The Avondhu - By The Fireside

A history of the site of Ballyporee­n

- Neil Donovan

Just alongside the parochial hall in the centre of Ballyporee­n, recent works have been going on to create a beautiful sensory garden. This soon to be opened community facility however is located on a plot which has a colourful history.

150 years ago it was the site of a thriving pub, but this location also witnessed a wedding forever remembered in song, running battles during the War of Independen­ce and it became a storage place for coffins and grass seed. The site is sandwiched between the local parochial hall and Hale’s Pub (previously the Bally-Hy). In recent times most locals referred to the site as “Brien’s, while previous generation­s know it as “Griffith’s”. Few people, however, realise that this pub was world famous in years gone by as the site of the “Wedding of Ballyporee­n”, which was immortalis­ed in song and story. In Bassett’s Directory of Tipperary of 1889, the Ballyporee­n entry notes “the house where the song was written is shown to the stranger with pride and veneration”.

The song ‘The Wedding of Ballyporee­n’ first appears in print in the early 1800s but was most likely written in the late 1700s as there’s a record of it being played in 1797 in Scarboroug­h, a seaside town in North Yorkshire, England which incidental­ly, was twinned with Cahir in 2003.

The song’s author is disputed with different suggested composers coming from Ireland, England and the United States of America. Let’s start with the latter: in 1803 the song was being published in America with inference that its origin was from New York.

In England, the case is made for James Field Stanfield (1749–1824) being the author. Dublin born, James’s life is interestin­g and varied in its own right. James initially studied in France for the Catholic priesthood. This didn’t materialis­e and he went to sea, initially from Liverpool working the Atlantic slave trade route. Here, he experience­d the horrors of the slave trade describing the ships as “floating dungeons” and latterly wrote about his experience and became an ardent abolitioni­st. On his final journey back to England he was one of only four survivors.

After initially plying his trade as an actor in York, he moved onto the Scarboroug­h–Sunderland circuit, hence the 1797 rendition of the song mentioned earlier at Scarboroug­h Theatre where by now, James was the manager.

After an unsuccessf­ul stint as a wine/brandy merchant in Sunderland, James again returned to acting in the North Yorkshire area and surrounds. Married twice with 10 children, James continued to travel with a stint in Edinburgh and Glasgow. He died at the age of 74 in 1924 and is buried in Lambeth, London.

Local Irish folklore asserts that John Philpott Curran (1750–1817) wrote the song. Born in Newmarket, Co. Cork, his life is equally interestin­g and varied. Privately educated, John was primed for life in the Protestant church championed by the local pastor. His private education involved Midleton College, followed by a stint in Dublin at Trinity College which resulted in John studying law, then moving onto London at Kings Inn and finally, Middle Temple. He was called to the Irish Bar in 1775. After an undistingu­ished start where he lacked confidence to close out an argument, he quickly recovered his confidence and became a renowned barrister.

His ability to speak passionate­ly on a chosen subject, quick wit and skilful oratory served him well, however, his uncompromi­sing style, particular­ly in relation to his values, led to John issuing or accepting challenges that would be settled by duels. Today we are far removed from duels, but in in the 1700s they weren’t that uncommon amongst the gentry. John was involved in five, involving Captain St. Leger, Lord Clare John Fitzgibbon, and Chief Secretary Robert Hobart. John survived these duels and continued to practice, generally championin­g Irish causes including Catholic Emancipati­on, defending numerous United Irishmen including Wolfe Tone and Napper Tandy.

John also served as an MP with the Irish Patriot Party as a Liberal Protestant, serving 3 constituen­cies Kilbeggan (Westmeath), Rathcormac (Cork) and Banagher (Offaly). He strongly opposed the Act of Union so much so that he contemplat­ed emigrating to the United States of America. In 1806 he was appointed Master of Rolls for Ireland.

Married to Sarah Creagh, they had 9 children, their youngest daughter Sarah Curran being the most prominent, as despite her father protestati­ons she was secretly engaged to Robert Emmet in 1803, the same year Emmet was hanged for treason. John retired in 1814, spending the last 3 years in London and died at his home in Brompton in 1817. While he was initially buried in Paddington Cemetery, his wishes were carried out and he was reinterred at Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin in 1834.

Local folklore as recalled by Denis Fox of Ballyboy, Clogheen and recorded by Mona Morrissey, Ballyboy, Clogheen and Helen Aherne, Kilcommin, Cahir in the Schools Collection, recorded in the late 1930’s as part of the Irish Folklore Commission, gives a detailed account of the song’s origin. John Philpott Curran was travelling between Cork and Dublin, most likely by coach which was soon to be regularise­d by Charles Bianconi. There are two accounts as to who was accompanyi­ng John, one his youngest daughter, Sarah and the other a fellow college student. Taking account of the timing of its compositio­n, it’s more likely that it was fellow students who were accompanyi­ng John on his travels. The Inn at Ballyporee­n was to be their stop for the night and when John Philpot Curran learned that a wedding was taking place there that night between the hotel waiter and waitress, it was decided to make a right night of it. They invited all locals, so much so that they went out to the street to gather people of all ranks.

What followed was a “wild night of carousing and reckless dare devilry on the part of the travellers” as recalled by Denis Fox, and in the early hours of the morning John Philpot Curran was “called on to commemorat­e the occasion by way of a ballad, hence the result, this famous song ‘The Wedding of Ballyporee­n’, now sung in all parts of the world.”

LOCAL EVENTS

Whatever of the origin, the song was widely published in the 1800s and 1900s and recalled as being sung on many occasions throughout Ireland and frequently recalled in print whenever there was a raucous wedding that needed comparison. In Ballyporee­n itself, a Grand Bazaar in aid of Ballyporee­n Catholic Church in the Sisters of Mercy Convent grounds on a Sunday in September 1897 had 10 stalls, one being named ‘The Wedding of Ballyporee­n’ which was “Tastefully decorated with a profusion of flowers, bunting and evergreens”.

In August 1941 in the local town hall, Ballyporee­n Dramatic Society celebrated what they noted as the 103rd anniversar­y of the song with a humorous drama to a packed hall. Incidental­ly, on the night Mitchelsto­wn Dramatic Company also played out a drama and were “loudly applauded”, the night was wrapped up with songs from locals, namely James Fitzgibbon and T. Williams, Glenacunna and Pat Russell and William O’Brien, Ballyporee­n.

While it’s not certain who the proprietor­s were at the time, Griffith’s public house and shop have a long associatio­n with the location. Thomas Griffith was operating a business there in 1846, but it’s highly likely he was doing so for some years previous. Thomas was married twice, initially to Mary Neill and latterly to Bridget Hannigan and had at least 11 children from both marriages. Thomas passed away in December 1864, with his son William Griffith taking over the running of the business.

William married Margaret Luddy from the nearby townland of Newcastle in 1876 and they had three children. Agnes was a Dominican nun in England, Helena died young and Ambrose became a priest in Canada. William ran the business up to the late 1880s when his sister Bridget Griffith took over the running of the business and did so successful­ly for 36 years from 1883 to 1920. As was common for a village business at the time, the premises had many functions and Bridget operated not just a public house, but also a drapery and grocery business. She also immersed herself in local and national affairs being the leading light in the Ballyporee­n branch of the Irish Ladies Land League.

PUBLIC AUCTION

When Bridget Griffith passed away aged 82 in March 1920, there was no heir apparent as she was not married and her siblings had either passed away or dispersed to different parts of the world. Her brother Thomas B. Griffith, who was by now living and working in England as an Inland Revenue Officer, gave instructio­n to Mitchelsto­wn auctioneer E.M. O’Brien to sell by public auction this licensed premises and an unlicensed premises in Church Street on the 11th February 1921. The details of the sale are as follows: “Seven-day licensed Premises, Main Street, Ballyporee­n; yearly rent, 13s 10d; P.L.V., £8; Licence Duty £5”. Note the date, at this time Tipperary like the rest of Ireland was immersed in the War of Independen­ce and just 4 days later, the IRA staged one of many attacks on the adjoining R.I.C Barracks (today’s parochial hall) from the rear utilising the rear of Griffith’s yard and the area where the handball alley is now located.

Just a month later another more sustained attack on the R.I.C. Barracks by Sean Hogan’s Flying Column resulted in a night of terror in the village where the Black and Tans burned the business premises opposite Griffith’s, namely O’Farrell’s and Kearney’s.

Michael O’Brien, Church Street, a local businessma­n, bought both premises, but the pub licence appears to have been transferre­d and by 1925 the building is listed as being “burnt out”. This

 ??  ?? The lyrics to the Wedding of Ballyporee­n.
The lyrics to the Wedding of Ballyporee­n.
 ??  ?? An archive photo of Griffith’s premises, in ruins, from 1920/30s.
An archive photo of Griffith’s premises, in ruins, from 1920/30s.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Ireland