Promoting the Natural and Built Heritage of County Laois
John Canon O’Hanlon (1821-1905) was an outstanding man of his generation. His story is a marvellous one of a full life, well lived. He was a man with a mission, in his search for knowledge and his sharing of it, in the spreading of the Christian message, and in his love for the country of […]
THE GAS MEN OF MARYBOROUGH by John Dunne On the evening of Thursday, January 21, 1858, the town of Maryborough, for the very first time, was lit by gas. But why did this landmark event in the town’s history come as a surprise to the very Company set up to bring gas to the town? […]
Cashel Man-A recent discovery of a Bog Body in Co. Laois by Sean Murray Remarkable Find On Wednesday 10th of August 2011, a remarkable find was uncovered on a bog in Co. Laois. A bog body was unearthed during peat milling at Cashel bog between Portlaoise and Abbeyleix by Jason Phelan, a Bord Na Mona […]
Mountmellick Lace By Bridie Dunne Since its establishment the M.D.A. has been involved in promoting and conserving the local heritage. Having received a Millennium Recognition Award funded through Area Development Management it was decided to build a museum. Further funding from Laois LEADER Rural Development Co. Ltd. was received and the Mountmellick Museum is now complete. The main focus of […]
Anti-tithe meeting at the “Great Heath” 1838. By Jackie Hyland The tithes were a church tax or levy on agricultural produce and livestock. From the middle ages, the church had received this levy, notionally one-tenth of earnings, for the support of the clergy. This tax sometimes collected in kind from agricultural produce had been converted […]
