John Kirwan (1902-1993)

Today, we are going to feature information Danny Dowling (1927-2021) recorded regarding the residents of the townland of Ballyrahan, Glenmore,  in 1961. Unfortunately Danny did not leave notes as to how he determined the boundaries of this ancient townland, and we note that the Reddy’s, according to their obituaries gave their address as Gaulestown, Glenmore.

Background

The Irish for this townland, according to O’Kelly’s, The Place Names of the County of Kilkenny Ireland (1969, p. 112) is “Baile an rathain, place of the little rath. Area 139 acres. The rath is by the roadside on the northern border. The Ridire (pronounced Ridise) O’Dea’s house, long destroyed, is near the Carriganurra border. Moin an ridise, the knight’s bogland, lies low down the slope. Ballyrahan hamlet is marked on the O.S. sheet. A field here is Garraidhin na sraide and other fields are Carraigin, and Pairc na reidhe, field of the level spot.”

Ballyrahan is located in the civil parish of Kilcolumb. For an interesting short article on the Barony of Ida click here.

Tithe Applotment Books 1829

The Applotment books, lists David O’Neill Power (c. 1788-1863) as the owner of the townland. David O’Neill Power also owned Gaulestown & Ballinlammy, Glenmore.  See our post of 26 December 2022 concerning David O’Neill Power.

Ballyrahan Townland was divided into 4 plots with a total of 11 tenants listed.  Plot 53 was comprised of 47 statute acres with J and Patt Aylward listed as the tenants. Plot 54 was comprised of 54 statute acres with 5 tenants: Patt & Edmond Aylward, Widow Neill, Wm. Neill and Michael Kirwan. Plot 55 was comprised of 18 statute acres and John Grant was the tenant. Plot 56 was comprised of 31 statute acres and had three tenants: John Kirwan, Colum Kirwan and William Bohan.

1961 Ballyrahan, Glenmore

In 1961, Danny recorded 2 families or households in the townland of Ballyrahan. Birthdates or birth years are provided for some of the older residents gleaned from available public records. For some time after drafting his notebook, Danny recorded the dates of death or simply recorded that a resident had died or left the townland.

Danny’s recorded information reveals that in 1961, 17 people resided in the townland of Ballyrahan, with the population comprised of 8 males and 9 females. The largest family was the Kirwan family with 13 in the household. There was no household recorded with a single person living alone. All information under residents of Ballyrahan not in Danny’s original list has been placed in square brackets [   ].

Recorded Ballyrahan, Glenmore Residents

Males= 8
Females= 9

Eldest Recorded Resident

The eldest resident recorded by Danny in 1961 in Ballyrahan was Margaret Reddy née Hennessy (4 Sept. 1886—2 April 1970). The headstone in St. James Cemetery in Glenmore records that John Reddy (c. 1882-1961) of Gaulestown died on the 13^th of February 1961, aged 79. His wife Margaret died 2 April 1970, aged 83. Their son James Reddy (c. 1926-2011) died 14 August 2011, aged 84.

Danny interviewed his mother, Hannah Dowling of Jamestown, Glenmore on 18 January 1970 and she stated that the Reddy’s of Gaulestown originated in Ballinaraha (sic). “Jack Reddy of Gaulestown married Margaret Hennessey of Ballilogue, Rochestown, Glenmore. However, Margaret’s obituary states that she was from Ballylogue, the Rower (Munster Express, Fri. 3 April 1970, p. 41). See our R Surnames Family page for Jack and Margaret’s obituarries.

Recorded Work

Farmer= 2 (2 Males)
Farm Workers = 2 (2 Males)
School Secretary= 1 (1 Female)
Clerk= 1 (1 Female)

Ballyrahan, Glenmore Residents 1961

[1] KIRWAN

Kirwan, John (28 Feb. 1902) Farmer [died 27 July 1993, aged 91]
Kirwan, Bridget (1916) wife  [née O’Connor, died 24 Nov. 1974, aged 58]
Kirwan, Michael (20 Jan. 1906) brother, assisting relative
Kirwan, Margaret, daughter
Kirwan, Mary, daughter, school secretary
Kirwan, Anne, daughter, clerk
Kirwan, Kathleen, daughter
Kirwan, Eily, daughter
Kirwan, James, son
Kirwan, Joan, daughter
Kirwan, Michael, son
Kirwan, Patrick, son
Kirwan, John, son

[2] REDDY

Reddy, James (1926) Farmer    [died 14 Aug. 2011, aged 84]
Reddy, Margaret (4 Sept. 1886) mother [died 2 April 1970, aged 83]
Maher, William, nephew, assisting relative
Reddy, Kathleen, wife    [née Kitty Hanlon, of Newtown, Glenmore]

Please send any corrections or additional information to glenmore.history@gmail.com . Please be patient for a reply, and further posts, as our home phone and internet have been out of order for over a week.

Dr. Kathleen Moore Walsh