Jack the Bladder on St. Stephen’s Day in Mayo town
THOSE WERE THE DAYS: by Auld Stock
JACK the Bladder was the main attraction on St. Stephen’s Day in Castlebar sixty years ago.
The last man to play the part of ‘Jack’ was Paddy Feeney, Newantrim Street, a steamroller driver with Mayo County Council.
Paddy obtained a pig’s bladder in Castlebar bacon factory, pumped air into the bladder and tied it to a pole.
Starting from Lucan Street, Paddy chased youngsters through the main streets of the town.
The screams of the children could be heard all over the place.
Those who took part in Jack’s chase are now in their seventies but I am sure they retain happy memories from a time when all the world was young.
‘Leather’ Kelly on Rush Street
PATRICK Kelly owned a thriving leather business in Rush Street, Castlebar, in the early 1900s. He was known to his business associates and friends as ‘Leather’ Kelly.
He revelled in the name ‘Leather’ as he felt it enhanced his stature as a keen businessman.
There were three pubs in Rush Street in 1900. The pubs were owned by Alice Devany, Mary McNeill and Julia Barrett.
Matthew Flannelly had a butcher shop in Rush Street. The Flannelly families have a long association with the butchering and cattle business going back over one hundred years. I remember Flannelly’s butcher shop in Castle Street.
In more recent times the Flannellys had a butcher shop on Main Street, Castlebar.
One of the biggest business owners on Rush Street in the 1900s was P.J. Feeney, an undertaker, who had a large shop ‘where I sell everything under the sun,’ he boasted.
Order of Malta memories
THE Castlebar branch of the Order of Malta has given long and dedicated service to the people of the county town and surrounding areas.
Perhaps the best known member of the Order in Castlebar was the late Captain Johnny Cunningham, Breaffy Road, who, with his wife Mary and members of their family, was synonymous with many developments in the Order over a long number of years, including the building of the Order’s headquarters at Pavilion Road.
In earlier years Eddie Lynn led the Castlebar branch to many successes in competitions in different parts of the country.
Eddie was a great man for attention to detail and always ensured those involved in the Order of Malta maintained the highest standards.
Amongst those closely associated with the Order in Castlebar in 1966 were Michael J. Egan, John Mulcahy (Breaffy), Joe Foy, Christy Hoban, Johnny Mulvey, Joe Doyle, Séamus Lohan, Paddy Duffy, Eddie Lynn, Kathleen Walsh, Dr. Paddy Bresnihan, Pádraig Martin, Frank Durcan, Jim Brett and Dermot Lally.