Galway In Days Gone By

1917

Daring burglary

St. Nicholas’ Protestant Church, Galway, was broken into on Friday night or Saturday morning, and three poor boxes forcibly opened. An investigation of the surroundings of the church by Mr. Barret, the sexton, on Saturday morning, led to his discovery of a broken pane of glass in one of the stained glass windows, facing the Church Lane side of Mr. P. O’Gorman’s establishment.

The pane of glass only measured fourteen inches square, and was one of three of the same dimensions comprising the lower portion of the window, which is protected on the outside by closely interwoven and secured bars of strong wire. To effect an opening in the glass, the bard should be first broken, a task involving skilful manipulation.

The size of the broken pane suggests the probability – almost the certainty – of a young person forming one of the party of burglars. The sexton found three poor boxes rifled. Considerable force was necessary to accomplish this object, as the boxes are of substantial quality.

Strange to relate, the entire contents were not removed, inasmuch as 1s. 6d, 1s 3d. and a threepenny piece were found in them. The amount of money contributed weekly towards the boxes is a considerable sum, and it is believed that at the time of the burglary, the week’s contributions were practically lodged.

The police have been actively investigating the matter, but up to the present have failed to obtain any clue to the perpetrators.

1942

Mystery solved

The Lettermullen robbery mystery took a surprising turn over the weekend when two local women were arrested by Sergeant D. Colhoun on Saturday and charged in connection with the larceny of £52 from Mrs. Mary Conneely. It is understood that most of the money has been recovered.

It will be recalled that some weeks ago, three masked “men” raised the home of Mrs. Conneely (80) and her sister (75) and having broken open a press with a hatchet made off with all the old ladies’ savings. The Gardaí had reason to believe that the “men” were women in male attire.

Four more schools closed

As a result of four more active cases having been notified since Thursday last – this brings to total number to date to eleven – Dr. C.F. McConn, Acting County Medical Officer of Health, Dr. P. Geraghty, Acting Medical Officer, Spiddal, and their devoted staff of nurses have redoubled their efforts to subdue the typhus outbreak in Connemara.

Additional precautions taken since Thursday last include the closing down of Furbough Domestic Science School and Furbough National Schools, Knock Vocational Schools and Salerna National School.

Cork raid on Galway

The Cork accent will be heard in Galway and Mayo in the coming weeks. The Southern folk are searching for eggs. Heretofore Corkmen sometimes came in search of sheep and pigs. Farmers in Cork and Kerry who usually supplied the Cork market with eggs at this time of the year are now unable to do so, and a search is being made much further afield – very much to the disgust of Dublin firms who looked on the West as more or less their preserve.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.