Thinking about that War, a hundred years on
During the past week I was thinking of the men of Kilcullen who left to fight in that terrible war, writes Jim Collins. Many of them never survived. They did not go to fight 'for King and country', but the sad fact is that most of them signed up for reasons of their own — economic, adventure, to travel to see a foreign land.
Kilcullen was a dull place 100 years ago. Just look at the Lawrence collection of 1901 photos in Bardon’s bar. In 1914, Kilcullen was surrounded by recruitment barracks so it was very easy to sign up, with the British Army HQ on The Curragh, Naas had the Dublin Fusiliers barracks, and Newbridge was a garrison town of the British Army. On the recruitment posters the war was given many names, 'the war to end all wars', the fight for the survival of Catholic Belgium, the fight for the freedom of small nations. Julie O’Donoghue has posed the question, isn’t it time to remember Kilcullen’s Great War dead, and the ones who were lucky to make it back home again?
I think we should. Many people have names and stories of these brave young men. We had The Gathering in 2013, could we have a project in 2014 to gather the stories of these men of 1914? I know some people who have often talked about this time and who would be willing to meet and record their stories.
Julie remembers a story from her extended family. My memory is about Jack Kearney, brother of 'Liner' Kearney. Both brothers worked for my grandfather John Collins in Kilcullen Corn Mills. It was harvest time and the mill was busy. Jack went missing for two weeks. My grandfather was hoisting sacks to the top loft in the mill when Jack re-appeared dressed in soldier’s uniform. He was asked 'where were you for the last two weeks?'. He saluted my grandfather and announced that he was off to fight in France. Then he took a new army penknife out of his pocket and cut his initials 'JK' into a beam in the mill rafter and off he went to France.
The following week news reached Kilcullen that Jack was dead. For 70 years I looked at Jack’s name on the mill beam. To this day I don’t know where he died or where he is buried.
If you are interested, text me, Jim Collins, at 087 2532874 and we could meet and work on this project. Now that the records are on line there is a lot more information available.
