Old Galway
THE HAT FACTORY
by Tom Kenny
In the 1930s, Ireland instructed all of its consul officials in Europe no to issue visas to Jewish refugees, but the country was also in a state of economic stagnation at the time and Seán Lemass realized that new industries would help the country. An Irish Jewish businessman, Marcus Witztum offered to help him and went to Paris, met Henri Orbach there who owned a small hat factory and suggested he open a business in Ireland, a safer place for people of the Jewish persuasion than continental Europe. Orbach agreed.
And so, the Hat Factory came to Galway and started life in Eyre Square. Shortly afterwards another factory called Western Hats opened in Castlebar and later Hirsch Ribbons in Longford. All three factories came thanks to the efforts of Marcus Witztum who was deeply involved in their setting up. In doing so, he brought a number of experts over from Europe to help train the staff. All of these ‘experts’ happened to be Jewish who otherwise would probably have been caught up in the Nazi murder machine and this resulted in Whitztum being dubbed “An Irish Schindler”.
IN MEMORY OF CRIOSTÓIR
by Tom Kenny
A ballad is a form of verse, a poem or a song that tells a story. It can be considered either poetic or musical and is written in short stanzas with a rhyming system abcb. These forms of folk songs were often an anonymous retelling of local legends, stories of particular events or characters.
Criostóir Mac Gearailt was a storyteller who penned hundreds, if not thousands of ballads. He wrote tributes in this form primarily about sportsmen and women and their extraordinary achievements. Local events sparked his interest too, it might be a lament for the closing down of a business, a celebration of a new service, an indication of some praiseworthy aspect of a person. He always suggested a traditional tune that his ballad could be sung to …. ‘Galway Bay’, ‘The Mountains of Mourne’, ‘The Boys of Wexford’, ‘In Oranmore in the County Galway’ etc. As you read them, you can almost hear him humming along to the air as he wrote. In 1985, he published a collection of these works in book form, fittingly titled “Tributes”. If he wrote about you, he would simply hand you the typed ballad probably with an introduction to it, with his compliments.
DONAL MAC AMHLAIGH
by Tom Kenny
Donal Mac Amhlaigh was born on Cappagh Road in Barna on December 10th, 1926. His father James was a native of Kinvara who fought with the East Clare Brigade of the IRA in the War of Independence and who later joined the Irish Army. His mother was an Irish speaker, Mary Condon from Cappagh. They had 3 sons and a daughter in family. Pádraic Ó Conaire was a regular visitor to their house.
His dad’s army career meant he was moved occasionally so Donal’s education began at the St. Vincent De Paul School in Limerick where his teacher, a Miss Hanrahan gave him a love of the Irish language. He went to Scoil Fhursa in Galway (there is a plaque in his honour on the wall of the school) and to the Bish before going to the C.B.S in Kilkenny. He left school at 16 so as to help the family income, worked for a time in a woollen mill in Kilkenny, then on his uncle’s farm in Cappagh and for a summer in the Rockville Hotel in Salthill. He loved Knocknacarra at that time because, as he said, everybody over 40 years old was very comfortable speaking Irish to him.
LEISURELAND, 50 YEARS OLD
by Tom Kenny
The front page story on the first ever issue of the Galway Advertiser in 1970 was about the announcement of plans for a proposed new leisure centre to be situated between Revagh Road in Rockbarton and the Promenade.
On this day 50 years ago, June 29th 1973, the centre was formally opened by the President of Ireland, Erskine Childers. There had been some debate about what it should be called and eventually it would be known as Leisureland. It was only a section of the original plan but it was the first large-scale recreational facility in the west of Ireland. It featured an indoor heated swimming pool, a learner’s pool, a solarium, a multi-purpose hall, a cartoon cinema, outdoor and indoor amusements. Bórd Fáilte were the main investors with a significant input by Galway Corporation. The complex was designed by Simon Kelly and cost about £1 million pounds.
The swimming pool meant that swimmers in Galway could now swim and train all the year round. There was some disappointment in swimming circles that the pool was not 50 metres long, in other words, Olympic standard, and there was a rumour around at the time that for just £11,000 extra, they could have extended it. The pool was thirty three and a third metres long and of international standard. Indeed, a number of international galas have taken place there since as well as many national and local competitions.
THE BOY’S CLUB, 83 YEARS OLD AND STILL GOING
by Tom Kenny
Our Lady’s Boys Club was founded in 1940 by Fr. Leonard Shiel S.J. “to help young lads, flung into work at an early age when their characters are most easily formed for good or for ill. The Club hopes to play its small part in the present day effort all over Ireland to help poor boys to be more reliable and useful members of society and a credit to their faith”.
It has succeeded beyond Fr. Shiel’s wildest dreams.
Our President, Michael D. Higgins in a speech some years ago, said “Like so many successful community initiatives, Our Lady’s Boys Club was built on a vision, a spirit of participation and a will to make a genuine and positive difference to the community. When Fr. Shiel established a club in 1940, I doubt that he realised just how enduring his vision would be. Today, the Club is the largest youth club in the country and had woven its way into the fabric of community life in Galway, welcoming members from many neighbourhoods including Shantalla, Westside, Ballinfoile, Rahoon, Corrib Park and Newcastle.
PEARSE STADIUM, PÁIRC AN PHIARSAIGH
by Tom Kenny
Sixty six years ago this week, on June 16th 1957, Pearse Stadium opened.
The idea of the park originated with a meeting under the chairmanship of the Mayor on the 29th of April 1952, with six members of the Corporation, six members of the Chamber of Commerce and six members of the GAA, with the assistance of Ralph Ryan. A site of 17 acres was selected and terms of purchase successfully negotiated. The site was part of the original estate of Rockbarton conveyed by deed poll by the Commissioners of the Encumbered Estates in 1852. It later became part of the Hennessy Estate then the Corporation bought it for £3,000.
THE LEAVING CERT
by Tom Kenny
The Leaving Certificate, also known as Gaeilge as The Árd Teist, was first established in this country in 1924 and the first papers were marked in 1925. It is the final examination in the secondary school system and also serves as the University matriculation exam. There was a time when these two were separate exams. It is for the senior school cycle, most of the participants are 16 – 19 years old, although an increasing number of mature students now sit the tests.
The exams take place annually, usually at this time of the year (invariably accompanied by beautiful weather). Preparations normally take two years and repeating is permitted. The student can choose to sit a Pass paper or an Honours paper, the standard of questions being higher in the latter. In the old days, if you achieved 40% in a subject, you passed and 60% earned you an honours. Today, papers are graded from H1 down to H8.
SCOIL ÍDE, SEVENTY YEARS A-GROWING
by Tom Kenny
On this day seventy years ago, June 1st 1953, Scoil Íde opened for the first time. In 1952, the Sisters of Jesus and Mary purchased Allen’s Hotel on Dalysfort Road which had been run by John and Angela Allen. It had at one time been known as Daly’s Fort House, a high-class hotel run by a Mrs. Galbraith. She sold it to a Mr. Miller of Persse’s Distillers who used it as a private house and he sold it on to the Allens. Many will remember it as the place where Bruce Woodcock, the English Heavyweight champion, trained for his famous fight with Máirtín Thornton.
The Sisters converted the building into a school. Two of their congregation, Mother Mary Immaculata and Sister Celine, were given the job of setting it up. They lived in Spires House in Shantalla and every morning, Professor McKenna would give them a lift to Taylors Hill and they would walk from there, across the fields to the school where they were joined by teacher Miss Celia Burke.