Our first outing of the summer : Portlaw.

We met at the Heritage Centre, as planned.

After Ger Crotty explained how the centre was established, he proposed to bring us on a tour of the town centre. We walked along the river Clodagh and the canal which was built to bring raw materials to the factory. In the distance, the Presbyterian and the Catholic churches.

We followed Ger Crotty and Willie Power, and tried to picture Portlaw in its glory days,as they pointed out to us landmarks, buildings, details ofarchitecture linked to the development of the factory town.

We visited the Church of the Holy Trinity built in 1851 in the Gothic Revival Style.

Back in the Heritage Centre, Ger and Willie told us more about the more recent past of the town, and we were able to look at various documents on display

Outings Season Starting Soon

With the stretch in the evenings, we will now be able to enjoy our summer outings - and hope for reasonable weather!

The first outing of the season will be a visit to the Portlaw Heritage Centre on Thursday 2nd June at 7.15 pm, where we'll meet Mr Ger Crotty and Mr Willie Power.

There are still a few places remaining for our coach trip to the Boyne Valley on Sunday 19th June. Anyone interested, please contact PRO Michael Maher 051 87 84 69 for details.

April Lecture: Faction Fighting - Munster Area

The last lecture of the Spring season will be delivered by Mr Michéal O hAodha on the topic Faction Fighting - Munster Area on Friday 29th April 2011. Venue: Waterford Museum of Treasures at the Granary, Hanover Street.

WAHS Committee 2011-2012

The election of the new committee for 2011-2012 took place during the AGM on Thursday 7th April 2011.

The following officers were elected:

Chairman: Fergus Dillon

Vice-Chairman: Eddie Sinnott

Hon. Secretary: Béatrice Payet

Hon Treasurer: Tony Gunning

PRO: Michael Maher

Hon Editor: Donnchadh O Ceallacháin

Committee:

Ben Murtagh ex officio

Séamus Reale

Erica Fay

Sean Caulfield

Kevin hall

George Kavanagh

Sonny Condon

Jim F. Walsh

Annual General Meeting - Change of Date

Members please note that the AGM has been postponed to Thursday 7th April 2011. Notices are being sent to all members along with a booking form for the trip to the Boyne Valley for the month of June. Apologies to anyone who didn't get a booking form, this is being rectified straight away by the Hon. Sec.

March Lecture: Mr Eddie Synnott on 'The Campile Bombing'

On Friday 25th March 2011, Mr Eddie Synnott, committee member of WAHS and Chairman of the South Kilkenny Historical Society, will lecture on 'The Campile Bombing in 1940: An Accident or Deliberate Bombing in a Neutral Country?'

Saint Patrick's Day and Waterford Connections

In the mid-seventeenth century, the 17 March became a Holiday of Obligation in the Catholic Church. Already celebrated by the Franciscans, Saint Patrick's day was included among the official saints' days by Waterford-born Franciscan Luke Wadding, appointed to the Congregation of the Breviary in Rome.

Wearing of the shamrock and pota Phádraig (drowning the shamrock) were the traditions, and the heavy drinking on that day remained cause for concern through the eighteenth and nineteenth century. There was then a movement to make Saint Patrick's Day a National Holiday, with the implication that all businesses, including public houses, would close for the day. This was adopted in 1903. Here is a letter, in which Waterford Corporation declared that on Saint Patrick's Day, no business would be conducted in the city.

For full article, see Decies 65, pp107-109.