For Heritage Week 2021 we have put together an exhibition on Harry Reynold’s The Balbriggan Flyer.
It can be viewed on the window of the Our Balbriggan Hub in the Square and also online at this link Harry Reynolds The Balbriggan Flyer
Category: News
“From the Liffey to The Boyne” Songs and Lore from Fingal and East Meath
Speaker: David O’Connor
Time and Date: Wednesday May 26th 8pm via Zoom
Balbriggan & District Historical Society were delighted to present our first talk via Zoom. For this we welcomed back a fond friend of the Society David O’Connor for a talk that we hope was entertaining and informative.
David O Connor is a retired ESB man from Ballyboughal who has a lifelong interest in History Folklore and Song, in particular relating to the Fingal/East Meath area. He has collected,and sings approx 40 songs of varying quality from this area. You will also be familiar with him as a former Councillor and Mayor of Fingal and for his lifelong involvement with Irish cricket. The presentation features a mix of story and songs about Bellewstown Races, The Gladstone Gaels of Balbriggan Town, Hampton Hall Green, Rachel the Ruby of Rush, Michaels Wake, and plenty more of the same ilk.
You can enjoy a recording of the presentation below
Notice of AGM December 17th
Notice of AGM December 17th, 2020 at 8pm
Due to Covid-19 Restrictions Balbriggan and District Historical Society AGM will take place online via Zoom for 2020. We apologise but this is the only option. If you would like to attend please email Balbrigganhistsoc@gmail.com before December 16th and we will send you the Zoom Meeting invitation.
Updating email addresses
If you haven’t been getting our updates and you were on our mailing list it may be because you have changed your email address, particularly if you used to be with eircom.net. If your email has changed or if would like to be added please email balbrigganhistsoc@gmail.com with Mailing list in subject line.
Commemorative Medal
Looking for ideas for Christmas presents for Balbriggan people at home or abroad? We have produced a beautiful Sack of Balbriggan Commemorative Medal which depicts a scene from the Sack of Balbriggan and comes with a booklet containing a short history. It is available to purchase by Paypal on our Website at https://balbrigganhistory.com/product/sack-of-balbriggan-commemorative-medal/ Or if you are local just ring the Society at 083 0269848 (Brian) or 087 7852644 (May) to pay by cash for local delivery or collection. We anticipate that this medal will be in huge demand as a memento of this important Anniversary so get your order in soon.
Seminar available Online and looking back at 20202020 has certainly been a very interesting year with the catastrophic effects and challenges posed by Covid-19 on an unprecedented global scale and pages of history books will be filled with it in the future. We historians of today just had to rise to the challenge of still commemorating the Centenary of the Sack of Balbriggan in an appropriate manner.e We were delighted to record or Sack of Balbriggan Commemorative Seminar with Diarmaid Ferriter as our keynote speaker. The other talks were by our own Jim Walsh relating the key events of the Sack. Giving the RIC perspective on events was visiting speaker Jim Herlihy while Frank Whearity spoke about the experiences of the Costello family who lived on Clonard Street and Brendan Matthews looked at the effect on the then thriving town of Balbriggan. Jim Glennon, former TD whose grandfather was the owner of the Gladstone Inn gave an insight into his own family’s experience. A link to all the talks is available on our website www.balbrigganhistory.com also including a new digital version of a video from 1992 of three eyewitness accounts of this tragic night.
We also commemorated the Sack of Balbriggan by laying a wreath in memory of Seamus Lawless and Sean Gibbons at a ceremony on September 20th and displayed photographs in town shop fronts as well as the entries in our schools competition.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank our members and friends for their support during this challenging year, and we hope that you and all your family and friends are keeping well and safe. The Society can be contacted at balbrigganhistsoc@gmail.com or on our website www.balbrigganhistory.com and we are also on Social media.
Media Coverage of the Centenary of the Sack of Balbriggan
Statement by President Michael D. Higgins on the Centenary Anniversary of the Sack of Balbriggan
Date: Sun 20th Sep, 2020 | 00:51
Today, exactly 100 years ago, an event occurred that would become a defining and exemplary episode in the Irish War of Independence. The sack of Balbriggan, which occurred on the night of the 20th September 1920 and continued into the morning of the 21st, was an act of collective punishment, a “reprisal”, a term that would become the mark of a policy aimed at subjugation, installation of fear in a public that had in its midst those that sought independence.
That September night in Balbriggan, on which we reflect today, was a day of rampant violence and carnage that, along with other key acts of reprisal during Ireland’s War of Independence, its ferocity and reports of it resulted in the galvanising of support for the military struggle that would ultimately lead to the establishment of our independent State.
The atrocity that was the sack of Balbriggan has characteristics that are similar in many respects to so many other acts of reprisal violence and collective punishments that were administered by British armed forces during the War of Independence. They marked an escalation in terms of their ferocity and were calculated to have a strategic impact on the local community, which Dublin Castle were anxious to claim was having an effect.
On the night in question, between 100 and 150 ‘Black and Tans’ ransacked the North County Dublin town of Balbriggan in revenge for the shooting of RIC District Inspector Burke and his brother Sergeant Burke, who were shot by the IRA while in Smyth’s pub, Balbriggan, earlier in the day.
The Black and Tan activities were often preceded by heavy drinking, but behind it was a policy that believed that no restraint of a military or civilian kind should stand in the way of, as Winston Churchill might put it, “having terrorism by the throat”.
A large factory, 49 houses and four pubs were burnt down, widespread looting occurred, including the business of John Derham, a local Town Commissioner, while two men, Seán Gibbons and Séamus Lawless, were taken to Quay Street and viciously beaten to death, despite protesting their innocence.
The event led to debate in the British Parliament, with H.H. Asquith, the former Prime Minister and then leader of the opposition, comparing the sack of Balbriggan with the actions of the Imperial German Army during the Rape of Belgium.
A subsequent inquiry put the blame for the loss of lives, destruction of property and livelihoods firmly at the doorstep of the British forces. It awarded compensation to the families of Lawless and Gibbons of £1,750 each. Also levied to the county were damages totalling over £80,000, with costs for Deeds and Templar Hosiers, the burned-down factory, which an inquiry heard had left 200 unemployed and would take two-and-a-half years to rebuild. Numerous other claims were settled for destroyed businesses, homes and damages to other property incurred.
Strategic Reprisals
The targeting of local businesses and factories that were completely destroyed in the sack was a policy that included strategic acts of violence. Deeds and Templar Hosiers factory had employed as many as 200 workers directly, with an additional 180 indirectly employed. Its destruction decimated the livelihoods of a significant proportion of the local population, at least temporarily, resulting in significant hardship in a time when poverty was already high and social welfare minimal. There is little doubt that the infliction of such economic damage by both the Auxiliaries and Black and Tans was a key strategic tool, a response of empire, employed in an attempt to quash support for Republicanism.
The move by the British forces towards attacks on business and co-operatives, including rural creameries – which were major employers and sources of essential foodstuffs – marked an escalation in both the wider socio-economic impacts and the sophistication of reprisal tactics. From the summer of 1920 onwards, British forces consistently responded to IRA activities by attacking factories and co-operative creameries. For example, by the time a truce between the IRA and the Crown forces came into effect, 40 co-operative creameries had been destroyed, with another 35 rendered unfit for work. The destruction of each creamery put an estimated 800 farmers out of business.
The violence unleashed by the War of Independence, therefore, possessed a decidedly economic dimension. Guerrilla warfare and reprisals saw the loss of life and widespread destruction of property. As historian Patrick Doyle has noted, the targeting of businesses and co-operatives caused maximum economic damage and became a key tactic in the security forces’ war against the IRA. Such arson attacks punished the civilian population by destroying a cherished public utility or key employer in many communities.
Violence of Empire
Reprisal-based violence was a key element of the British military imperialist strategy in the Irish War of Independence. However, it was not unique to the Irish struggle, and had been used effectively by the British ruling forces in India in the previous century.
‘Reprisals’ were a key aspect of empire rule and its imposition of colonial power, laws, attributes and ideologies, though such acts are not unique to empires, at least not in the typical definition of ‘empire’. The United States, for example, used the policy of reprisals, allied to ‘villagisation’, explicitly during the Vietnam War, as the Pentagon Papers have revealed.
Collective punishments – that is to say, retaliation in which a suspected perpetrator’s family members, friends, acquaintances, neighbours or entire ethnic group is targeted – were used extensively by ruling British forces throughout the Irish War of Independence. The punished individual or group often had no direct association with the other individuals or groups, or direct control over their actions. We see this in Balbriggan where there is virtually no evidence that either of the two men who were slain, Lawless and Gibbons, had any role in the killings of the RIC officers.
Collective punishments were used again some decades later by the British as an official policy to suppress the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya in 1952. In 1956, Britain officially used collective punishment in Cyprus in the form of evicting families from their homes and closing shops anywhere British soldiers and police had been murdered, with the stated aim of obtaining information about the identities of the attackers.
There can be little doubt that collective punishments were already an established strategic tool of imperialist military strategy by the time they occurred in Ireland during the War of Independence. Their use is rooted in ideological assumptions, of superiority and inferiority in terms of race, culture or capacity, in the notion of the collective as a disloyal, hopeless or threatening version of the ‘Other’. The othering of particular cultures, particular nationalities, particular attributes and particular ideologies served as an insidious rationalisation of, and distorted logic behind, acts of violence such as collective punishments and reprisals.
Standing behind this was a supportive intellectual tradition. Pejorative attitudes towards the Irish by the British are well-documented, and had been well-formed by this period. Scottish philosopher David Hume wrote in his History of England:
“The Irish from the beginning of time had been buried in the most profound barbarianism and ignorance; and as they were never conquered, even, indeed, by the Romans from whom all the Western world derives its culture, they continued still in the most rude state of society and were distinguished by those vices to which human nature, not tamed by education, nor restrained by laws, is for ever subject”.
Indeed, a century later, Winston Churchill would write, “We have always found the Irish to be a bit odd. They refuse to be English”. The ‘othering’ of Irish people and their culture was undeniably ingrained at all levels of British society.
If we are to be serious about ethical remembrance and the creation of diverse, complex, shared memory at peace with the past in the interest of a present or future understanding, it is important to recognise these facts. It constitutes a prerequisite for any meaningful healing. We must all acknowledge that such acts of violence would be judged illegal by today’s international standards of war and conflict. Indeed, collective punishments and reprisals are now considered violations of the laws of war and the Geneva Conventions, the standards of international law for humanitarian treatment in war.
Recognising this does not mean that acts of violence against any civilian should be condoned. A later independence cannot justify a cowardly act against a civilian, a civilian used as exemplary victim.
Reprisals continued throughout the War, with famous incidents such as Bloody Sunday in Croke Park, and perhaps those less well-known, such as the indiscriminate shooting of Eileen Quinn, shot dead while seven months pregnant as she stood outside her house in County Galway with her three children. The use of collective punishments and reprisals would, ultimately, become a decisive factor in the outcome of the War, resulting in shock and outrage. When reported internationally, it increased support for the IRA and the independence movement more generally at home and abroad.
Ethical Remembering
Today, as we remember the bloody violence that occurred in Balbriggan exactly a century ago, violence that would result in tragedy, widespread suffering, and lingering bitterness, we must strive to do so ethically and responsibly. Such an ethical remembering must refuse any kind of conscious or unconscious amnesia. The exercise in remembering must be open to all perspectives, requires us all, each of us, to summon up our shared humanity, a humanity which was tested, often brutalised, but also magnified during the War of Independence and indeed over the longer revolutionary period.
There are challenges in relation to the war of memory, the journey from personal memory to collective memory to celebrated memory, to the use and abuse of memory. These are matters to be parked if not forgotten, so that a mutual respect in narratives is made possible.
I have often turned to the work of the great French philosopher Paul Ricoeur in trying to deal with these challenges. Ricoeur’s work forces us to face up to uses and abuses of memory in contemporary society which occur on a pathological level as the problem of blocked memory, on a practical level as manipulated memory, and on an ethical-political level as obligated memory. Two key questions then arise from such a consideration: whether history is a remedy for, or rather a hindrance to, these problems; and to what extent does history depend on memory?
If historians know more about the past than individuals remember, can history completely break with an appeal to memory as a form of evidence? History as written, Ricoeur suggests, “stands for” the past as “having been”. On this basis, we can seek to address “the problem of forgetting” in relation to the problems listed earlier.
Traces of the past can be lost, and that past will be forgotten in the sense of being beyond memory, but what of forgetting where the traces remain? This is where the problems of blocked, manipulated, or commanded memory linger, especially in the latter case with attempts to order forgetting, either through amnesty, censorship, state versions or ideological rationalisations of present failure or future danger that are used to exclude any pluralism of stories and their use. This problem leads to us to consider the vital possibility of forgiveness.
Forgiveness is difficult but not impossible. It can be considered, as Ricoeur proposed, something that is akin to a gift, one that unbinds the agent of the act from the act itself. To forgive is not to forget. It is this idea of a gift, not as requiring or expecting a gift in return, but as something received and passed on as a second gift that has the transformative and emancipatory potential of mutual recognition that can ultimately result in states of peace. The currency of the gift of forgiveness, however, as Hannah Arendt might remind us, is compromised if the giver of forgiveness uses it as an invocation to superiority.
Through the cultivation of an ethics of commemoration to replace our past entrenchments – on this island, and indeed across Europe – as well as an openness to others, we have a real opportunity together to strive to cultivate memory as a tool for the living and as a solid base for our shared future.
This is not an easy undertaking. It requires self-knowledge at the individual and collective levels, as well as recognition that generosity and compassion from both sides does not lead to reductionist outcomes. Rather, it can be reciprocally beneficial, allowing us to yield to each other in mutual respect – to recognise that our fears, insecurities and vulnerabilities can only be assuaged by actions of mutual generosity.
This requires generous effort. Reaching an accommodation with sometimes conflicting versions of the past is merely a stepping stone in the journey via understanding to the destination of forgiveness for past hurt, neglect or omission; a destination which, in so many areas of conflict, at home and abroad, past and present, the participants may not reach.
Yet, as the great German philosopher and Holocaust-survivor Hannah Arendt has written, “forgiveness is the only way to reverse the irreversible flow of history”. In its absence, we run the great risk of lingering bitterness that can lead to tit-for-tat violence, intensifying rather than resolving conflict – to quote the late John Hume’s famous adage, “an eye for an eye leaves us all blind”.
Forgiving, therefore, enables us to come to terms with the past. If forgiveness and forgetting did not exist, we would be trapped in the past where every previous action would be irrevocable and where the present is dominated, burdened even, by preceding events and memories. Recognition of the act committed, however, is essential. Heidegger refused to accept this and thus he remained one whom Hannah Arendt could not forgive. Empirically, I suggest peoples and nations manage forgiveness easier than empires. There is often too dense a paraphernalia of privilege and title that gets in the way, but more usually atrocities too great to recall.
It is only through such forms of ethical remembering that we can avoid retreating to the blinding categories of censure or denunciation, or indeed revenge and bitterness, that blighted this island for so long. Let us all continue with, indeed embrace, the new beginning that the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement represented as we continue to carve out our peaceful co-existence on the island of Ireland through a genuine democratic dialogue grounded in respect for our communities’ identities and their lawful traditions, recognising and paying tribute to John Hume’s vision of a shared island at peace.
https://president.ie/en/the-president/michael-d-higgins
100 years on from the ‘Sack of Balbriggan’
Broadcast 7am 18th Sep 2020 Morning Ireland
One hundred years on from the notorious ‘sack of Balbriggan’ by Black and Tans, in which homes and businesses were burned and two local men were killed, North East Correspondent Sinéad Hussey reports on the legacy of the incident.
‘We should not forget’ – remembering a grandfather murdered by the Black and Tans in the Sack of Balbriggan- Irish Independent
Article by John Meagher in the Irish Independent on Saturday September 19 2020 following interviews with Mary English and Brian Howley.
Tomorrow marks the centenary of one of the most notorious atrocities of the War of Independence when the Black and Tans went on the rampage, setting fire to the town and killing tow men in a reprisal attack. John Meagher on and event that resonated around the world.
When Mary English thinks of his gruesome death, she feels sadness, not rancour. On the night of September 20, 1920, her paternal grandfather, James Lawless, was murdered by the Black and Tans in one of the most notorious episodes of the War of Independence.
The 40-year-old IRA lieutenant, who was a barber in the north Co Dublin town of Balbriggan, was hauled from his home late at night and subjected to the most horrific death. It was a fate that also fell on another local man, John Gibbons, who had been suspected of being a Republican rebel.
It is thought that they were beaten and stabbed with rifle bayonets before their bodies were dumped on the street. Their killings had been in reprisal for the killing of an RIC head constable, Peter Burke, earlier in the day. Burke, a Catholic policeman from Galway, had been shot dead after an altercation in Smyth’s pub in the town. His brother William, also an RIC officer, was seriously wounded, but would escape with his life.
The Sack of Balbriggan: The burning of a town that shocked the world 100 years ago
Article by Ronan Mc Greevy, Irish Times, following interviews with Jim Walsh and Balbriggan & District Historical Society September 2020
Actions by Crown forces brought renewed focus on Ireland’s struggle for independence
Sun, Sep 20, 2020,
COMMEMORATIONS ARE TAKING place to mark the centenary of the Sack of Balbriggan, a night 100 years ago that saw homes and businesses burned down and two men in the town beaten to death.
Commemorations are taking place today to mark the 100th anniversary of the Sack of Balbriggan – one of the worst atrocities of the War of Independence.
The remembrance marks the night of 20 September 1920 when between 100 and 150 Black and Tans ransacked the north Dublin town in revenge for the killing of RIC District Inspector Burke and his brother Sergeant Burke, who were shot dead by the IRA while in Smyth’s pub earlier in the day.
https://www.dublinlive.ie/news/dublin-news/commemorations-sack-of-balbriggan-100-18965781
IRISH President Michael D Higgins said that Britain must face up to its history of bloody reprisals as he marked the 100th anniversary of the sack of Balbriggan which fell today.
‘An act of collective punishment’: Commemorations to mark the centenary of the Sack of Balbriggan
100 years ago today more than 100 Black and Tans ransacked the north Dublin town and two men were beaten to death.
Sep 20th 2020, 2:22 PM 40,474 Views 26 Comments Share119 Tweet Email1
The destruction of Clonard Street.Image: Fingal Local Studies and Archives
COMMEMORATIONS ARE TAKING place to mark the centenary of the Sack of Balbriggan, a night 100 years ago that saw homes and businesses burned down and two men in the town beaten to death.
https://www.thejournal.ie/sack-of-balbriggan-commemorations-5210166-Sep2020/
Century Ireland Articles
https://www.rte.ie/centuryireland/index.php/articles/fund-launched-to-relieve-balbriggan-distress
Sack of Balbriggan Commemoration
Sunday September 20, 2020 marks 100 years since the Sack of Balbriggan and despite the challenges posed by Covid-19 restrictions Balbriggan and District Historical Society are determined that this important centenary is marked in an appropriate manner. Our plans announced at the beginning of the year included holding a school’s competition, having a historical seminar and a photographic exhibition and producing a commemorative calendar and medal and we are delighted that all of these plans have gone ahead, albeit some online. We have been working along with other local groups and Fingal County Council in the Sack of Balbriggan Commemorations Committee to organise a major event for the weekend and while these plans had to be adapted the Council has commissioned a commemorative mural and is producing a commemorative video which will feature some of our events.
Lawless and Gibbons Families: Uppermost in our minds at this time are the families of the people who lost their lives and local families who include the Lawless and Gibbons people– this also extended to the members of the diaspora a lot of whom had firm intentions to be in Balbriggan at this time for the commemoration but whose travel plans were obviously affected by COVID-19. We remember them especially at this time
Church Service: We would like to thank Fr McNamara for facilitating our request for a Mass in memory of those who died during the Sack of Balbriggan and this will take place on Sunday at 12 o’clock. Due to Covid-19 restrictions not many can attend but everyone can join this commemoration by tuning in to the Church broadcast here
Schools Project: Preserving the memory of the events of the Sack of Balbriggan and sharing them with a new generation was one of the principal aims of our commemoration. To this end we gave a presentation on this to local schools and organised a Schools competition based on it. We are delighted that some of the competition entries will be displayed in the Our Balbriggan hub in the town over the weekend.
Jim Walsh Sack of Balbriggan talk on Youtube: We were delighted to share some of Jim’s insights in a Heritage Week talk which is available on our Youtube channel. see link here: https://youtu.be/_Gs6hfcBCMo
Local historian and founding member of our Society Jim Walsh has been doing extensive research on the Sack of Balbriggan and we were delighted to share some of his insights in a Heritage Week talk which is available on our Youtube channel.The talk begins with an introduction giving the local and historical context and continues with the aid of many images, to give a comprehensive account of the Sack of Balbriggan, based on contemporary accounts, military and RIC archives, newspaper coverage, other publications and interviews with family members. The youtube presentation which has garnered huge interest is interspersed with many images from the time as well as contemporary images from Balbriggan provided by Society Secretary Kilian Harford to give context.
Commemorative Medal: We produced a commemorative calendar featuring images from the Sack of Balbriggan and this was hugely popular. We can now announce that we have taken delivery of a limited number of beautiful commemorative medals which will be available to purchase on www.balbrigganhistory.com . The medal depicts a scene from the Sack of Balbriggan and other symbols which are clearly representative of the town and comes with a booklet containing a short history. We anticipate that this medal will be in huge demand as a memento of this important commemoration, along with the Calendar we produced earlier. Balbriggan and District Historical Society would like to thank most sincerely the Progressive Credit Union Ltd for their very generous sponsorship of our Sack of Balbriggan Commemorative Medal. This sponsorship has been of huge assistance to us in our Commemoration.
Photographic Exhibition Shopfronts: As you are walking around town this weekend keep a look out for our photographs exhibited in some shop windows. These images from the private family collection of Jim Glennon had been restored, digitised and printed, with help from Fingal County Council Community Funding, for a photographic exhibition we had planned in the Bracken Court Hotel, but this is deferred due to Covid-19 restrictions. We exhibited some of the images in Bremore Castle and you will be able to see Brian Howley and May McKeon speaking about them in the Fingal County Council Commemorative video. You will also notice a dramatic art installation, commemorating the Sack of Balbriggan, covering the gable of the Central Bar by the Bracken River. This mural was commissioned by Fingal County Council Arts Office in partnership with and on behalf of the Sack of Balbriggan Commemorations Committee of which we are part. Check it out as this dramatic mural is gradually created during the week.
Seminar on Sack of Balbriggan: We are delighted to welcome Diarmaid Ferriter as our keynote speaker for our Sack of Balbriggan Seminar on Saturday. While sadly we will not be able to have a live audience, all the seminar talks will be made available on our Youtube channel so you can watch them in the comfort and safety of your home. The Seminar will also feature a talk by our own Jim Walsh which will focus on the key events of the 20th of September. Jim Glennon former TD and rugby player will give a personal family account of the time. Jim’s grandfather was the owner of the Gladstone Inn and his photographs from the time have formed the basis of our calendar and photographic exhibition. We are delighted to also have visiting speaker Jim Herlihy whose talk will concentrate on the RIC perspective on the events. Our regular speaker and long term member Frank Whearity will speak about a particular family and also some of the buildings on Clonard Street then and now. A link to all the talks will be made available on our website www.balbrigganhistory.com
Speaking about the Commemoration Brian Howley, Chairperson of Balbriggan & District Historical Society said “The Balbriggan & District Historical Society in conjunction with other local groups and Fingal County Council had comprehensive plans in place for the Commemoration but due to COVID-19 restrictions major public events could not go ahead. However as a Society we were determined to ensure that the centenary of the Sack of Balbriggan still received a fitting, appropriate and meaningful commemoration. We have adapted our plans and our online lectures will bring the commemoration to people in their homes and will be available on into the future as a legacy and a resource for research and education. The Commemorative Medal and Calendar will be fitting mementos of the year and we hope our engagement with the schools will foster a lifelong enthusiasm for history among some of the students.’
Balbriggan and District Historical Society would like to take this opportunity to thank all our members and friends who have supported us down through the years by attending our talks and events. We hope you are keeping well and healthy in these tough times and look forward to when we will be able to see you in person at our events in the future. In the meantime we hope you will be able to enjoy our online content and be sure to get some assistance if you can’t access Youtube! The Society can be contacted at balbrigganhistsoc@gmail.com or on our website www.balbrigganhistory.com and we are also on Social media.
A History of Balbriggan Youtube video with Brian Howley
A History of Balbriggan
Listen to our Chairperson Brian Howley as he gives a tour of Balbriggan and an introduction to its rich history. Learn about the name Baile Brigín, Sinéad De Valera, the harbour and lighthouse, the coming of the railway, the rich hosiery tradition including Smyth & Co and ‘Balbriggans’ and of course the tragic story of the Sack of Balbriggan in 1920. See video here: A History of Balbriggan
A preview of our first 3 talks of 2020
Welcome to a new and very special year with Balbriggan & District Historical Society when, as well as our normal activities, we will be commemorating the 100 year Anniversary of the Sack of Balbriggan by the Black and Tans in 1920. We hope you got a copy of our Commemorative Calendar which was hugely popular and you can view the pictures at this link:Calendar 2020 BHS If you want to have a look back at our activities in 2019 see http://balbrigganhistory.
We will be in touch later to give you details of our plans for the year but at this stage we can announce the details of our first 3 talks for 2020, exact titles will be confirmed later:
March 25th Jim Walsh – The Sack of Balbriggan 1920
April 29th Rory McKenna – The Foreshore Dispute 1874-76 part 2
May 20th Frank Whearity – A History of Spicer’s Bakery Balbriggan
Looking back on a great year and forward to 2020
At the launch our Sack of Balbriggan Commemorative Calendar the Committee of Balbriggan & District Historical Society had an opportunity to look back at another busy and successful year and forward to 2020.
Brian Howley took over as Chairperson from Anne Collins for what will be a very busy year for the Society as we plan for the important commemoration of the Sack of Balbriggan by the Black and Tans in 1920. The Commemorative Calendar features pictures kindly donated by Jim Glennon from his treasured family collection, including one of his grandfather standing outside his ruined pub, now the Milestone.
Some of the highlights of a busy year were the tours of Bremore Castle during the Balbriggan Summerfest and the Day trip to Cavan Museum in August. The Society has a long association with the restoration project at Bremore Castle and are delighted to see it restored and showcased in these hugely popular tours facilitated by Kevin Halpenny in Fingal County Council. The Castle was also host to the wonderful Christmas market this year. Our Day Trip was to the Cavan Museum in September. The museum is well worth visiting for the WWI trenches and the 1916 exhibition. There are many other attractions also in this beautiful building which is a former convent an a peace garden in the grounds.
Our talks programme commenced in March with a talk to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Seamus Ennis called “The Wonderful work of Seamus Ennis Folk Music Collector” by Sean Corcoran. Drogheda native Seán Corcoran is a performer, academic and radio and TV documentary maker and an internationally-recognised expert on Irish Folk Music and Song. In April Aidan J Herron spoke about “Ardgillan Castle Revealed” . Aidan, former principal of St. Teresa’s National School in Balbriggan, is the author of the recently published and hugely popular book Ardgillan Castle Revealed which was launched by Pat Kenny in Ardgillan last year and features beautiful photography by Eamon O’Daly. In August Dr. William Murphy, lecturer in modern Irish history at Dublin City University, presented “From Creating a Counter-State: Establishing and Building Dáil Éireann 1919”.
In August for Heritage week we helped organise the Heritage Network Pastimes and Past Times Heritage week event in Malahide. We value our involvement with the Fingal Heritage Network and events like this give us an opportunity to meet up and celebrate our Fingal heritage together. For our September talk our long standing member Rory McKenna presented a talk on the Foreshore Dispute 1874-76 which involved the sale of the Hamilton lands and their claim to the foreshore. In October we welcomed the students from Loreto Secondary School who shared their research into the Sack of Balbriggan. Then Eithne McDermott gave a fantastic talk on Clann na Poblachta and the Interparty Government. Eithne who has taught in NUIG spoke about the Interparty government and Clann na Poblachta who included Sean McBride and Dr Noel Browne,about the power of the Church and the poverty of the 1940’s.
Our activities in 2019 also inculded a Quiz, school visits and guided walks, mainly led by our long standing member Jim Walsh.
We look forward to a very busy year in 2020 as we plan to inform Balbriggan residents about the Sack of Balbriggan as we commemorate it in a meaningful and inclusive manor.
Sack of Balbriggan Commemorative Calendar
Commemorative Calendar – Sack of Balbriggan
2020 is a very special year for our Society and Balbriggan as we prepare to commemorate The Sack of Balbriggan by the Black and Tans in September 1920. To prepare for this and as a momento of the year we have published a calendar which was available for sale for the great price of €10.
All copies of the Calendar have been sold but you can view it at this link Calendar 2020 BHS (9)
We would like to thank most sincerely Jim Glennon who provided treasured photographs from his family collection for this calendar.
We will update you later as to what other publications we will have to commemorate this important year – watch this space!
For further information on our plans for 2020 see http://balbrigganhistory.
AGM – Wednesday November 27th at 8pm
Our AGM takes place in the Town Hall, Georges Square, Balbriggan at 8pm sharp on Wednesday November 27th.
As we come to the end of another busy year with Balbriggan & District Historical Society it is time to look back on all the year’s activities and look forward to a very special year for the Society and the Town in 2020 as we commemorate The Sack of Balbriggan in 1920.
While only members are permitted to vote everyone is welcome to attend, and we would love to see you there.
Balbriggan is the Place to be in 2020!
Balbriggan is the Place to be in September 2020
The centenary of the Sack of Balbriggan by the Black and Tans in September 1920 takes place next year and Balbriggan & District Historical Society is working to commemorate this major historic
event in an appropriate and inclusive manner.
This critically important part of our town’s history involved the shooting dead of one RIC member,
Peter Burke, and the wounding of another, which prompted the subsequent havoc wreaked on the
town and its inhabitants by the Black and Tans. Numerous houses, a factory and several business
premises in the town were destroyed as a result, and hundreds of people were forced to sleep
outdoors for several nights in fear of their lives.
The night of terror on 20th September culminated in the brutal murder of two local men, James
Lawless and John Gibbons by the Black and Tans.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkWhvTCpwWM
Building on contacts that the Society has forged with local schools, we plan to work with them in
early 2020, providing them with information regarding the Sack, and encouraging enthusiastic
involvement from all.
In the weeks leading up to September 2020, Sack-related historical walks of the town will be
organised.
In co-operation with local businesses and Fingal County Council, we intend to organise a
photographic exhibition to be displayed in the streets and in local businesses throughout the town.
Weekend Commemoration, 19th & 20th September 2020
A full-day seminar will take place in the Bracken Court Hotel on Saturday, 19th September,
involving a series of talks related to the Sack of Balbriggan and its aftermath, including events from
the perspective of the RIC. We hope to have an exhibition of contemporary media reports of the
events, together with other memorabilia relating to the Sack.
On Sunday, 20th September, a religious service will be held, followed by a parade and a wreath-
laying ceremony at the Lawless and Gibbons plaque on Bridge Street – an opportunity for everyone to get involved.
In addition, we plan to publish a book on the Sack of Balbriggan, and the unveiling of a
commemorative memorial in the town is another idea that is gaining momentum.
Watch out for our Sack of Balbriggan commemorative medals and calendars which will be
available for sale from this November (2019).
Balbriggan &Distri ct Historical Society can be contacted at balbrigganhistsoc@gmail.com.
The above release was issued to the Press on Monday September 16th 2019
August Talk: Creating a Counter-State: Establishing and Building Dáil Éireann
Title: Creating a Counter-State: Establishing and Building Dáil Éireann.
Speaker: Dr. Will Murphy
Wednesday August 28, Town Hall, Balbriggan at 8.00pm
Admission €5, Members free
This talk will examine the establishment of Dáil Éireann in January 1919. It will explore the context in which this new representative body was created. It will ask what those who created it hoped to achieve and how they communicated this, particularly at the first meeting. Finally, it will consider how a successful Dáil Éireann and its departments was a mechanism for challenging the existing state in Ireland.
Will Murphy is a lecturer in modern Irish history at Dublin City University. His most recent book, co-authored with Anne Dolan, is Michael Collins: the man and the revolution (Collins Press, 2018). In 2014 his Political Imprisonment and the Irish 1912-1921 was published by Oxford University Press. He has published numerous articles, including contributions to The Atlas of the Irish Revolution and the Cambridge Social History of Ireland.
Quiz Night April 4th Milestone Inn Balbriggan
Balbriggan & District Historical Society will be hosting a Quiz Night upstairs in the Milestone Inn on Thursday the 4th of April. Come along and test your wits against your neighbours and friends – and have a good night out. Who knows – it could end in Historic Victory (if only in the raffle!!) Teams of 4, €40 per team Come along at 8pm for an 8.30 start. Spread the word
March Talk: The Wonderful Work of Séamus Ennis as a Folk-Music Collector Speaker: Seán Corcoran
The Wonderful Work of Séamus Ennis as a Folk-Music Collector –
An illustrated lecture by Seán Corcoran.
Wednesday March 27th 8pm, Town Hall Balbriggan Adm: €5, members free
Our first talk for 2019 will took place on Wednesday March 27th in the Town Hall Balbriggan at 8pm and was about Séamus Ennis whose birth 100 years ago is being celebrated this year, The talk by Seán Corcoran was called The Wonderful Work of Séamus Ennis as a Folk Music collector.
Drogheda native Seán Corcoran is a performer, academic and radio and TV documentary maker and an internationally-recognised expert on Irish Folk Music and Song. From the late 1960s he pioneered fieldwork/collecting techniques and at present lectures in Irish Music at Mary I College, University of Limerick.
We all know about the Séamus Ennis Centre in Naul and many of you knew Séamus Ennis himself. But this talk gave a further insight into his immense contribution to the collection and preservation of our wonderful musical heritage. Séamus Ennis was renowned as a master uilleann piper but this lecture highlighted his extraordinary work and international importance as a folk music collector.
Welcome to a new year and a look back to 2018
Welcome to another year with Balbriggan & District Historical Society and we hope you can join us at one of our events this year. We are busy putting together our programme for 2019 which will be available on our website www.balbrigganhistory.com soon. We hold 6 talks each year and they are always the last Wednesday in the month in the Town Hall Balbriggan so why not come along to this year’s first talk on March 26th – we would love to see you.
2018 was a great year for our Society with the two highlights being the Balbriggan People and Places 1893 Photographic Exhibition in the Bracken Court in October and the tour of Bremore Castle we hosted as part of the Summerfest in May. We have a long association with the Bremore Castle restoration project and are delighted to see the plans for a regional park adjacent to the castle which will help showcase it as a centerpiece of Balbriggan’s rich heritage. The wonderful photographs we acquired in 2016 of Balbriggan in 1893 are of huge interest and definitely merit a further exhibition – watch this space! Research into Balbriggan’s rich history is one of our core aims and we are proud that 4 of our 6 2018 talks were presented by our own members Jim Walsh on Man O War and the Turks Head, Brian Howley on Bremore Castle, Ide Ní Liathan on The 1918 Election and Anne Collins on the Schools Folklore Project. We will continue to promote Local History in our Programme in 2019 as well as commemorating major National Events. The Sack of Balbriggan in 1920 is one such major National Event we will be commemorating next year and our plans are well advanced in that regard . Our final talk of 2018 featured the research done by Loreto Secondary School Students on that topic.
We were delighted to attend the launch late last year of the Our Balbriggan Consultation regarding the exciting Socio Economic Plan plan which will transform Balbriggan. We welcome the importance of history recognised in the opening of the Mission Statement “Building on its rich history….” . and look forward to the plans implementation in our town.
For further information on our Society visit www.Balbrigganhistory.com or read one of our books which are on sale in Eason’s Millfield and The Book Haven Drogheda Street.
Balbriggan: People and Places 1893 Photographic Exhibition October 19th & 20th
Balbriggan & District Historical Society was very proud to host a unique photographic exhibition of the people and places of Balbriggan taken in the year of 1893.
In 2016, the Society acquired a collection of photographs taken by Mr. Lewis Whyte, amateur photographer and Managing Director at Smyco factory on Railway Street. Many of the photographs were taken on a single day and capture the people and familiar places of our beloved town.
Since acquiring these photographs we have got them digitised and a selection of them printed. We feel that the conservation and exhibition of these albums is an important contribution by our Society to the cultural heritage of our town. To this end we held an exhibition in the Bracken Court Hotel on Friday 19th and Saturday 20th October and were truly delighted to see so many of you there. Many people shared memories of the people and places featured in the photographs, as they marvelled at the wonderful transformation of the photographs from the tiny originals to the enhanced prints on display.The exhibition was launched on Friday the 19th October, and continued on Saturday, 20th between 12 and 6 p.m.
Looking forward to seeing you there and be sure to spread the word about this must see exhibition.
September Talk: The Sinking of the Leinster – Speaker Cormac F Lowth
Our September talk “The Sinking of The Leinster – an Illustrated Lecture” was presented by Cormac F. Lowth on Wednesday September 26th in the Town Hall Balbriggan at 8pm. 2018 marks the 100th anniversary of a great disaster which occurred in the Irish Sea. Cormac outlined the tragic story of the sailboat ‘Leinster’ which was torpedoed by a German submarine on October 10th 1918 after leaving Dun Laoghaire, with horrendous loss of life. Over 500 people perished in what still remains the single greatest loss of life on the Irish Sea and it is doubly tragic because it happened only a few weeks before the end of the war.
This brilliantly researched talk, delivered without any notes, told the story of not just the Leinster but also of the many ships that sailed the Irish Sea around that era. Showing his detailed knowledge, some of it gained diving to the wreck of the Leinster, Cormac painted a vivid picture of the Leinster and its design, the passengers on it and the panic and mayhem that must have followed when it was torpedoed. As well as the perils of shipping during World War 1 Cormac also talked about the war on land and the horrific loss of life suffered in it. Cormac’s lecture, which even included old film reel of the Leinster, could’ve filled a few more talks and led to many questions from the large crowd.
Cormac F. Lowth is a member of The Maritime Institute of Ireland and he is currently Lectures Officer with the Dun Laoghaire Borough Historical Society. His lectures for us in the Balbriggan and District Historical Society in the past have included ‘Shipwrecks around Dublin Bay’ and ‘The Loss of the Lusitania’. Anyone who attended these talks will know Cormac’s huge passion for all things maritime and his extensive knowledge of the subject.
Admission €5, members free
August Talk: The General Election of 1918 in North Dublin – Speaker Íde Ní Liathain
Our August talk “The General Election of 1918 in North Dublin” was presented by Íde Ní Liathain on Wednesday August 29th in the Town Hall Balbriggan at 8pm. The talk looked at events leading up to the general election in December 1918, which changed Ireland forever. Íde examined how these events played out in Fingal. She also looked at the two men, John J Clancy and Frank Lawless, who opposed each other on election day: one representing the past & the other the future.
Íde, who joined the Committee of Balbriggan and District Historical Society this year, studied history in Maynooth University and has a Masters in Local History. She has worked for many years with Fingal Libraries and is now based in our local Balbriggan branch. We would like to congratulate Íde on her first talk which was a brilliantly researched and interesting talk. Íde traced the rise of Sinn Féin and the demise of the Parliamentary party as well as giving us a detailed introduction to the two candidates John J Clancy and Frank Lawless and also other 1918 events like Lá na nGael and the Spanish flu. She also used witness statements and contemporary newspaper coverage to describe anti- conscription rallies and meetings happening in Balbriggan in 1918 and the involvement of Balbriggan people like Jack Gaynor and others. 
Balbriggan and District Historical Society Day Trip June 16th 2018
Balbriggan and District Historical Society Day Trip June 16th 2018
We will be heading north to visit to Omagh and the Ulster American Folk Park, Omagh and returning for dinner to the Glenside Hotel.
Immerse yourself in the story of the brave emigrants who made the journey across the Atlantic to America hundreds of years ago. Wander through the thatched cottages and log cabins,Board a full-scale emigrant ship to experience the conditions faced by many as they set sail for a new life in America. With 30 buildings and exhibits to explore, the Ulster American Folk Park is a wonderfully unique experience.
All included for €50. This is always a lovely sociable occasion and I would really recommend it.
See link to Folk Park website https://www.nmni.com/ou…/ulster-american-folk-park/Home.aspx
Bus leaves Car Park at St Peter & Paul’s church at 9.30 sharp.
To book email Balbrigganhistsoc@gmail.com or ring Brian Howley 087 2269144 or Anne Collins 087 6245343
April Talk: History of Man O’War and the Turk’s Head Speaker: Jim Walsh
History of Man O’War and The Turk’s Head
Speaker Jim Walsh
Wednesday April 25th 8pm
Town Hall, Balbriggan
Jim Walsh needs no introduction and we are delighted to welcome him as our April speaker for a talk on the History of Man O’War and the Turk’s Head. The Man O’War area has a fascinating History, not least in relation to the mysterious Turk’s Head. What is known about it is that the wooden carving was mounted on the front of the old Man O War Inn for many years and proved a treat for travelers using the old coach road through Fingal. Jim will reveal much more in this talk which we are all looking forward to.
Admission €5, members free
March Talk: Experiences of a French Emigrant family in Ireland – Speaker Paul Bosonnet
Title: Exeriences of a French Emigrant family in Ireland
Speaker: Paul Bosonnet
Date: Wednesday March 28th 8pm
Venue: Town Hall Balbriggan
Our first talk of 2018 is “Experiences of a French Emigrant family in Ireland” by Paul Bosonnet and takes place on Wednesday next the 28th at 8pm in the Town Hall Balbriggan.
All the Bosonnets in Ireland are descended from one Ancestor, Jean Bosonnet (1791-1866) BA Professor of Languages, who arrived in Dublin with his wife and daughter in the mid 1830s. They left Taninges, France to escape persecution and settled initially in Dundalk and later in Dublin in the East Wall area. There were also a number of prominent persons living in the immediate areas associated with the family during this period – Sean O Casey, James Joyce, Canon Hall and Matt Talbot. This talk, as well as telling the family’s story, will give an insight into life in Ireland in the mid to late 19th century. Paul Bosonnet is a retired engineer who has carried out extensive research into the family in both Dublin and Dundalk liaising with the local archivist in Dundalk He is in touch with the family in Taninges and has conducted research with a local historian there. Jean Bosonnet was Paul’s great great grandfather, and the Bosonnet Family from Balbriggan are also connected.
Quiz Night Thursday April 12th Milestone Inn
Do you fancy testing your extensive knowledge of people and places or facts and figures? Or just fancy a fun night out? Come along to our Quiz on Thursday April 12th at 8pm upstairs in The Milestone Inn. Who knows it might result in an historic victory – if only in the raffle! First round starting at 8.30 sharp, €10 per person, teams of 4 and don’t worry if you don’t have a team we can arrange this on the night. Our quiz last year was a great night so don’t miss it.
If you would like to join our society it costs €15 per annum, €10 Students and OAP’s, €20 for a family This entitles you to free entrance to our 6 talks per year , usually the last Wednesday in the months – March. April. May, August, September and October, but you are welcome to attend individual talks for €5. We also have a summer day trip as well as historical walks and other events.
Dates for your diary: For our April 25th talk we have our well known member Jim Walsh speaking on the Turks Head and Man O’War. We will confirm details of our May talk later. On August 29th our newest committee member Íde Ní Liathain, from Balbriggan Library, will speak about the 1918 Election. The Sack of Balbriggan in 1920 was a huge event in the history of the town and as we approach the centenary in 2020 we will be including this topic in our schedule each year. On September 26th Jim Walsh will give us a talk where he will share some of his latest research on the topic.
Welcome to 2018 with Balbriggan & District Historical Society
Welcome to 2018 with Balbriggan & District Historical Society.
We are currently putting together our programme of events for 2018 and we will be sharing those on the website as soon as possible. Check back with us over the next few weeks. To whet your appetite one of our long standing members Jim Walsh is giving a talk on Friday 23rd February at 8pm in Man O War GAA Club on the History of Man O War and the Turks Head. I am sure anyone who has heard Jim talk before will know that this is something to look forward to.
This year why not find out more about history, by getting involved with our Society. Have a read through our website developed for us by Dorothy Bentley of Fletcher Bentley. Have a look back at our activities – walks, talks, exhibitions, commemorations- and spread the word among your friends, particularly those who aren’t on Social Media.
To bring a fitting end to 2017 we were delighted to win an award at the Balbriggan Town Awards. We were particularly proud to be associated with the additional award for Frank Whearity for his book Balbriggan a History in Maps 1655-1900.
Due to its huge popularity Balbriggan a History in Maps had sold out and we had it reprinted and it
is available to buy in Book Haven, Easons, Drogheda Museum Millmount and Skerries Mills.
Balbriggan Library Bell returns to its rightful home
The return of the Balbriggan Library Bell was marked by a visit to the library by the Mayor of Fingal, Cllr. Mary McCamley on 12th October. Also in attendance on the day were Chief Executive of Fingal County Council Paul Reid as well as Local Councillors Gráinne Maguire, Malachy Quinn and Tony Murphy as well as members of the Balbriggan community.
Local Historian and former Librarian Jim Walsh delivered a presentation detailing the history of Balbriggan library and its Bell. The Balbriggan Bell and clock mechanism was built in 1906 by W.H. Bailey & Co, Salford. The bell was removed from its external position on the building during renovation work in 1980, and was put on display in the Library when it reopened. While the next renovation took place in 2007 the Bell was removed for safe keeping to storage in Swords. As a result of a campaign led by Balbriggan and District Historical Society and The Balbriggan Community Group the bell and clock mechanism have being renovated and returned to its rightful home in Balbriggan Library where it will remain on permanent display.
Speaking about the return of the bell Librarian Patricia Brady said “It is appropriate that the return of the bell coincides with the 10th anniversary of the refurbishment of Balbriggan Library and I would encourage the Balbriggan community to call in and visit Balbriggan Library and see the renovated bell and clock mechanism on display.
2016 – An award winning and busy year for Balbriggan & District Historical Society
2016 was a very busy year for Balbriggan & District Historical Society with our usual monthly talks, the 1916 Commemoration and culminating with the launch of their latest publication in November. The series of talks began in March with “A history of the railway halt for the Taylor family of Ardgillan Castle” a talk by David Grundy. The April talk was by Rory McKenna, noted local historian and society member on ‘Nicholas Rath – Albert Medal Recipent 1917’ May was a very busy month commemorating 1916, which in gone into further below. In June Jim Walsh, Chairman of the Society lead a Historical Walk around the town as part of the Summerfest and an enthusiastic group enjoyed the Annual Summer outing which this year was to the GPO 1916 exhibition and a tour of the Fingal Brigade battle sites including Ashbourne. The Society has a role in the restoration of Bremore Castle and was delighted to see the restoration coming near to completion and the Castle open for tours during Heritage Week. They returned in August with a talk from Paddy Boyle -“Irish Volunteers,Balbriggan 1913-1922” about local volunteers among them Jack Gaynor & Mick Rock and also the Sack of Balbriggan by the Black and Tans in 1920. The September presentation was on Michael Collier, alias Collier the Robber, by Community Historian Brendan Matthews . The October talk was special as it featured a very entertaining speech from the Society’s own May McKeon on Old Memories of Balbriggan and also short presentations from Loreto Secondary School Students who were prize winners in a competition judged by the Society.
The Society’s flagship event for 1916 was “Éirí Amach Na Cásca – Is Cuimhin Linn” a full day History Seminar which took place in the Town Hall on the 7th May 2016. The seminar was opened by Mayor of Fingal Cllr David O’Connor and concluded with readings of Proclamation by local Secondary School students. The seminar featured 5 talks: Bairbre Curtis “Fingal in 1916”, Liz Darcy “Conserving an original 1916 Proclamation”, Jimmy Wren “The 1916 GPO Garrison and the connection with the OTooles G.A.A. Club”, Sean Collins “Observing from afar The Easter Rising Louth and Meath” and Micheál MacMathúna “Sinéad Ni Fhlannagáin (Bean De Valera) Daughter of Balbriggan and 1916” The last talk was timely providing context for Commemorative Plaque honouring Sinéad Ní Fhlannagáin De Valera which was about to be unveiled in the town. The enthusiastic audience enjoyed the excellent talks on both the local and national experience in 1916, and left with lots of new information and an appetite to learn more about this facinating period in our history.
The Society was also centrally involved in the Balbriggan 1916 Commemorative Committee which organised, among other activities, the erection of a Commemorative Plaque honouring Sinéad Ní Fhlannagáin De Valera. This Plaque was unveiled as part of a Commemorative day which included a Mass and Parade featuring the Fingal Old IRA, locals scouts and guides and the local community. May McKeon performed the duty of MC on the day, Gráinne Maguire read the Proclamation, and speakers included Mayor of Fingal Cllr David O’Connor, Mícheál MacMahúna, and Éamon Ó Cuív TD, grandson of Sinéad and the Plaque was unveiled by Nora Ní Chuív her granddaughter. It was a memorable and important day for Balbriggan and it was great to see so many of the DeValera and Flanagan family members there who were delighted to share with us their personal memories of Balbriggan. The event was attended by a large enthusiastic crowd and the Plaque will be a lasting physical reminder of the occasion.
A busy year came to a end with the launch by Mayor of Fingal Cllr Darragh Butler of the Society’s latest publication “Balbriggan a History in Maps 1655-1900” by Peter(Frank) Whearity, on the 9th of November in the Town Hall, Balbriggan. The book, which charts the development of Balbriggan from a population of only 30 in 1659 to the beginning of the 20th century, was enthusiastically received by the large crowd in attendance. Peter (Frank) Whearity is a native of Balbriggan and holds a BA (Hons) in Local Studies, and an MA in Local History from Maynooth University. Through a comprehensive study of maps (beautifully reproduced in this publication) and using information from other sources, Frank charts 250 years of the development of Balbriggan. This book will be a great resource for anyone interested in the history of the town as it brings to life the history of Balbriggan and it’s hinterland encapsulating themes such as religion, architecture, education, legal, proprietorial status, and the rich industrial & maritime heritage.