San Ray , Togher Road
On Thursday afternoon 6th December 2018 , the Togher Historical Association paid a visit to the home of Mrs. Frances Dalton on Togher Road. She was joined by her daughter Sandra and for the next hour took the team on a trip down memory lane to a Togher now long gone. Their house is named after the two siblings Sandra and Ray , hence San-Ray. It is part of a privately built section of Togher Road between Edward Walsh Road and Rose Lawn comprised of two Dutch Bungalows with four additional one storey bungalows. The other part of the privately sold plots comprises the part of Ardmanning Hill between the Russell House and the corner of Edward Walsh Road.
Dalton house on Togher Road
Originally the Dalton family lived on Father Matthew Street in Cork City. Ironically their neighbor Mrs. Healy who hailed from Gurranabraher was soon to become the same again in Togher. A private building scheme was enacted for a section of Togher Road on land formally owned by Paddy Long and known as Togher Farm. This stretched from the Russell house on Ardmanning Hill down to the now entrance to Rose Lawn ( built in 1965 ). The Corporation gave tradesmen the option of buying a site with a 3% down payment of the overall asking price which had to be paid back in 10 to 12 years. This translated into £7 a month. If the mortgage was repaid earlier than this a sum of money as a bonus was paid back. So it was that the Daltons ( Carpenters ) and the Healys ( Electricians ) built their two homes together based on plans submitted to an Architect. All of the adjoining sites were quickly sold off and soon buildings of radically different designs appeared on the landscape. Frances hailed originally from Vicars Street and went to St Mary's of the Isle school and later worked in O'Gormans hat factory in Shandon. Her Husband Charlie Dalton was from Tower Street and was a qualified Carpenter later becoming a Joiner.
Mrs. Dalton Togher Road 1962 to present
Togher in 1962 was undergoing rapid change and the Dalton's were witness to it all. When they first arrived , there was no Edward Walsh Road or Vicar's Road. Ardmanning Cottages ( which occupied the road frontage from the now corner of Rose Lawn up as far as the now turn off onto Vicar's Road ) were their immediate neighbours with the Kerry Yard and Hosford's Farm directly across the road from them. Sandra celebrated her first birthday in her new home soon after settling in. Both children attended Togher National Schools , with Ray attending the old school while Sandra later went to the new Girls school which had been built in 1961. One of Mrs. Dalton's earliest memories is of Mr. Kelly , Principal of the boy's school scouting for pupils and knocking on her door inquiring about the children's ages. When told that Ray was only three years old , he asked her to quickly register him for school. This was an informal affair with the stipulation that the child bring with him the following , a pencil and jotter , milk and a slice of bread. Ray had Ted O'Sullivan as teacher from Junior Infants right up to 6th Class! Mrs. Dalton recalls the radical difference between the two schools. The boys had no running water and dry toilets whilst the girls had tapped water and flush toilets including radiators. The younger boys were sent out to gather firewood for the stove and the older boys collected water from the pump located outside the school wall which was handed back in a train of hands to be emptied into the cisterns which they had to fill on a daily basis. Children from Lehenaghmore would bring fresh milk to the school for
lunch and they would toast bread on the fire stove. The original two rooms of the school were later divided
into three smaller rooms due to the high number of children now attending. Playtime after school for local children on Togher Road was a trip down Summerstown Lane to the Heighties after which they would return wearing daisy chains.
Frances mentioned that back in 1962 , Edward Walsh Road and Vicar's Road did not yet exist so access to Pouladuff Road was by either Pearse Road or Tramore Road. She remembers a neighbour from Ardmanning Cottages named John Buckley. She has many memories of Henry Hosford ( who lived on the opposite side of the road behind a high stone wall ) and his family including Mrs. Hosford carrying heavy crates of milk down the laneway to the roadside for collection. She also recalls the time when the land was sold and the Hosfords were leaving their former home. They were literally left on the roadside while trucks arrived to take away the cattle and the old house and walls were demolished in little or no time. The remaining buildings on the land , including Clashduff House , the Kerry Yard - a small compound of stone houses - Bannion's and other smaller buildings were knocked soon after. Frances recalls that the Corporation brought in a French explosives expert to blow up the Mountain ( rocky outcrop on Hazel Road ) but that he gave up after several failed attempts! Mrs. Dalton also officially clarified the anomaly that is the triangular section of road which tapers off from Rose Lawn entrance ( see photo below ). Ardmanning Cottages which were finally removed circa 1970 and were sited to the right side of entrance to Rose Lawn prevented the widening of Togher Road towards Carmelville House. However by the time of the removal , the developers decided to cancel the road widening and a green with footpath was set down instead.
Togher Road 1967 view across from San Ray
Ray & Sandra at Nan's house in Tory Top Road , 1960s
Immediately work began on the new housing schemes which lasted up to 1971. The scheme went under the name of Ardmanning Beg and as soon as a terrace was finished new residents arrived to fill them. Such was the demand for housing , that families were living in a virtual building site , as the Direct Labour unit of Cork Corporation forged ahead with erecting homes as quickly as possible. Frances remembers Togher Square ( began in 1968 and finished the following year ) was originally meant to be three rows of terraced houses but due to the high demand for accommodation , the Corporation decided to include maisonettes ( ground floor units with two story units and balcony above them ). A row of one bedroomed apartments were constructed at the entrance to Sycamore Place for senior citizens living on their own.
Togher Road 1968 view across road from Rose Lawn
Frances recalls a Priest in Lough Church approaching her to ask her to join a
committee to collect money for a new church in Togher. Mrs Healy , her
next door neighbour went through her phone book to ask factories and
businesses for donations. Mrs Dalton was given the task of calling to
neighbours from Ardmanning Hill down to Rose Lawn for donations. A
shilling per household was the going rate. Charlie managed to acquire the hall in City Hall
free of charge for a bazaar. The gentry and Corporation officials in
robes arrived and around £4,000 was collected from them that day! She
also recalls how Fr. O'Connor would have all the women in Togher Square
go out and sweep the square to have it clean for mass on Sunday! Frances recounts how her husband Charlie worked on many Grottos around Togher. She remembers there used to be an old grotto next to Murphy's at end of Manning's Lane , the statue later being reused for the new grotto in Deanrock Estate ( see below ). Charlie
later built a grotto off Edward Walsh Road plus one off Marieville. Mrs Dalton used to joke he
would become the next Pope or that he was going around thinking he was St. Peter.
Grotto in Marieville Togher
Grotto ( a.k.a. Devils' Rock ) under construction in 1988 in Deanrock
Sandra Dalton was chairwoman of the Teenage club when she was 16 or 17 ( roughly 1978 ). The Teenage clubhouse became known as the " snot in the bog " due to its timber being painted in green. She recalls how Fr. Hodnett went off to Lourdes and gave instructions
that the Teenage club was to be closed while he was away. However Fr.
Daly was unaware and a disco was held for the children of Between. He was
not happy when he came back! A sculpted wooden hand was presented to Togher Teenage
club by lord mayor Paudie Black in 1981 as acknowledgement of their fundraising
efforts for various charities which Sandra proudly displays in her home. Togher Teenage club gave money to buy the first four
beds for Marymount hospice. Many years later following Fr. Hodnett's departure from the Parish, the Togher Teenage club presented him with a placue. Following his death a few years ago , the placue was discovered amongst his effects and offered to Sandra.
Sandra Dalton with 1982 Fundraising Award for Teenage Club
Remnants of Ardmanning Cottages circa 1970
shortly before demolition
In 2019 , Sandra travelled to South America with her family to meet her brother Ray who had settled there many years previously. This entailed a surprise visit arranged beforehand and was captured on video ( see below ) by her daughter Megan for posterity. Ray trained to be a priest at St. Patrick's College in Maynooth but later left and now lives in South America. Sandra is a professional hairdresser.
Togher Historical Association would like to thank the Dalton family for sharing their memories of Togher which now spans almost 60 years and for giving an insight into a Togher which now seems so distant but for also enlightening people on an ever changing landscape.
No comments:
Post a Comment