S t. Joseph's
Church, Tinryland Carlow
Tinryland Church was originally built in 1819 by Father Tyrrell
(1823-46). in the style of Cruciform. J.K.L. (Bishop James Doyle) was
Bishop-Elect of the diocese when he consecrated the new church. It was
built on the site of a mud-walled chapel.
Church alterations took place in 1974 under architects Tyndall,
Hogan & Hurley, Dublin; building contractors were the Carbery firm of
Carlow. the three galleries with their stairs of stone were taken
down. A new sanctuary area was constructed and a new alter and
Baptismal font of Wicklow granite installed.
The Church by Peadar Mac Murcadha
c1996  In
the 1930's Tinryland Church was a haven of peace and quiet. I often
spent time of a sunny evening watching the effect of the sunrays
shining through the coloured glass of the narrowed windows onto the
altar. The white altar cloth would be covered in a magic collection
of blues-yellows-greens-purples-reds all mingled in an array of
mixtures giving hues of all shades that changed with the moving sun
as it sank into the west, leaving me mesmerized. The altar setting
for the forty hours adoration was something to behold. Candles of
all sizes and flowers by the armful arrayed in serried ranks with
hardly space between them to allow attention. The parish priest and
curate with a platoon of altar boys - candles all aflame, incense
rising to the ceiling, the monstrance standing on the altar
surrounded by, and reflecting the light of a million candles seemed
to give to us children a vision of heaven itself. The same church
however was nearly the cause of me losing my innocent faith in the
mystery and mystique of Catholicism. I had just started serving mass
on my own having been trained in the Latin by the schoolmaster and
on the altar movements by the senior altar boys. I was allotted a
place on the weekly roster to serve the daily morning Mass. I now
had certain perks one of which was that I did not have to be in
school until 10 o'clock instead of the regular starting time. This
was to enable you to go home after Mass for your breakfast. You were
allowed to serve at weddings, on the Bishop's visit, funerals, forty
hours and the May procession. Up to this you were only filling space
with no power. However, back to my threatened loss of my faith. When
serving and prior to that elevation of status I was always intrigued
by the tabernacle. No matter how many people came for communion the
tabernacle never failed to supply. It was simply a never-ending
source of sacred hosts. One morning I was serving the Parish Priest
when he turned around on the altar and beckoned me to come to him. I
rose and ascended the steps to his side. He placed his hand on my
head and told me to go to his house (a 100 yards away) and ask Molly
the housekeeper for the biscuit tin. Is he out of his mind said I to
myself? But a well-trained altar boy never questioned His Reverence.
I backed down the steps, genuflected and took off for the house.
Molly was at the hall door and seeing me in my altar boys attire of
black soutane, laced edge surplice and black altar slippers, came
towards me not knowing what to expect. I puffed out that His
Reverence wanted the biscuit tin and she apparently knew what to do
for she disappeared inside and came out with a small round tin of
about 8" diameter and about 2" deep. There you are now says she, run
with it, but do not let it fall whatever you do. I ran back up the
avenue, in the wicket door and up the steps to the sacristy door,
where with the devil's prompting I took a look into the tin. Holy
Moses it was full of hosts!! I nearly fainted with awe at what I
held in my hand. I had been trained to have the greatest
respect for the sacred host - "never, never touch it," said the
schoolmaster, not even with your teeth - "on your tongue only. Only
a priest can touch the host. It's so precious it can only be kept in
a gold or silver chalice in the Holy Tabernacle." Holy God what was
the world coming to when an altar boy would find himself with a
biscuit tin of Hosts. I slapped on the lid, entered the sacristy,
went out on the altar and handed the box to his Reverence. He opened
the box and filled the chalice, which he blessed and placed inside
the Tabernacle. For days I was dumbfounded until eventually I told
the schoolmaster who with profound wisdom put his hand on my head
and said, "You did what you did but the Priest has the power!".
A Little Bit of Our Heritage.
Recently the people of Tinryland have become more aware of their
heritage with the placement in front of the Church of the large
granite Baptismal font which came from Linkardstown Church. It is
centuries old and still in good condition and it provides a reminder
to us our entire Christian heritage and the faith of our forefather |
TINRYLAND
(Tigh an Raoireann; House of Raoire; A very ancient
name of a Royal Residence)
The Tinryland area is rich in heritage and culture, with its own
trove of treasures, most of which have been discovered and recorded down
through the centuries. The early records show that people lived in the
Tinryland area around the time 3700-3400 BC. These people would have been
the first farming type people of the Neolithic Period (New Stone Age) and
probably the first people to settle in the area. They farmed the land,
domesticated cattle, sheep and goats, wove textiles and made pottery.
Evidence of these people was found at the ancient burial site in
Linkardstown in 1943. The find consisted of a Polygonal stone chamber
paved with stones that sloped upwards and inwards. Inside was found the
remains of a single human, along with some pottery. The National Museum of
Ireland were notified of the find and the items found were sent away for
examination. This find was of immense archaeological importance and was
the first burial plot of kind found in Southern Ireland.
The heritage trail finder map in Tinryland village documents the
other areas of historical interest in the Tinryland area including the
locations of many castles, churches and graveyards.
While the Linkardstown Church and Graveyard is now in ruins, the old
stone baptismal font use at this church now stands on the grounds of St.
Joseph's Church, Tinryland and dates back to the 1700's.
Ballyloo Castle, only a fragment of which remains, was home to the
Kavanagh family and was built by Art Og Kavanagh of Pulmonty, King of
Leinster who died in 1417. This castle was the centre for the Kavanagh's
of Ballyloo until the arrival of Cromwell 200 years later. This castle was
a structure of four stories high with a view of the countryside in all
directions.
The site of Graiguenaspideog Castle was another Kavanagh home built
in the 1400's. Rumour has it that years later those near the ruins of the
castle claimed on some nights you could hear music, laughter, singing and
the clinking of crystal glasses very clearly in the background.
Another area of immense historical significance mentioned is the
ancient cross site of the Monastery of St. Willibrord of Luxembourg in
Clonmelsh, who studied in the area for 12 years.
Nearby is Clonmelsh Church and Graveyard where the ancestors of Walt
Disney and the Butler family are buried.
Pierce Butler of Garryhundon was one of the architects of the
American constitution and was one of its signatories in Philadelphia in
1788. He went on to represent South Carolina at George Washington's
Presidential Inauguration. He went on to become advisor to three
consecutive presidents and turned down a nomination to run for the
Vice-Presidency before his death in 1822.
The 1798 Commemoration Stone was erected on the main approach road
to the village on the 200th anniversary of the uprising in 1998. The
monument was built in honour of the locals who fought and died in the
insurrection and at the battle of Carlow in May 1798.
Source: www.tinryland.ie
TINRYLAND (Tigh
an Raoireann; House of Raoire; A very ancient name of a Royal Residence) -
The townland of Tinryland is located just 3 miles SSE of Carlow town, just
to the western side of the N 80 road. The townland's size of 545 acres is
a bit larger than the Irish average, but about normal for this part of
Carlow. To describe the shape of the townland, it looks like a miniature
state of Texas, about 1 1/2 miles north to south, and 1 1/4 miles in
width. The main town-centre area, with the church, school and several
other buildings is, in fact, in the center of the townland. Based on
aerial photography flown in 1995, there were about 60 houses and other
buildings in the townland. The land is relatively level, with a 60 to 70
foot high "hump" in the centre of the townland - where the school and
church are located. The boundaries of the townland are determined
primarily by small streams.
Parish of Tinryland Catholic Population in 2000 was 1,600. the name of
the parish church is St. Joseph's Church, Tinryland which was built in
1819 in the style of Cruciform. J.K.L. (Bishop James Doyle) was
Bishop-Elect of the diocese when he consecrated the New Church at
Tinryland.
Father Thomas Tyrrell P.P. Tinryland (1823-1846) played a very
important role in Co Carlow elections of M.P.'s in the 1840's to the
extent of erecting in Tinryland church a 'crib' to accommodate "the black
sheep who voted Tory". A stained glass window in the church commemorates
Thomas Keogh, and his wife Alice, and Lt Col. Myles Keogh from Orchard,
Leighlinbridge.
An archaeological find in Linkardstown in the 1940's proved to indicate
a stone burial plot from the period 2,500-2,000B.C. Hence such burial
places are known as Linkardstown-type burials.
Church alterations took place in 1974 under architects Tyndall, Hogan &
Hurley, Dublin; building contractors were the Carbery firm of Carlow. the
three galleries with their stairs of stone were taken down. A new
sanctuary area was constructed and a new alter and Baptismal font of
Wicklow granite installed.
Mr Paddy Dowling native of Linkardstown, passed away in Jubilee year
2000. He was chosen as "Carlowman of the Century by the Old Carlow Society
for his pioneering work in brining electricity to rural Ireland in the
1940's. Tinryland parish was one of the first rural parishes in Ireland to
be electrified and Tinryland church was the first rural church in Ireland
to use electric lighting.
(From a book called The Churches of Kildare & Leighlin 2000AD by
John McEvoy).
Tinryland - A Neolithic Inheritance
by Bernadette Scott
The parish of Tinryland has featured in the local and national news
throughout 1999 because of the public debate on the location of the
Carlow by-pass. The parish also featured in the news in the middle of
the century when a significant archaeological discovery was made. In
1944 a local farmer ploughing a field in Linkardstown discovered a
megalithic tomb containing the remains of a woman. The tomb also
contained a polished stone axe and decorated necked vessels. Other finds
like this were made throughout Leinster and Minister and are known in
archaeological terms as Linkardstown Cists. Why this spot was chosen as
a burial site is unknown but it does indicate that the early inhabitants
of this landscape were creative and artistic people and held a deep
sense of place. Everyone has a sense of place and this comes from the
way we think about places, how we identify ourselves with them and the
local character of a place. A sense of place can come from the social or
natural features in the landscape. Viewing a landscape or the features
in a landscape is not a value-free exercise. Our perception is
influenced by past experience, expectations and motivations. Therefore,
any place will have different representations for different groups and
individuals. We interpret a landscape and its meaning by relating it to
our own personal framework. The landscape in the parish of Tinryland is
a product of its past character in that it has been shaped by human
activity over the years. The countryside and the features of it were
developed to meet social and economic needs. The character of the area
has evolved out of a need to provide shelter and livelihood for its
people using the local materials, which include fertile agricultural
land, an abundance of granite, local skills and traditions. So the
features in this landscape as in any other reflect the interaction
between nature and culture. Many changes have taken place in Tinryland
over the past century and many changes are envisaged in the next
century. However, in the midst of the changes and improvements to the
quality of life for the community, we are in danger of losing the
intimacy with the landscape and the features of it. One of the main
threats is that the parish may be developed into a suburb of Carlow
town. The parish is also in danger of losing its unique character due to
the dominant cultural values of beautifying the countryside in the
cosmetic sense because the wild and natural are unacceptable and the
cultivated and structured are. Consequently, we are witnessing the
urbanization of rural areas. So bit by bit, year by year we are
destroying in the countryside that which attracted us to it in the first
place. The landscape in the parish of Tinryland has many features which
give the area its unique character. These features are part of the
social history of the area. One of the many features which distinguishes
the place for me is the roadside pump. The roadside pump has a nostalgic
quality because it reminds people of childhood days spent in the
countryside. The pump with its cow-tail handle - which is a distinctive
feature of Irish public pumps - is protected by four concrete pillars.
While the County Council maintains these pumps, no register exists
making it difficult to ascertain when they were installed. The pumps
were constructed out of necessity as they were an important source of
water for the local community. They are found all over rural Ireland and
were first introduced after the Great Famine. Although Tinryland was one
of the first rural areas to have electricity under the rural
Electrification Scheme in 1946, there was no running water in some of
the houses until 1972 when the County Council's water and sewerage mains
were provided to facilitate the housing scheme in the village. So the
pumps were widely used for domestic purposes in the recent past. The
protective pillars are the interesting feature. The stones surrounding
this pump are an example of the work of a traditional stone craftsman.
This rural craft has vanished but it informs the work of modern
sculptors. There are six granite pillars surrounding the pump -
originally there were eight. These granite pillars are a unique feature
of the Carlow pumps mainly because of the abundance of granite and the
local skills and knowledge. The vertical granite pillars are called
cliffs - the horizontals are called lintels and were placed in an
octagonal shape on the ground. The granite is an indigenous material
which probably came from a nearby field or quarry. The process entailed
the cleaving of the granite by a stonecutter using the traditional tools
of picks and wedges. The stone was then dressed by a stone-dresser using
a chisel and hammer and put in place by a stone mason. The likelihood is
that, in this case, the whole operation was carried out by one person. I
am attracted to the arrangement and pattern of the complete installation
and I put forward the following explanation. The eight stones were
arranged in a circle around a central figure (the pump). This is one of
the oldest religious symbols; the earliest is the sun wheel. This symbol
is found in different cultures throughout the world and is used to form
the solar calendar. In this case there are two circles - one vertical
and one horizontal resulting in a harmonious arrangement. The layout of
the stones and the pattern it forms suggests to me that this is not a
random arrangement but is an example of a spiritual dimension, albeit
held at a subconscious level, which is inherent in the work of all
craftspeople. It is also an example of how a previous generation of
people worked in harmony with the landscape and produced work of
artistic merit. Other examples are standing stones and rock art which
are found throughout County Carlow. This community pump with its
protective pillars is now a sculpture in the landscape but was not
originally constructed as such. It was installed for a purpose but has
marked the character and uniqueness of this area. There is much debate
about art in public places and Carlow has many fine examples of modem
public sculpture. However, it is important to be aware of the art and
craft which connect us to the past. The pumps are a feature of Tinryland
and it is hoped that they will remain here and not in a museum or
heritage centre. They may not be considered of major monumental
significance but are relics of rural domesticity and are part of the
social history of the twentieth century. The stonework surrounding the
pumps presented an opportunity for artistic expression for the local
craftspeople. The creative and spiritual dimension in the work reflects
the interaction that the earliest inhabitants had with this landscape
going back to the Neolithic period. This is what makes the parish of
Tinryland a unique and special place.
References: Aalen. F.H.A. Kevin Whelan. Matthew Stout, (eds.) (1997).
Atlas of the Irish Rural Landscape. Cork University Press.
Source: Carloviana - Millennium Copy
Tinryland memories from the 30’s
by Peadar Mac Murcadha
I must say I have many pleasant and happy memories of my childhood
growing up around Tinryland in the 1930's and early 1940's. I lived with
my grandparents, Peter and Kate McMorrow at Mac's Cross which is the
junction of the Arms Road, the Ballybar Road, Ballinacarrig Road, and
the Chapel Road. : They had a small shop on the junction of the Arms
Road and Ballinacarrig Road. Tom and Kate Dempsey lived in a house on
the junction of the Arms Road and the Chapel Road. The Priest field with
its majestic beech trees bounded the Chapel Road junction with the
Ballybar Road while Dowling's field with a lone sycamore tree bounded
the remaining junction of Ballybar Road and Ballinacarrig Road. This
latter junction was bounded by a hedge from whence grew the lone
sycamore at the crown of the comer. Beneath the tree on the roadside was
a grass bank in which was set a small flagstone on which cards were
played in the long summer evenings. The Priest field had a stone wall
inside of which stood the beech trees, from one of which was strung the
aerial serving the battery wireless in my grandparents home. From the
cross I could see the Clogrennane hills and in the summer evenings often
watched the white plume of steam curl up from passing trains on the
railway line between Milford and Carlow. One could also hear the
putta-putta sound of the passing canal barges on the river Barrow. Local
men regularly played "Nap" and "Solo" beneath the sycamore during the
summer months and in Dick Hayden's house during the winter. The younger
men often played pitch and toss under the canopy of the beech trees on a
Sunday and during summer evenings. Regulars met under the beech trees
after Mass (II am) on Sundays the whole year round, discussing crops,
harvest, ploughing, and community gossip, driving many a wife to
distraction trying to keep the dinner warm for her gossiping husband. My
grandparents sold Paraffin oil, Candles, Clarendon meal, Oatmeal,
Washing soda, Bread soda, N-K-M toffee, Palma and Fry cream chocolate,
Half-time Jimmy chocolate, Peggy's leg, Bread, Cigarettes, Tobacco,
Snuff, Biscuits in small paper packs and Minerals. The bread was
supplied by Slaters and McDonalds both of Carlow and Paisley of
Tinahely. It was the Oil deliveryman who brought the news of the Pope's
death and also of the passing of the English Monarch. The four roads
were water bound sand and gravel and the only place to spin a top was
the flat tombstones above at the Chapel providing you avoided the Priest
or the grave owner. You could also spin a top at Kane's Cross or
Jordan's Cross on the Carlow/ Wexford Road as it was tarred, but not as
good as the limestone slab on the grave, where your top spun so fast it
seemed motionless. Such a top was said to be sleeping!. The
Schoolmaster got the daily paper, which was delivered by the postman on
his rounds. The time of delivery depended on the postman's weight of
delivery but generally coincided with our 5-minute midmorning break. In
the summer evenings the schoolmaster would. with paper under his arm,
arrive at our cross and read the main items of the paper out loud for
the benefit of the locals gathered there. He would often say "If you
read the leading article and understand it you could hold your own in
any company". Often on a Saturday during the year he would take you in
tow on his stroll and educate you in the grasses, sedges, wild flowers
and weeds along the hedgerow. He would name all the birds and often took
us down the Black Bog to watch the snipe twist and turn in flight when
disturbed. I have many other happy memories of Tinryland at that period
of time. It was a great spot to grow up in childhood and I pray that
today's scholars are as happy as we were then.
Peadar Mac Murcadha now resides in Galway.
Source: Tinryland Emigrant’s Letter c1996
More Stories from the
Tinryland Emigrants Letter