The bumper volume of essays (list below) in Offaly and the Great War (Offaly History, 2018) can now be accessed free online at www.offalyhistory.com thanks to the Decade of Centenaries. The book of 28 essays is also available in hardcopy from Offaly History for just €20. In all over 50 articles free to download. Go to the Decade of Centenaries on the offalyhistory.com website.
When the great historian and first ‘telly don’ A.J.P. Taylor published his short history of the First World War just in time for the remembrance days of over fifty years ago he wrote that the war reshaped the political order in Europe. That its memorials stood in every town and village and that the real hero of the war was the Unknown Soldier.
The Civil Parish of Geashill is the largest Parish in Offaly, and contains 74 townlands. As well as fine fields and bog land – dark, shale and lime mudstone, are just some of the materials you will find in its bedrocks.
The Parish is part of the ancient territory of “Ui Failghe of the O’Connor chiefs”. It contains some of the oldest remains of castles and is rich in history. From ancient sites such as Enclosures and Ringforts. Sadly many of them have been lost due to nature elements and neglect. It contains the town land of Cappyroe which borders the Grand Canal line, it is the 293rd largest townland in Co. Offaly and in Irish is Ceapach Aodha Rua, translation meaning Plot of Land[2].
Map of the townlands from Ballycommon to Tullamore. There are over 1,000 townlands in Offaly. See townlands.ie for more.Your walk along the canal from Ballycommon will see you visit Cappyroe, Clonmore and Cappancur
In 1911 Cappyroe had one of the lowest concentration of houses in the area, during this period the household returns and ancillary, shows us that the population decreased from 106 in 1841 to 21 in 1911. There were 6 houses on record, all of all of Private Dwelling, with all inhabited, with classes of houses between 1st and 2nd . Age of occupiers ranging from 1-80. Here are the families that occupied these buildings during this time:
As we make our way along the line, we come to lock 22nd, which was previously mentioned in the last series of “East to West”. The 23rd Lock is followed close behind. A smooth and clear pathway can be found, making it easy to walk or cycle along the way. Coming up we see the 24th Lock. This lock is located near the former Celtic Canal Cruisers. We are preparing an article on this canal attraction, 1974-2004.
(08. Celtic Canal Cruisers / Image Source/ Offaly History). We are preparing a blog on this important cruise line. Can you help with material?
Clonmore (Cappancur), in the Civil Parish of Geashill, in the Barony of Geashill, in the County of Offaly. The Irish name for Clonmore is Cluain Mór meaning Great Field.
Clonmore is the site of a few known churches the Balleenlawn Church that stood until the early 19th century. Its Foundation, was discovered in 1942. It also contained an old graveyard that is still intact today[3].
In 1911 Clonmore had 26 houses in the area, during this period the household returns and ancillary, shows us that the population decreased from 220 in 1841 to 101 in 1911. There was 26 houses show on record all of all of Private Dwelling, with all inhabited, with classes of houses between 1st, 2nd and 3rd. Age ranging from 1-80. Here are some of the families that occupied these buildings during this time:
(15.Coachman, source Travel and Transport in Ireland, Edited by Kevin B.Nowlan)
With the construction of the Grand Canal it provided a better connection to reach different townlands around the country. With many place still not connected by waterway, the coach services provided that connect for passengers to reach their final destinations.
As we make our way out of the Geashill Civil Parish, we reach the 25th Lock and Just at Digby Bridge, here we can see just the spire of Tullamore’s Catholic church. Close by is the 26th lock, the barony bridge with its passage under the canal and on to Tullamore. More on Wednesday.
Flyboats on the canal in the 1830s, similar to the later design of the Celtic Cruisers fleet of the 1970s
[1] See “Safe Harbour, The Grand Canal at Edenderry” Mairead Evans & Therese Abbott” Topic Newsppapers Ltd, P22-23
[2] Offaly thought Time & Its Townlands. Thomas Lee. Pub: Ottait Publishing p173
[3] Offaly thought Time & Its Townlands. Thomas Lee. Pub: Ottait Publishing p173
Michael Hoy was born in Daingean county Offaly in the year 1834 to William Hoy and Rosanna Concasey. His father died when he was a young boy. In 1853 he emigrated with his mother, brother William, and two sisters Rosanna and Elizabeth, settling in Brooklyn. His older brothers Joseph and John, along with another sister Mary had gone to America a few years before. Michael Hoy learned the stone cutters trade in Brooklyn. In 1854 the family moved to Cooperstown, New York, which is two hundred miles north of the city. Young Hoy worked in his trade for one more year before returning to Brooklyn. In 1857 he went to Minnesota, settling in the town of Saint Anthony. At this time Saint Anthony had a few scattered houses on the east bank of the Mississippi river. He followed his trade and the same year of his arrival he cut stone for the building of the State University.
The Grand Canal was constructed as far as Philipstown/ Daingean in 1797 providing the town with an opportunity to import goods at lower transport costs and to export turf and agricultural products to the city of Dublin.
Some immediate benefits came with the canal such as the large house (formerly Scully’s) on the western side of the Molesworth bridge and later the canal warehouse on the eastern side. This was described on the Killaly 1806-7 map as the collector’s house. The trade and stores business moved on to Tullamore exclusively for the six years pending the completion of the access to Shannon Harbour in 1804. The need for a canal hotel was eliminated with the building of the Tullamore hotel in 1801-2 and that at Shannon Harbour in 1806.
The line of the canal ran from Toberdaly to Killaderry parish, the townland of Castlebarnagh Big and into the town of Daingean. From there is passed on to Ballymullen and Ballycommon. As with Tullamore the canal came in on the north side of the town cutting through cabins in its way to the south of the military barracks and gallows hill. In the estate landscape that it was in the 1700s to the 1900s the big houses of Mount Briscoe, Clonearl and Kilduff were to the north and Springfield, Mount Lucas and the lost demesne of River Lyons to the south. The latter was almost devoid of trees unlike the well planted Clonearl and the planted avenue to the house at Mount Briscoe. On the southwest was the old crossing point of Ballinagar heading on to Tullamore.
Killaderry civil parish, is part of the ancient territory of Clann Colgain which was made up of three tuaths. The parish lies in an area which splits Kilclonfert civil parish into two parts and has the town of Daingean at its Centre.
Down is in the Electoral Division of Mountbriscoe, in Civil Parish of Killaderry, in the Barony of Lower Philipstown, in the County of Offaly The Irish name for Down is Domhain meaning Deep.
Down townland has a possible burial mound here and there is also a platform ringfort in the townland which is 26 metres in diameter and enclosed by a slight bank. [1]
Today with the canal being a popular walking destination, you can see along the canals places associated with the townlands . Just outside Rhode, on the way to Edenderry, are the ruins of old windmills of the eighteenth century. These once had a wind shaft mounted in the cap (one is preserved at the Guinness brewery and was used by the Roe distillery). The wind turned the millstones in the tower below and were used to help ground grains for flour.
Seven windmills are known to have been constructed during this period in Offaly. By 1830, most of the windmills had gone out of service. The last windmill to be used was dated up to 1880, called the Fahy Windmill[1]. Tullamore had two in the eighteenth century on the hill behind O’Moore Street.
This article looks at the north Offaly towns featured in Major (later general) Vallancey’s report carried out in 1771 and designed to support the construction of the new Grand Canal line to Tullamore and the Shannon. Vallancey was then a young engineer, employed to report to the Commissioners of Inland Navigation and his findings were published in, AReport on the Grand Canal or Southern Line (Dublin 1771).[1] This report is useful as a window on some of the north King’s County (hereafter generally referred to as Offaly) towns and villages.[2]
Jane W. Shackleton’s Ireland compiled by Christiaan Corlett (Cork, 2012) is an attractive large format publication was issued by Collins Press and consists of 180 well produced photographs by Jane Shackleton. These pictures are important for the photographic record in County Offaly and mostly date to 1894.
Not surprisingly there are many pictures of mills in this book and there are about ten pictures of Offaly interest. Jane Shackleton started taking pictures in the 1880s and made several tours on the Shannon and along the Grand Canal and Barrow lines. These waterways photographs contribute greatly to the history of the canals and the great mills which were associated with river locations. Many of these were in fact owned by Quaker industrialists. Like other interested women of the period Jane Shackleton was a member of the Royal Society of Antiquaries (RSAI) and took photographs of some of their tours including that of June 1904 around Ireland. Midleton Biddulph, the amateur photographer and retired army officer of Rathrobin near Tullamore was also on this trip and some of his pictures survive and have been published as Rathrobin and the two Irelands; the photographs of Middleton Westenra Biddulph, 1900–1920 (Tullamore, 2021). Corlett informs us that the Shackleton collection consists of 1,000 lantern slides and 44 albums containing several thousand prints, mostly of Irish subjects. This writer had the pleasure of seeing some of the Grand Canal and the turf works at Pollagh back in the early 1970s with Richard Shackleton and Jonathan Shackleton.
Patrick Lynch and John Vaizey in their history of Guinness’s brewery in the Irish economy to 1876 observed that in England the canals followed trade while in Ireland it was hoped that trade would follow the canals. It was a hope that was only partially fulfilled as outside of Dublin the new canals served few areas of commercial or industrial importance.[1] The observation was following in the line of Arthur Young in the 1770s who had advised ‘to have something to carry before you seek the means of carriage’.[2] Yet the record of the carriage of goods on the canal was satisfactory with 500 million ton miles carried in 1800 and double that by the 1830s.[3] The Grand Canal was especially beneficial to north Offaly for the transport of stone, brick, turf, barley, malt and whiskey. All bulky goods suited to water transport. The emerging firm of Guinness also found the inland water transport system helpful to sales and market penetration. The slow movement of Guinness beer by waterway was good for product quality on arrival.
The view is about 1840 and the book 1960. There is a copy at Offaly History Centre Library
Work on the Grand Canal started in 1756 and by 1779 the first stretch of water from James’s Street to Robertstown was completed. Over the next twenty years the canal was extended to Tullamore (1798) and Shannon Harbour (1804). The six-year delay at Tullamore while resolving issues with the direction of the ‘Brosna Line’ at Tullamore facilitated the establishment of a canal hotel, stores and a harbour.
The line from Tullamore to the Shannon is known as the Brosna route. Last week we looked at it from the terminus at Shannon Harbour and followed Donal Boland’s well illustrated trip from the Shannon to Tullamore. The canal had reached Daingean in 1797 and Tullamore in 1798. It was then the terminus for six years with trade opened to Shannon Harbour in 1804 and fully in 1805. During that period the directors of the Grand Canal Company had considered three options for completing the canal to the Shannon:
1. To lock down into the River Brosna and continue as a river navigation.
2. To construct a canal alongside the Brosna.
3. To continue the canal on the same level to the south, with the possibility of an extension to Birr and the lock down steeply into the Shannon at Banagher.
The commencement of the Brosna line at Tullamore was east of the Kilbeggan bridgeand close to the first canal warehouse on Bury Quay close by this footbridge of the 1930s to 2013.Continue reading →
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