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The Gas Men of Maryborough
THE GAS MEN OF MARYBOROUGH John Dunne On the evening of Thursday, January 21, 1858, the town of Maryborough (Portlaoise since 1920), was, for the very first time, lit by gas. But why did this landmark event, this ‘brilliant spectacle’, [1] in the town’s history come as a surprise to the very Company set up to bring gas to the town? Let’s go back to when, so to speak, the first flame was lit… The first piped-gas street lamps appeared in Dublin in 1825. Almost thirty years later, in November 1854, local solicitor Thomas Turpin, ‘who always takes the lead in any matter for the improvement of Maryborough’, [2]…
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Edward ‘Ned’ Despard
Check out the Nov/Dec 22 edition of History Ireland for a very interesting article by our Society President Teddy Fennelly. Teddy explores the history of the fascinating Edward Despard of Coolraine Co. Laois.
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ULYSSES IN LAOIS by John Dunne
ULYSSES IN LAOIS by John Dunne Since it was first published in Paris in 1922, James Joyce’s Ulysses continues to have a curious sort of dual existence. On one hand, it is regularly proclaimed the Greatest Modernist Novel: on the other, it is one of the Most Unfinished Masterpieces of World Literature; year after year, copies are bought with the best of intentions but, often as not, end up languishing in bookcases, unsold in charity shops, yellowing behind the sofa, even – and I have seen this – strategically positioned and forgotten about on expensive shelves and coffee tables. But seldom read from beginning to end. On the simplest level,…
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John Canon O’Hanlon – the man and his legacy by Teddy Fennelly
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 his origins and her people. His huge literary output remains his greatest legacy. When one considers that he also led a busy life as a parish priest and was never found wanting in the performance of his duties, his stamina and capacity for work is quite mind-boggling. Dr. Walsh, the last of the three Archbishops…
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The cholera pandemic of 1832 – presented a similar threat to Ireland as Covid 19
The cholera pandemic of 1832 – presented a similar threat to Ireland as Covid 19 Teddy Fennelly tells the story Ireland is in almost complete shutdown in an all-out attempt to stop the spread of the deadly virus, Covid 19. The worldwide range of the epidemic is unprecedented in modern times. We live in the hope that the country will be able to turn the tide on this worrying and invisible threat very soon and with the least possible ill consequences. Almost two hundred years ago Ireland was hit by a similarly devastating pandemic and, unfortunately the country was ill-prepared and had much less resources to cope with the onslaught.…
