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Anniversaries

During the weekend of 12-13 June the little town of Clifden, County Galway, marked the 90th anniversary of the first non-stop transatlantic flight. Manchester-born John Alcock and Glaswegian Arthur Brown landed at Clifden on 14 June 1919. The festivities included a display by the world’s only ‘formation‘ wing-walking team, a jet display, a visit by a replica of the Vimy Vickers bomber in which the duo made their historic flight, an Alcock and Brown exhibition curated by Connemara historian Kathleen Villiers-Tuthill, and a ground display by the Irish Defence Forces.

In 1609 Kilkenny was officially given the status of a city following the grant of a royal charter by James I. It replaced an earlier charter of 1207, issued by William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke and Lord of Leinster. There was a well-established settlement here long before the Norman invasion in the 1170s, with a stronghold of the kings of Ossory centred around the cathedral church of St. Canice. After the invasion, Kilkenny was for a time the capital of the Norman colony in Ireland. During 2009 the city has been celebrating the 400^th anniversary of this important charter.

 

Arthur Guinness was born in 1725 near Celbridge, County Kildare, and most likely learned the art of brewing from his father Richard, steward to Dr. Arthur Price, archbishop of Cashel. Richard was required to brew beer for those who worked on the archbishop’s estates. The bishop, Arthur\'s godfather, left him £100 in his will. This he used to establish a small brewery close to the family’s Leixlip home. In 1759 he left this operation to this younger brother and moved to Dublin, where he acquired a 4-acre site at St. James\'s Gate complete with brewing equipment, a stable that could accommodate up to twelve horses, and a loft capable of holding up to 200 tons of hay. With an eye to the future, on 31 December 1759 Arthur secured a lease for 9000 years at an annual rent of £45. By 1886 St. James\'s Gate was the largest brewery in the world, and now some 10 million glasses of the miraculous liquid are consumed daily worldwide. The company was a pioneer in staff welfare, paying its workers higher than normal wages and providing free meals, free medical care from a company doctor, and paid holidays. A tradition of philanthropy and community involvement  continues to the present time. Arthur Guiness served as a governor of the Meath Hospital and donated 250 guineas to the chapel schools of St. Patrick\'s Cathedral. The 250th anniversary of the founding of the St. James\'s Gate Brewery, 24 September, was designated  ‘Arthur\'s Day’, and there were celebrations across the world.

 

 
 New on-line resources

 

Ireland’s leading historical journal, the excellent History Ireland, has placed its back issues on-line. The magazine is published six times a year, and the entire series has now been made available in this way—though the most recent three issues will only be accessible to subscribers. To access, and find further information, log onto www.historyireland.com.

In late September, during Heritage Week, a project which aims to create a database of all sporting venues built in Ireland over the past 150 years was launched. It is funded by the Department of Arts, Sports, and Tourism. By logging on users will be able to upload or place information on sporting venues in their own localities, with photographs, programmes, building plans or text. Hitherto there has been no national inventory of Irish sporting heritage and it is hoped that the new database will fill major gaps in Ireland\'s sporting history and heritage. To access the new website, log on to www.irishsportingheritage.com.

 

Local history activities

 

On 26 September the Dublin City Library and Archives hosted ‘Celebrating our past—a Local History Day’. There was a wide range of talks, including papers on the Dublin City Public Libraries 1884-2009; historic sites on the ancient road from Dublin; the early history of the GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association); the 1907 Dublin International Exhibition; and a presentation ‘Stories of Dublin’ by Joe Lee, the City Council’s film-maker in residence.

 

Meanwhile, the Dun Laoghaire Borough Historical Society has published an imaginative booklet, Writers and Artists of the Borough, written by Colin Scudds. It looks at 29 writers and artists who worked or lived  (or indeed are still doing so) in Dun Laoghaire. Each has his or her individual biography, together with illustrations of typical work, and details of their achievements. It is an excellent concise reference book and should be of relevance not only to specialists and to local historians, but also to school students working on art and literature topics.