Tim O'Sullivan and George Hegarty

Tim O’Sullivan spent 67 years of his long life in Athy.  A Kerry man by birth he was an Athy man by adoption.  George Hegarty too was a man who although born in West Cork was an adopted son of the town of Athy where he lived for 47 years.  By the time they passed on, Tim last week, and George a few weeks ago, both had become inextricably linked with the life of our local community.

Tim as befitted a man from the Kingdom immersed himself in Gaelic games and was a member of the local Gaelic football club since 1937.  He once described himself to me as “an undistinguished football player”, but he did tog out for Athy juniors and on at least one occasion was a substitute on the senior team.  That single occasion was the first round of the 1942 championship which Athy went on to win later in the year, but by then Tim was no longer on the panel.  His forte was on the administrative side of club affairs and he served as a Committee member for some years from 1945 and in 1953 he was appointed Club Secretary.  Tim was later elected to the Geraldine Park Grounds Committee and served as Chairman of that Committee from 1961 to 1963.  More recently he was elected President of Athy Gaelic Football Club and a few years ago both Tim and Barney Dunne were recipients of club awards in recognition of their years of dedicated service to the development of Gaelic games in Athy.

George Hegarty is fondly remembered as the mainstay for many years of the men’s department of Shaws Department Store which he joined in 1957.  He was a very popular man, who like Tim O’Sullivan enriched the lives of the local people amongst whom he lived for 47 years.

For Tim O’Sullivan gaelic games was a passion and a statement of his commitment to the modern Ireland.  George Hegarty was no less committed and his engagement with the Country of his birth was founded on his earlier long term association with the Fianna Fail party and an even longer association with Irish Freemasonry.  This seemingly conflicting association posed no contradictions for George.  His involvement with the longest established Republican party in Irish politics was for George a measure of his Irishness which was reinforced by his membership of one of the world’s oldest fraternal societies.

George joined the Athy Lodge in 1957 and was Lodge Secretary for 30 years.  He was also a Provincial Secretary for some years and his service and commitment to the organisation was marked by his elevation to the rank of Prince Mason.  Some years ago I interviewed George for an article on St. John’s Masonic Lodge in Athy which was founded in 1840.  His openness and frankness in dealing with my questions confirmed for me that contrary to what I and many others had believed, freemasonry is not an anti-religious secret organisation. 

Tim and George came from different religious backgrounds and while Tim’s Irishness was that of the Catholic Gaelic tradition, George’s Irishness was no less traditional based as it was on his Anglican background.  In our small community religious diversity marks and shapes our daily lives.  Many of us attend different churches on Sundays and some of our social activities in midweek are centred around the churches of our choice.  This might make it difficult for many of us in the community to socially interact as often as we might wish to do but nevertheless it is that very diversity of beliefs which helps to shape the community’s common actions. 

George Hegarty and Tim O’Sullivan lived long lives, outliving in both cases many of the men and women with whom they had been associated during their younger days.  Despite their longevity and the fact that the days of their active involvement in the local community has longed passed their funerals were marked by the presence of representatives of all sections of the community.

My first memory of Tim O’Sullivan was of a white coated figure behind a high counter in JJ Collins’s chemist shop in Duke Street.  That memory was of some time in the 1950’s and throughout that decade and later Tim was ever present whenever Athy Gaelic Football Club was involved in matches in Geraldine Park.  He was a font of information on players of the past and always generously shared his knowledge and experiences with me.  Tim was a particularly good friend of this column and on several occasions he volunteered material of local interest and was always anxious and willing to help with answers to queries which arose from time to time.

With the passing of Tim O’Sullivan and George Hegarty yet more threads in the fabric of the town’s history have unravelled.  I was honoured to have been permitted some time ago to write an Eye on the Past on George and on Tim and so record and preserve in print some interesting aspects of the lives of these two engaging and interesting men who settled in Athy all those years ago.  May they rest in peace.

Over the October bank holiday weekend the Shackleton Autumn School will take place in the Town Hall.  The official opening will be in the Heritage Centre at 7.30pm on Friday and an invitation is extended to all and sundry to come along that night and if possible over the weekend to enjoy the various events.  The Shackleton Weekend started 4 years ago and has become perhaps the most important event of its kind in the Athy Calender.  It attracts lots of visitors to our town over the 3 days.  The official opening on Friday evening will be by Grainne Willis who this Summer became the first Irish woman to climb Mount Cho Oyu. 

Come along and have a glass of wine on the opening night courtesy of Athy Town Council which is generously sponsoring the wine reception.

George Hegarty

George Hegarty always seemed to be part of the Athy I knew as I grew up. Surprisingly he has only been with us since 1957.

Of West Cork farming stock George was born in the townland of Smorane, Skibbereen, where his brother still works the farm which has been home to Hegartys for seven generations. At an early age George was apprenticed to a draper and shoe merchant in his native town. In those days shop apprenticeships were much sought after and indoor staff, who lived over the premises, actually paid for the privilege of learning their trade. As an outdoor staffer who lived at home George earned 7/6 per week for the first six months. To younger generations unaccustomed to the intricacies of pounds, shillings and pence, his pay in modern coinage came to 37½ pence per week.

In April 1945 George was on the move when he got a job in Templemore. Staying only eleven weeks he moved further inland on being appointed Chargehand in the Boot Department of Goods of Kilkenny in July 1945. As a member of the indoor staff George lived over the premises with full board and a salary of £14.0.0 per year. Boots and shoes sold in those days were of the sturdy type, designed to last. Every home had an iron last used when reinforcing newly purchased boots or shoes with the metal heels and toe caps so prevalent in the 1940's and 1950's.

George spent three years in the Marble City before returning to Templemore in November 1948 to set up his own boot, shoe and light drapery business. Marrying the following year George was to spend the next eight years developing his business during the difficult years of the pre Lemass boom years. Giving up the unequal struggle in 1957 George came to Athy to work for Shaws as Manager in mens clothing.

In the late 1950's and well into the 1970's tailor made suits were all the vogue. A good quality suit cost sixteen guineas although a cheaper version was available for £12. Rolls of cloth decorated the shop shelves but the choice was limited normally to dark grey or navy with or without stripes. Customers were measured on the premises and the cloth was then sent to a local tailor or to Dublin to be made up. If made up locally all the trimmings were provided by Shaws. These included buttons, thread (including twist or heavy thread for button holes), heavy outer lining and inner lining of canvas, hair cloth or synddo. The local tailors included Mick Egan of Leinster Street, Tom Moran of St. Patrick's Avenue and John Connell of Prusselstown. Once made up the garments were returned to Shaws for a fitting after which final adjustments were made before completion.

The emergence of the ready made suits in the early 1970's hastened the demise of the town tailoring skills. George recalls how his boss reacted on seeing the first readymade suits which George had ordered for the shop. Made of shiny cloth material with narrow trouser legs they did not find favour with Sam Shaw who ordered them to be returned as "they will never sell". They were sold within a week leading to another order from George and the admission from his boss who was over 50 years in business "Hegarty, I have gone beyond it".

Up to the mid-1970's Athy was still a hive of business activity especially on Saturday nights with late opening until 9.00 p.m. George recalls many a Christmas Eve leaving the store with work colleagues at 10.30 p.m. after a long and busy day clutching Santa's toys secured at the last moment for his children Ivor and Anne. Stories of the same toys scattering around Leinster Street under the watchful eye of the local Gardai after a nocturnal visit to a well known watering hole are recounted with mirth and a wistful regret for times now past.