the competition. The talented young singer had, the report continued, a Dublin engagement coming up shortly.
Irish Independent, May 1, 1964
Public health nurse sought
An advert was placed by Westmeath County Council in the Irish Independent for a public health nurse. The post was permanent, whole-time and pensionable and the salary was given as “£670 x £17 - £772 x £13 - £785 per annum”. Further particulars and application forms were available from the secretary of the County Council at the County Clinic.
Separately, in the Westmeath Independent of May 2, 1964, a small piece clarifying the number of drivers jailed for drunk driving was carried. It stated that Senator Gerry Lestrange had declared at a meeting of the county council that nobody had been sent to prison in the last few years for drunken driving. This, however, was contradicted by Michael Kennedy, TD, at the April meeting of the council. Kennedy had a letter from the Minister for Justice to back his contradiction up. The letter stated that since April 1, 1963, 21 persons had been convicted of drunken driving, of whom eight were sentenced to imprisonment without the option of a fine. Two of them were still in prison.
Westmeath Examiner, April 27, 1974
School bus strike
Between 40 and 50 children from the Multyfarnham area were unable to attend school because of a school bus strike which had begun before the Easter holidays and was still continuing.
A report on the situation was carried in the Westmeath Examiner following a protest meeting held in Multyfarnham over the issue.
As a result of the meeting, a telegram was drafted for transmission to the Minister for Education, the Minister for Transport and Power, and to CIE. It stated that the parents of Multyfarnham were protesting against the inconvenience caused by the bus strike to parents and children and that they were concerned over the possibility of physical and moral danger to children occasioned by accepting gifts from strangers. It concluded by calling for an immediate meeting of the parties concerned to resolve the dispute. The report stated that the strike related to a grievance by the bus drivers over their salaries. They had been offered an increase of £3 but rejected it as they wanted an increase of £6. Approximately 50 parents attended the meeting.
Westmeath Examiner, May 5, 1984
Apprentices doing well for themselves
Westmeath apprentices were doing very well for themselves in the national apprenticeships competitions, a report in the Westmeath Examiner of May 5, 1984 revealed.
Top of the list was Padraig Daly, a fourth year apprentice bricklayer from Rochfortbridge who had reached the final stages of the competition for the second year running. He was the son of Mr and Mrs Finian Daly.
Nineteen year old Padraig, who played badminton with his local club and football and hurling with St Mary’s and St Brigid’s respectively, was currently attending day-release classes at Bolton Street College and was employed by Pat Loughrey, Daingean, County Offaly.
Other Westmeath apprentices who reached the final stages of the competition were Seamus O’Reilly, Water Street, Castlepollard, an apprentice fitter with Bord na Mona, Joseph Gilhooly, 14 O’Growney Terrace, Mullingar who was an apprentice in industrial wiring with Tarkett Ltd, Mullingar; Brendan Mulligan, Balroe, Ballynacargy, an apprentice with ESB in Athlone; Philip Shields, Hilltown, Ballymanus, an apprentice cabinetmaker with Fitzgerald Kitchens, Kells, County Meath.
Westmeath Examiner, May 12, 1984
It’s 40 years since GAA Centenary Year
The year 1984 saw the GAA across Ireland mark the centenary of its foundation. Westmeath marked the beginning of its celebrations with what was described in the Westmeath Examiner as “a simple yet very effective ceremony” at Cusack Park, Mullingar, on Sunday, May 6.
Said the writer: “The occasion was marked by the participation of practically every section of the GAA in the county in an outstanding and colourful parade through the main streets of Mullingar.”
The Centenary Committee, under the chairmanship of Denis Coyne, was delighted that they were blessed with good weather for the event, and so the streets were lined to view the colourful parade, which commenced at the Fair Green.
The clubs, led by the Mullingar Town Band, made their way through the town to Cusack Park. On each club’s entry to the playing field at Cusack Park, a brief history of the club was delivered by the County PRO, Paddy Flanagan, assisted by centenary committee member Michael Maguire, Tyrrellspass.
At the park there was music by the Raharney School Band, the Tang Pipe Band, the Athboy Accordion Band, as well as Mullingar Town Band.
An ecumenical service was held, and readings were delivered by Reverend FS Gilmor, Rector of All Saints, and Seamus Ó Faoláin, of the Westmeath GAA Culture Committee. Bidding prayers were recited by four young players, Paddy Walsh of the Downs, Caroline Nooney, St Munna’s, John Molloy, Milltown and Nora Whelehan, The Downs.
On the completion of the ecumenical service, a centenary flag was borne across the field by Niall Purcell, Mark Quinn, Dara Garry, and Paul Moore.
This was then hoisted by the Westmeath GAA President, Peter Geraghty, and a special commemorative plaque was unveiled by Rev Ulic Troy, OFM, chairman of Westmeath GAA County Board GAA.
The plaque, which was made by Michael Egan of Kilbeggan, was embedded on the wall of the dugout on the northern side of the pitch.
Guests at the celebrations included former county board officers and players and civic dignitaries led by the Minister for Defence, Patrick Cooney, TD. Alongside him were Mary O’Rourke, TD, Senator Helena McAuliffe-Ennis and Senator Donie Cassidy, George Allen, chairman of Westmeath County Council, Oliver Buckley, chairman of Mullingar Town Commissioners and Cieran Temple, chairman of Athlone UDC.