I often had to correct visitors who believe that Thomas Francis Meagher's body is interred in Faithlegg. Yet the family tomb is there, as are three other family plots, that I know of, around the world. But Thomas alas is in none of them. He's the man with four...
One of the oldest grave stones in Faithlegg belongs to a family named Fortune. But the headstone creates a bit of a stir...it gives two dates of death for the lady...1745 & 1746 The headstone reads; Here lyeth ye body of ANSTAS FORTUNE alias QUINLAN...
Faithlegg Graveyard always raises mixed emotions in me. I still find it hard to read my brothers headstone for example, without being carried back in time to the afternoon he drowned. Then I look at "Big Patsy" Doherty's headstone, with its carving of the...
Today's blog is a summary of the recent walk conducted to celebrate Heritage Week 2015 and is a narrative of the afternoon and what we encountered. Welcome to Cheekpoint and to this years heritage week event, which is hosted by the Cheekpoint Fishing Heritage...
One of the industries that grew up in Cheekpoint in conjunction with the Mail Packet station was textiles. Nothing now remains, except some brief mentions of the trade and local lore. It appears that the Cheekpoint venture was part of an initiative in the...
The salmon driftnet season traditionally closed on August 15th, and it was always brought mixed feelings. Grateful to have a break after the rigor of 24hr a day fishing, but conscious that within a week you'd be longing to be back into the familiar rhythm of...
In an era of rapid and perhaps instant communication, it might come as a surprise to younger readers to realise that in the past, communication was a slow and very often weather dependent activity, involving stage coach, ships and very hardy individuals. The Mail...
We briefly met with the Owen's last week, when I introduced the forthcoming walk for Heritage Week; Cheekpoint's Industrial Age. This week I wanted to take a closer look at the family. The Owen's came to Cheekpoint in 1787 to run the Mail Packet Station....
In 1785 Cornelius Bolton along with other investors bought out the Mail Packet Station, then based at Passage East and moved it upriver to Cheekpoint, Co Waterford. Around this business, Bolton built a vibrant industrial village. The man who came to run...
Daisybank house, was a derelict three story Georgian mansion when I was growing up. Its only saving grace to me with its shattered windows and crumbling brickwork was an old orchard at its rear, with some very flavorsome apples. A visit to those apple...
It is reputed that one of the earliest of the parishes to be founded under the Norman system was at Faithlegg. The lands (some 4000 acres [including 199 at Cheekpoint and 353 at Faithlegg]) were granted by Henry II to Aleward Juevinis. Henry had landed at...
One of my earliest memories as a child was my mother bringing us off on a Sunday afternoon to visit our Nanny in the Russianside. It was a smaller place then. From the cross roads you passed the homes of Martin Nugent, Joanie Hanlon, Andy Lannen and Nellie...
Cheekpoint is both a village and a townland, and for many's the year there has been two explanations to the origins of the name, a practical, geographical placename and what is probably best described as a romantic version. The name Cheekpoint derives from...
I was never great at school. But one specific class I can remember as a highlight was a lesson one day on placenames. I don't recall if it was a planned session, or if it was an aside. But Michael White who was principal at Faithlegg was talking about how important...
A few years back a group of scientists were gathered and asked what was the 20th Century's greatest invention. Out of an eventual list of 100, refrigeration topped the bill. You might think the kitchen fridge is a relatively modern development, and I guess you'd be...
About forty years ago I went with Michael Duffin and his mother Catherine to have our hair cut by Mandy over in Woodlands Avenue. We got the hair cut first and then we went off for a stroll while Catherine received the full attention. Wandering along the avenue we...
One of the enduring memories of elections in our house was my fathers quip "vote early, vote often". Whether it was a local, national, EU, presidential or referendum, Bob would be wound up with the run in to the day and was positively buzzing when it came to the...
I read recently that some children do not leave home until 27 years of age. Although this has less to do with protection and more to do with finances, spare a thought for the child sailors of the 18th & 19th C. It will comes as no surprise of course to anyone who...
Paddy Moran was an old school fisherman. He was a brother to my Grandmother, Maura Moran, and I knew from her, just how hard she, Paddy and her other brothers worked the river from their earliest years. With the arrival of better nets, outboard motors and relatively...
Today marks one year of blogging about my community and giving a sense of just how rich this area is in terms of history, heritage and culture. A theme that runs through the writing is how the ordinary becomes a little more, once you take the time to look more...
I've often mentioned that the Cheekpoint of my childhood was a very different place to what it is today. One of those major differences was an active Herring fishery which was not just water based, but also provided land based employment. Back then the herring...
I first began fishing eels commercially in the spring of 1984. Pat Moran asked me to join himself and Gerry Boland as the previous year had been so hectic. I jumped at the chance and in the next few days there was a lot of hustle and bustle in preparing...
On a recent walk, an American visitor asked me if any royalty sailed up the harbour, rather smugly I listed off several, though I said, these were only the ones I knew about. Probably several others had done so, and countless ordinary souls making the city and the...
For some reason, I have had, for as long as I can remember, this idyllic notion of the workings of a watermill. It includes a gushing stream of water, the clanking of gears turning in a fine stone building, the dust escaping from corn sacks as they are spilled into a...
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