Owner Joe has upgraded all the interior and exterior lights to energy efficient LED lights, added new signage and branding to reflect the new name, as well as a complete refit of the dedicated suits and wedding sections which are located on the first floor. He has sourced as many supplies and trades for the works done as possible in town, as keeping business local is very important to him.
 
Joe Ward Menswear will continue the family legacy of providing high quality men's clothing in store, and online at www.joewardmenswear.ie. With 11,000sq ft of space he has laid out specific sections dedicated to each collection of casual clothing, footwear, suits, and grooms wear to make browsing an easy and efficient experience.
Having worked alongside Michael for 25 years, since he was a teenager Joe is excited to be taking this next step. He has chosen established and rising Irish and international brands such as Penguin, XV Kings, Jack Jones, Remus Uomo, Helly Hansen, Benetti, Finch Hatton, Gardeur, Vichi, Clean Cut Copenhagen, A Fish Named Fred and Swole Panda to reinvigorate the shop. He also stocks children's suits for Communions, Confirmations and Weddings.
 
With music by John Mulvihill, food from Gullanes, special offers and giveaways. Joe's cousin Neil Molloy from Galway Bay FM's Mollie in the Morning was instore for the day, and even putting some of his previous experience as a Sales Assistant in Michael Ward's many years ago into practice!  - the Opening Day was a huge success. The website also relaunched on the same day after a refreshing upgrade 
 
He looks forward to welcoming everyone instore in the busy lead up to Christmas, and for wedding and formal wear fittings for 2023 onwards in the dedicated space upstairs. There's also a new Photo Memory Wall upstairs chronicling the history of the shop, the town and the family, take a look when you're next instore or passing by.
 
www.facebook.com/JoeWardMenswear
Instagram: @joewardmenswear

By Barry Lally

                        “To drink a toast,
                          A proctor roast,
                         Or bailiff as the case is,
                         To kiss your wife
                         Or take your life
                         At ten or twenty paces,
                        To keep game-cocks,
                        To hunt the fox,
                        To drink in punch the Solway,
                        With debts galore,
                        But fun far more;
                       Oh, that’s the man for Galway.”
 
Reputed to be the original of the protagonist in one of Charles Lever’s novels of rollicking adventures in the early 19th-century Irish countryside, Giles Eyre was born in Eyrecourt on 19th July 1764.
 
   According to family tradition, the first Eyres arrived in England with William the Conqueror.  In the course of time, they divided into two branches, one in Derbyshire and the other in Wiltshire, the former remaining Catholic at the Reformation, while the latter conformed to the Church of England.
 
   Two of the younger sons of the Wiltshire Eyres, John and Edmund, accompanied Cromwellian General Ludlow to Ireland in 1651. Edmund established himself in Galway town, eventually becoming mayor and giving his name to the city square.  His brother amassed large estates in East Galway, as well as other lands in Tipperary, Clare and King’s County.
 
   At first, John lived in the village of Clonfert before moving into Ballymore Castle near Eyrecourt, which had been confiscated from the Lawrences.  Eyrecourt Castle was built in 1661 on lands purchased from Sir Thomas Esmonde and featured a magnificently carved double staircase imported from Holland and occupying a third of the entire building.  John founded Eyrecourt village, which became a thriving location of the linen industry in the 18th century. 
 
   The Eyres were renowned for generosity, simple dealing and attachment to the countryside, earning a reputation as kind and considerate landlords whose estate in consequence was never subjected to agrarian outrages.  In matters of religion they were tolerant and quite averse to proselytizing, which probably explains why in 1700 they were instrumental in having a small group of Quaker preachers arrested in Eyrecourt and put in the village stocks before their eventual release.
 
 
 
   Another John Eyre, a descendant of the original, was ennobled in 1768 as Baron Eyre.  He was said to have lived “according to the style of the country, with more hospitality than elegance, for while his table groaned with abundance, the order and good taste of his arrangements were little thought of.”  In 1775 his only child, Mary, who had married Lord Charlemont, was drowned together with her husband and their young infant when their ship sank in a hurricane between England and Ireland.  A philistine who kept no books in his house, the Baron devoted his time to drinking claret and watching cock-fights. When he died in 1781 he was succeeded by his brother Richard, Giles’s father.  That same year the family was obliged because of debts to vacate the Castle and lease it to Michael Prendergast for close on a quarter century. 
 
   Giles’s education had been so sadly neglected that he grew to adulthood unable to read or write.  He seems to have inherited all his uncle’s vices and a few more besides.  A contemporary described him as “a great sportsman, a negligent farmer, and a most careless father: he looked upon a fox as an infinitely more precious part of creation than a French governess, and thought that riding well to hounds was a far better gift that all the learning of a parson.”  In 1792 he married Anne Daly, a cousin of the Trenches of Garbally, with whom he had two sons and four daughters.  Six years later he was appointed a Colonel of the Galway Militia and High Sheriff of the county.  He married secondly Sophia Walsh of Tipperary in 1806.
 
   His illiteracy notwithstanding, he entertained political aspirations, and in 1811 he stood for Parliament in the Galway constituency.  Despite, however, his incurring electoral expenses amounting to  £80,000, the equivalent of several millions of euros in today’s money, the voters of the county decided that as far as they were concerned Giles was not “the man for Galway” when they chose Richard Martin of Ballynahinch as their representative in his stead.
 
   To avoid process-servers, Giles would barricade himself at the top of his house, drawing up his food by means of a rope attached to a basket.  Another eccentricity of his was, when “flush”, to leave a plate of money outside his front door from which passing beggars could help themselves.
 
   If keeping 30 to 40 hunters, as well as three packs of hounds, was a qualification to be Master of the County Galway Hunt, then Giles certainly met that criterion, occupying the position from 1791 to 1829, the year before his death.  It was during his term in office that the Hunt became known as the Blazers. Legend has it that their new title was acquired following an incident at Dooley’s Hotel in Birr.  Giles and his companions had been entertaining members of the Ormond Hunt when, having dined “not wisely but too well”, they set fire to the premises before their departure.
 
   John Eyre, Giles’s eldest son, apparently continued the family tradition of financial irresponsibility, spending several years in debtors’ prisons.  The estate had to be put up for sale in 1854 with encumbrances of over £40,000.  Some of the lots sold were bought in for the family, enabling them to remain in residence at Eyrecourt.  John, aged 61, was killed in a fall from his horse while hunting near Kiltormer in 1856.
 
   William Henry Gregory, the last of the Eyres to reside at Eyrecourt, died in a Dublin nursing home in 1925.  By now the estate had dwindled from over 30,000 acres in its heyday to 620 acres.  The following year the beautiful Dutch staircase was purchased by Sir Charles Allom, a London interior decorator, who had it dismantled and shipped to California to be installed at San Simeon, one of the palatial residences of William Randolph Hearst, the newspaper magnate.  For some reason the plan was never carried through, and when Hearst died in 1951 the staircase was donated to Detroit Institute of the Arts where it remains to this day in its original packing cases.
 
   I leave the last word to a commentator on the fate of the landed class in Ireland, which applies especially to the Eyres:  “Profligate spending, too much enthusiasm for horses, dogs, card games and alcohol, all made the political ramifications of land acts and encumbered estate courts merely the finger that pushed this way of life into extinction.”
 
 
 
 

Rachel Goode our local, classically trained Soprano best known for her singing of folk, country and classical is organising a Christmas concert in the Shearwater Hotel with all money raised going to East Galway and Midlands Cancer Support.

She will be joined by two of Irelands finest folk singers, Sean Keane, and Eleanor Shanley, and the Ardscoil Mhuire school choir. The concert will feature many Christmas favourites, Irish folk favourites, country, classical crossover. There will be something for everyone and it’s for a good cause. They will all be backed by a fantastic band with some of the finest musicians in Ireland who have played with the likes of Mary Black and some currently with Derek Ryan. The Ardscoil Mhuire trad group will be there to serenade everyone as people arrive, this will start at 7pm.

This is now Rachel’s third big charity concert to organise locally, the first was for Galway Hospice which raised €4000, the second was back in 2018 for East Galway and Midlands Cancer Support Centre and it raised €6500.

“I am very excited to be joined by such a high calibre of singers and musicians on the night. I think it will be special and it will most definitely get everyone into the festive spirit. I hope that people will support this wonderful charity and come to what will be an amazing night of entertainment. I have always sung for many charity events over the years, and I like to try and give back as much as I can and have always enjoyed organising my own concerts, you just never know when you could need one of these wonderful organisations, so I think it is important to support these and the amazing work that they do.”

Rachel has some new music planned for the new year. She is now working on creating a “folk” sound that is unique to her. She will be working on this with the same musicians that will feature in the concert, and she is really excited to be recording a mix of folk, country and some other classics thrown in there.

The next big event for Rachel is performing on a cruise to Alaska where she’ll be singing with  the All-Star Irish Cruise with the likes of Daniel O’Donnell, Nathan Carter and Brendan Shine.

 The concert takes place on the 15th December at 8pm. Tickets cost €25 and are available online at The Magic of Christmas Tickets, Thu 15 Dec 2022 at 19:00 | Eventbrite  or in the hotel reception, cancer centre and Keller’s of Ballinasloe.

Donation to Ballinasloe Christmas Lights through www.shopballinasloe.ie
​
In 2020, a massive investment was made by the Ballinasloe community for the purchase of the new Installations.  Each year there are reoccurring costs involved for the installation, repairs, storage, insurance, and electricity which has been covered by a combination of fundraising (Christmas Raffle etc), business contributions, grant aid and donations.

This year we are not running a raffle but relying on the generous contributions of the local businesses and community.

If you would like to  contribute please choose the amount you wish to contribute and checkout securely using your debit/credit card. 100% of all funds received will go directly towards the costs of the towns Christmas lights.  Just CLICK ON THIS LINK TO DONATE

https://www.shopballinasloe.ie/product/donation-to-ballinasloe-christmas-lights/

Ballinasloe Christmas Festival: St Michaels Square 27th November 2022

The Christmas festival & turning on of the lights ceremony will kick off at 5pm on Sunday 27th November with live music and entertainment on the gig Rig at the top of St Micheals Square.

DJ Ben Parker will be playing Christmas tunes from 5 pm with music and dancing from the Ballinasloe town band and  the local National Schools, Scoil Mhuire Gan Smal (Creagh) and  Scoil an Chroí Naofa MC for the evening will be Buttons from this years panto Cinderella  who will be joined by the rest of cast and crew.  Mulled Wine will be served with Hot Chocolate for the kids. The Ballinasloe & District Vintage Club tractors will illuminate the streets again with their festive tractors before the Main Man Santa Claus will be escorted into the town by the local Fire brigade to light up our beautiful town Christmas Lights. 

We are expecting large numbers of children to come to see the lights, so to ensure everyone’s safety during this festive occasion Santa won’t be able to individually meet and greet the kids or give out any goodies as he will be rushing back to the North Pole to get ready for Christmas eve.

Ballinasloe Christmas lights is organised by BACD through the Ballinasloe Town Team/Christmas Lights Sub Committee:
​Anita Killeen, Ahmed Mukhtar, Aisling Dolan, Carmel Greally, Claire Healy, Colm Croffy, Emma Moynihan, James Burke, Julie Sheridan, Liam Kenny, Lyn Donnelly, Renate Kohlman, Seamus Duffy, Shane McNeill, & Val Colleran
 
This years lights are in Assocation with Ballinasloe Credit Union 
Any queries contact Lyn in Ballinasloe Enterprise Centre on 0909646516

Donation to Ballinasloe Christmas Lights through www.shopballinasloe.ie
​
In 2020, a massive investment was made by the Ballinasloe community for the purchase of the new Installations.  Each year there are reoccurring costs involved for the installation, repairs, storage, insurance, and electricity which has been covered by a combination of fundraising (Christmas Raffle etc), business contributions, grant aid (  Ballinasloe Credit Union, Galway Rural Development, Galway County Council)  and donations.

This year we are not running a raffle but relying on the generous contributions of the local businesses and community.

If you would like to  contribute please choose the amount you wish to contribute and checkout securely using your debit/credit card. 100% of all funds received will go directly towards the costs of the towns Christmas lights.  Just CLICK ON THIS LINK TO DONATE

All are welcome to the launch of the Killure Heritage Group's new book on Friday 25th November in Gullane's Hotel, Ballinasloe at 7:30pm
​
After the success of Killure–Kilgerrill: By Its People & Friends, published in 2010 and which won a Galway County Council Heritage award, Killure Heritage Group began working on a sequel, culminating in this work, Killure–Kilgerrill: Its People & Places.
 
The 726 page book’s focus is on the family history and genealogy of people in the Civil Parish of Killure-Fohenagh-Kilgerrill with its 14 townlands, as well as neighbouring townlands in East Galway.
 
Containing invaluable data on Parish baptismal and marriage records from 1827 to 1891, Information is also provided on land holdings with occupiers’ names from 1826 up to the 1970’s; updates on local graveyards; Killure chapel; and parish townlands and place names.
 
The larger houses in the area and their families from as early as the 17th century up to the present time, are described. It contains a chapter on law and order, which covers detailed descriptions of members of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) from the parish. Petty Session Court records from the mid-1850s to 1919 for the different townlands are analysed including court case descriptions.
 
A social history chapter contains interesting articles on topics such as: herds and shepherds, whose social class was relatively high - broadly equivalent to that of a tenant farmer; relief funds to alleviate hardship due to bad harvests associated with the near famine of 1879-1880; and arrears of rent of tenants owing to the local landlord (Lord Clonbrock) in Cloonigny, Killuremore and Killure Castle.
 
A major focus of the book is on families in the parish – 40 in all, which covers their family history, from earliest available records up to the 1970’s. Initial records were obtained from Parish registries, and from microfiche data in places such as the National Library of Ireland, the National Archives, the Galway County Library, and in Special Collections of the University of Galway Library. 
 
An emigration article tracks the emigration of around 150 people from the area who departed for America between 1884 and 1932 and in many cases includes their subsequent path. The book also traces the lives of those who stayed, mapping the connectivity of kinship and marriage between families of the parish to a degree that is perhaps unrivalled for a local history book of its kind.
 
Another substantial chapter contains extracts from a wide range of newspapers from 1837 to 1973 relating to the parish townlands as well as adjacent townlands of Lowville and Sonnagh. Old age pension applications from 1916 to 1921 are described which yield useful information from the 1851 Census returns (used to confirm age) that would otherwise have been lost due to the destruction of the Public Record Office in 1922.
 
Published with the support from the Ballinasloe Credit Union and from the Galway County Council Heritage Office, as well as from local Councillors.

“The Killure Heritage Group wish to sincerely thank the many people in the parish and beyond including several descendants of emigrants, for their invaluable inputs, as well as our sponsors and funders “ stated Chair Eamon Keogh.
 
The Book is available at Salmons; Concannons, Ahascragh; Gerry Croffy Garden Machinery, Killure Castle; Greenes Hardware, Ahascragh; Hickeys, Kilconnell; Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop, Galway; Kennys Bookshop, Galway and available on-line at https://www.kennys.ie.
 
Further information can be had from: [email protected] or through social media via www.facebook.com/KillureHeritageGroup

Family Carers Ireland has announced that the 2022 Galway Family Carer of the Year is Louise Mac an tSaoi from Ballinasloe.
​
Louise cares for her son Liam who has chronic lung disease, a serious metabolic disorder called PKU, autism and had his left leg amputated.