Local Notes: Community celebration, Portlaw Heritage Centre, schoolgirl quiz, camogie celebration and more
Matilda pictured with her U16 All-Ireland camogie shield medal
It was a lovely morning, great to celebrate Peggy Cuddihy and Biddy O'Hanlon and all the great work they have done over the years, giving caring and friendliness in the SVP shop in Portlaw. Portlaw is lucky to have you and all the committee great people and Ann Nolan who has joined the ladies in the shop in the last years. There was a gathering of friends and well-wishers in the Community Hall where Fr Francis celebrated Mass. A presentation was made to Peggy and Biddy, the long-serving ladies at SVP by Asumpta Phelan, another great community person who is always willing to help, in recognition of the ladies and their tremendous work for the community.
The Heritage Centre Committee would like to thank all those who supported our events over the course of Heritage Week. Both our walks were a success and we welcomed visitors every day we were open. Over the course of the week we had the pleasure of talking with former tannery workers, visitors from near and far and even some from Australia. We also had descendants of Kennedy O’Brien, first Managing Director of Irish Tanners, join us on Saturday, August 23, as we focused on the 40th anniversary of the closure of the tannery. It was also a pleasure to meet with members of the Knockanore Heritage & Historical Society as well as members of the Clonmel Historical & Archaeological Society. We will be continuing with our work recording the story of tannery workers over the next year and building our website and heritage trail. For updates you can follow us on Facebook. Again thank you to all who supported our activities.
In many ways those us who live in Portlaw just assume that the canal and River Clodiagh have always part of the story of the village but, as we mentioned about eight weeks ago, the canal was built by the Malcomsons to service the site of the new mill and was completed around 1830. Located in our archives we have an account of the canal finding further use supporting the construction of the new tannery built in the 20th century. The engineer in the tannery, T.G. Kiely, realised that many of the original structures associated with the old mill were changing to support heavier machinery and different processes associated with the manufacture of leather. He had the foresight to record many of his observations and one of the clearest related to the nineteenth century canal lock gates. He was also interviewed by interested parties from further afield. One of these interviews noted… “The canal at Pouldrew has already been mentioned, but a similar canal at Portlaw was a much bigger undertaking. It was designed on the same lines, but was carried right under the factory building so that the barges loaded with cotton brought their cargo right into the centre of the factory, and the same barges could then be loaded with finished goods and would travel down the river Suir to Waterford. Mr. Kiely made use of this canal while renovating and altering the factory in recent years, and barges with fifty to sixty tons of sand and gravel were brought up to the factory by the canal.” We are lucky that included in his notes are hand drawings of the canal lock gates, the most recent copy dated 1960. Quite often what can be seen as simple notes can provide valuable insights into times past.
Our Minor and Intermediate Teams were treated to Pizza after training in our fantastic clubhouse. A nice little pick me up and team bonding for the girls. Thanks to Yilmaz in Portlaw Takeaway for supplying the pizza, he has been generous to also sponsor a player for the year. Thanks to the committee for organising, we are grateful as a team to have their support.
At our schoolgirls quiz we have two, signed Waterford FC jerseys to auction. One is from the first ever Waterford FC women’s team. The other is signed by the first team. Jerseys can be bid for at any time by contacting this page or any committee member. Auction will be done at our quiz. Please support our fundraiser.
With the poor weather Sunday morning, we made a last-minute decision to take our Wellkids group to World of Bounce and Mini Farm instead of training so that they could enjoy some fun time together and what a great morning we had. Well done everyone.
Congratulations to Matilda on receiving her U16 All Ireland Medal recently. Matilda was part of the Waterford U16 Camogie team who beat Offaly in Nowlan Park back in May, winning the U16 All-Ireland Shield. We are all super proud of Matilda. She is a wonderful person and a brilliant player, this is the first of many silverware we know she will receive in her playing career.
The trailer has just been released for 'This Is Not a Murder Mystery', a major new Belgian television drama partly filmed in the beautiful Curraghmore Estate, Portlaw, County Waterford. The production team chose Portlaw as one of its filming locations in 2024, making use of the town’s rich architectural and cultural heritage to recreate the glamour and tension of 1930s Europe. Local landmarks and scenery provided an atmospheric backdrop for several key scenes, showcasing the town on an international stage.
Soccer Tots for our younger stars on Saturday mornings 10am-11am €2 per session. Open to boys and girls. Come along for some fun and ball. Soccer Academy on Sunday mornings for boys and girls born 2015-2018.
