Between - Doughcloyne , Togher

Phillipine House 1970s later Between

Criostoir De Baroid R.I.P.

Northern Children's Holidays was an organisation set up in the early 1970s by  Criostóir De Baróid which enticed people in Togher and Ballyphehane to open their doors and take children from Belfast for short periods during the initial stages of the conflict in Northern Ireland. Eventually the old S.M.A. house on Sarsfield Road became a central venue in the late 1970s before switching for a short while to the S.M.A. Centre in Wilton from 1981 before the S.M.A. Society offered Between the Philippine House in Doughcloyne , Togher circa 1982/83 for a 30 year lease with an annual rent of just £1. The House at the time was a derelict farm house with outhouses to the rear. It was at this time that the organization changed its name to Between to highlight its efforts in reconciling the different communities in Northern Ireland. Criostóir was instrumental too in connecting the Irish Governments Foreign Affairs department with Loyalist paramilitaries at the very early stages of the peace talks. He is extremely respected by the Republicans also.

S.M.A. house , Doughcloyne , Togher
now Cork ARC Cancer Support Centre

S.M.A. Centre , Wilton

View of old Philippine House with extension
Between 1982 - 2001

Between signage on roof of canteen/recreation room

View of gardens

Togher Historical Association made contact with some of the staff and volunteers from Between who recalled their time with the organization as shown below.

Ernest Curtis - Volunteer bus driver

Ernest Curtis Staff : " I was a volunteer bus driver but my entire family was involved in all aspects of Between. We famously buried two cars in the old playground which resulted in a couple of mounds becoming small hills for the kids to climb up on! "

Tanya Dineen ( Ernest's daughter ) - Volunteer babysitter

Tanya Dineen Volunteer : " I was going to between since I was about 9/10 so since 90' 91' till close. As I got a bit older I helped with the babysitting on the adult nights out and did anything that was needed regarding cleaning , getting things set up for the day or simply playing and entertaining the kids that were there for the week. "

Staff photo and visiting U.S. support group
Kindly supplied by Tanya Dineen

Paddy O'Reilly Staff : " I was employed as the gardener. The old orchard was completely cleared out and we installed a basketball court , swings and a pond. We put a large plastic owl on the top of the old stone wall to scare off birds from the pond. I relayed the grounds in front of the house and put in walkways , seating and raised flower beds. "

Paddy O'Reilly gardener

Owl on orchard wall/playground

Local Togher children playing in Between

Billy O'Brien Togher Historical Association
Old Orchard/Playround
16th April 2015

Between put huge investment into the renovating of the house and outbuildings to house, feed and entertain Republican and Loyalist prisoners families who would visit on a rotational schedule , ( with one week given over to Nationalists and the following week given over to the Loyalists and so on ) , teenage groups , travelers groups and old age pensioners from across the six counties during the height of the conflict and the early part of the peace process. The house and surrounds and gardens were developed and maintained by Paddy O’ Reilly and others employed under the first Community Employment Scheme. Over the lifetime of the Between organization they operated the house as a respite centre during the summer months for the families through the hard work of many volunteers across those years right up to 1997/8. Many great friendships were made and maintained. Between was also instrumental in building bridges between Loyalist and Republican communities at a time when the peace process hadn’t even started. The operation was wound down circa 2001/2 following the implementation of the peace process. A great many thanks are due to all the volunteers and staff who contributed so enormously to this fantastic project which operated in Togher for well over 25 years!

Volunteers from Cork at unveiling of Wall Mural

20th September 2014

Over the 25 years period more than 12,000 plus people were hosted by Between and the group was honored in West Belfast when the people of the area from the Republican/Nationalist/Catholic community invited many of the volunteers up to unveil a massive gable end wall mural dedicated purely to the people of Cork with the Between House/Philippine House and Bus painted in the mural. A Facebook page " Memories of Between " was actually set up by people from the Unionist/Loyalist/Protestant Community in recent years.

Gable end of house showing Mural

Criostóir and Isobel

**The bus driver shown in the mural above is Sean Canny R.I.P. and his family was invited up to the unveiling as were all volunteers and they were taken aback. It was a fantastic event. There was an exhibition of old photos at the local GAA club. People from the loyalist areas were invited and came over as well. Criostóir and Isobel two founding members alongside two community workers from the area are also in the lower part of the mural ( see above ).

Criostóir de Baróid ( behind woman in scarf ) 1970s
Visitors from Northern Ireland
Man on left was known as " Elvis "

Early 2002 the House and lands were handed over to the Fellowship , a group dedicated to helping people dealing with addiction. It continues to do this work to date. Sadly as part of their ongoing renovations , the old Phillipine House and Orchard/Playground were demolished in 2017 to make way for new builds. The blog was on site to record the event here.

Eamonn Pearse R.I.P.
Kathleen O'Keeffe 2017
Togher Historical association
Demolition of house

Complete interior old playground cleared
in addition to front orchard wall 2017

 

 Acknowledgements:

Paddy O'Reilly
Ernest Curtis
Tanya Dineen
Kieran O'Connell
Several images/wording used are copyright of respective owners

26th Fieldwork Trip - 16th June 2018 - Chetwynd , Doughcloyne & Lehenaghmore

On Saturday afternoon on June 6th 2018 , the Togher Historical Association undertook its 26th Fieldwork Trip to date. The plan was to visit some of Togher's eateries and also visit some of her more iconic locations. First stop was to the site of the former Chetwynd House off Meagher's Lane. Acting on information from the Togher Facebook page concerning its demolition , the group decided to investigate the location. Sadly what greeted them was proof positive that the centuries old structure was indeed now gone , in its place a heap of rubble to make way for a garden extension. This coupled with the former Phillipine House off Doughcloyne Hill saw two of Togher's oldest buildings erased forever within months of each other.

 Initial view of demolished Chetwynd House

 Outbuildings which formed courtyard with House

 Remains of Chetwynd House showing new build

Outbuilding at end of Meagher's Lane

Site of former Chetwynd House , Meaghers Lane

Next stop for the group was the site of the former Phillipine House now completely upgraded to the Fellowship House complex which is devoted to assisting those suffering with addiction. A brand new metal gate with the " Fellowship House " title cut into its frame guards the way to the site. Aside from some ancillary buildings constructed by AnCO in 1985 , everything else is newly constructed including an exact replica of the old Phillipine House. The old orchard walls have been pared back and its grounds excavated to house several buildings. This was a unique opportunity to photograph the grounds while still unoccupied.

Newly landscaped and tarmacced 

entrance lane to Fellowship House

New titular entrance gates to Fellowship House

 Replica build of Phillipine House

 Additional structure with titular signage on paneled facia

Angled view of new Phillipine House

 New ancillary buildings in old Orchard grounds

Front view of replica of iconic building

Upgraded Fellowship House off Doughcloyne Hill 

The group next headed for Applegreen on Togher Road to hand deliver a copy of the original placue for the old cottage school which was once sited at that location and which was damaged during construction of the garage. The proprietors of Applegreen are to shortly commission a replacement. Below can be seen an archive photograph of the original placue which hopefully will be reinstated soon.

Photograph of old cottage school placue

The group next made their to the gully by the Airport where the Glenmore River rises. The reason was to gauge the practicalities of attempting a climb down its ravine to video the area in question. Unfortunately it was deemed impossible given the dangerous overgrowth and the cordoning off of the location due to a private build which is in progress to its immediate left which will include a house , driveway and water treatment plant. It is planned to hopefully negotiate with the new owners in the future for a possible trip into the gully. A few of the blocks making up the hidden bridge under which the Glenmore River flows could be seen to have been dislodged. While there , a fun blast from the past presented itself in the form of a long trailing plant known to many Togher children as " stickybacks ". The name derived from the plants ability to quite literally stick to garments. The actual name of the plant is Cleaver and it is both a medicinal herb and an edible food used in salads.

 Stone Bridge all but hidden by overgrowth

 View of river concealed by heavy foliage

 Alternate view of bridge showing dislodged stones

Cleavers or Stickybacks growing near gully

Billy O'Brien posing with Stickybacks

The group next made its way to Stalks & Stems florist and Mad Hatters Cafe on Tramore Road but regrettably found the shop to be closing trade for the day. It is hoped to make a return visit again at an earlier time. It was decided to stop off for coffee at the Viaduct Bar and take in the ambience which included the famous viaduct of the same name and the wonderful Glasheen River which flows alongside.

Chetwynd Viaduct as seen from Viaduct Bar

Glasheen River showing culvert and rubble banks

Chetwynd Viaduct as seen from the Glasheen River

Frontal signage of Viaduct Bar & Restaurant

Scenic beer garden outside Viaduct Bar

Glasheen River near Viaduct Bar/Chetwynd Viaduct

The Fieldwork Trip concluded with a brief look at the now cleared site of the former Allan home on Doughcloyne Hill before viewing one of Togher's newest signs erected by Tidy Towns in the grounds of the Funeral Home on Sarsfield Road. Previously the sign had been removed but has since been reinstated and adds to the beautiful ambience of Togher.

Cleared site of former Allan House

Togher Tidy Towns sign outside Funeral Home

25th Fieldwork Trip - 9th June 2018 - New Fellowship House & Deanrock Site

On Saturday June 9th 2018 , Eamonn Pearse and Eamonn Twomey of the Togher Historical Association undertook the 25th Fieldwork Trip to date , by visiting the new Fellowship House complex at Doughcloyne Hill. The entire site had been upgraded to a high standard with the former Phillipine House being rebuilt as an exact replica. The old enclosed orchard had been completely leveled with the front wall removed and partially re-stoned. The site also boasted a new gateway entrance which added to the overall ambience. Eamonn Pearse photographed key areas within the location and also videod the various new builds.

 Gateway with new signage at entrance

 New builds with titular signage above wooden facia

 Replica of old Phillipine House with extensions

Close up of new Phillipine House with arched doorway

 Ancillary offices and outbuildings

 Rear view of new Phillipine House from courtyard

 Alternate view of new Phillipine House

Various outbuildings and courtyard

 Close up view of new builds

 Interior view of new builds inside orchard grounds

View of side exit from old orchard

Video of new Fellowship House site

Whilst the Fieldwork Trip was mostly concerned with the new Fellowship House complex , a quick visit was also made to the Deanrock site on Togher Road to view the progress of the newly named Shournagh Grove. It is envisaged that work will now be proceeding ahead in the very near future to complete Togher's newest estate.

Panoramic view of Deanrock site showing work in progress