Huge turnout and much learned at heritage walk in Thomastown - Kilkenny Live

A large and enthusiastic crowd gathered on Sunday for a historical walking tour of Thomastown, led by local historian, Joe Doyle.

The tour began under the town bridge, which was only recently (2015) named after Nicholas Mullins - shot by the British Forces in 1921 in what became known as the Coolbawn Ambush.

The present bridge dates from the late 1700s but before that, it would’ve been of wooden construction, located closer to Sweetman’s Castle, and was regularly damaged by flood waters.

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The most serious incident was perhaps in 1763, where the flood water destroyed the bridge, sweeping it away, and also carrying away the houses in nearby Weavers Lane - causing the death of 18 residents.

Thomastown, in its current location, replaced the earlier settlement of Grennan (where Grennan Castle is located), and takes its name from the Anglo-Norman mercenary, Thomas FitzAnthony.

The town began to thrive at the end of the 13th Century, evidenced by its town wall, which Doyle noted was not necessarily constructed for ‘defensive’ purposes, but moreso to regulate trade coming in and out of town.

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Standing remains of the wall are still present in the town, and extensive research has been carried out on the matter by members of the Thomastown Walled Town Society.

Thomastown was shaped in more ways than one by the river. Prior to the arrival of the railways, cargo ships up to 16ft long were pulled by ropes from the river bank back and forth from nearby Inistioge.

The rate of pay for completing a trip was (at one stage) eight pence, but many labourers opted to pull cargo just half of the way, and were given half the compensation - four pence.

As a result, the halfway point on the route is marked by rock known up until today as the ‘four penny rock’.

As the tour moved further into the town, Doyle gave some fascinating accounts of many of the well-known families that have inhabited Thomastown over the years - before moving on towards the Sessions House.

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There, Doyle touched on various historical aspects of law breaking and law enforcement, where issues were dealt with through a system of local courts.

Thomastown Petty Sessions Courthouse and Bridewell date from the early 1820s. They replaced an earlier courthouse – the building with its gable facing onto Maudlin Street.

A few steps up the road are the remnants of the Geata Buidhe, or Yellow Gate. Entry from Kilkenny to the medieval walled town of Thomastown would’ve been through this gate - which would’ve been situated at the lower end of Maudlin Street.

Before the tour made its way into the Church of the Asssumption, Joe stopped to tell the story of Texas empresario James Hewetson (born in Thomastown).

Another key figure of local interest mentioned during the walk was William Shee, who in 1864 was made Justice of the Queen’s Bench, the first Catholic to hold the role since the Reformation.

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A wealth of historical facts and information was delivered inside the church about the religious buildings in Thomastown over the centuries - as well as the story of the beautifully-carved oak statue of the Madonna and Child from the 1600s.

Access was then granted by Joe to the old cemetery nearby where the previous church was located (only the belfry remains today).

There, an informative talk was given on the lives of Nicholas Mullins, John Murphy and John Phelan, at their respective headstones.

Murphy and Phelan were executed on the same day during the Irish Civil War while Mullins, as mentioned, was shot by British Forces - three weeks before the truce of July 11, 1921.

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