Joe Torpey

Joe was a member of our History group from the very beginning and we sadly miss him since his passing, may he rest in peace. His serene countenance, his straight upright stature and his vivid memories of bygone days were a well of knowledge that he loved to share with us each night we met. He had knowledge of nearly every family in the parish as he started work at a very early age. He was an invaluable contributor to many articles on parish life and he is always the ‘go to man’ when old records need to be clarified. He was born in 1934, into the Torpey household in Donail. His memory of his first day at Burrane School is still a stark reminder of days best forgotten except for the school pals and mischief they were capable of getting up to. A twinkle used come into his eye when he recalled some of those escapades. Below are a collection that we have saved of but a fraction of his stories.

‘In the mid-forties I used to go to Knock on Saturdays to meet the Barrett brothers Jack and Tom. We were in the same class at school. We would play ball for a while joined by a couple more of the same age group at that time. A company were cutting part of Kilmore Wood. There would be a ship from Limerick tied at the pier with young men from the village employed. There were two C.I.E. lorries drawing the blocks of wood, suitable for firewood, which were split and ready for the range. One of the drivers was a neighbour of mine, Senan Murray. The ships would carry one hundred and twenty tons to Limerick. We would all go down to the boat watching the lorries and the work which was going on. The blocks were thrown in to the ship by hand. Most of the timber was staying at the port side of the vessel. The Skipper would come up to us and ask if we wanted a job. He would tell us to throw the blocks to the other side. We would be throwing blocks for about two hours. When we would see the Skipper going down the stairs to the Kitchen, we knew our reward would be coming soon. He would come up the stairs carrying a tray with slices of baker’s bread spread with strawberry jam.

From the age of eight, I joined the Culligan/Hogan family of Burrane as a helper on their busy farm. My chores included, milking cows, tackling the horse for the creamery, helping at the hay, which entailed using a fork to turn the hay, make and head the trams, pulling the butts (loose hay at the bottom of the tram), putting on a cord to protect the tram from the wind. This early start at working left me very little time for school or home- homework.

In 1950, I went to Barry’s Forge in Kilrush as a farm hand. Many Kilrush business people, like Barry’s, had land adjoining the town and would sell milk to the people of Kilrush. I recall Rushes, Clancy’s (Raymond), Moody’s (Jack and Tom) and O’Connell’s all of whom had cows.  There was no organised milk deliveries back then, just a tank with a tap on a horse and cart that measured into a customer’s pint jug. Mrs Barry, an astute businesswoman conducted a drapery business at the corner of Lower Moore St, opposite Kennedy’s. She would travel to Dublin to purchase goods for the shop. Her husband, Marty, had a forge where many locals like Paul Keating, Kilcarrol and John Burke, Moneen, served an apprenticeship to acquire their skills. I lived at Barry’s and did not get much free time to return to Donail but I and the others who worked there were well cared for, once we were prepared to work hard, that which included the milking, the bog and the garden. When Mrs Barry died in 1956 the business closed and I bought their pony and car as I had a job procured in Kilrush Wood, carting felled trees to the road, not easy work.  

I worked for Mary and Joe McInerney on their Donogrogue farm from 1957 to 1961. It was a very busy farm, with 80 cows to be hand-milked by four people twice a day. It was one of the first farms in the locality to make silage. Back then the silage had to be forked into the tractor and out again. Kale was grown in the ‘Brick Field’ which, when cut had to be forked into a buck rake even in bad weather. The milk was sold in Kilrush and Cappa and I helped out on the milk round.

In 1961, I decided I needed a change of scenery and I went to work for Tom Williams of Kilrush. Though they had no cows, the usual farming tasks ensued. I spent seven years at Williams’s and returned in 1968 to Donogrogue Castle.  The new mechanical era was well in motion by then, I now delivered the milk by lorry. The lorries of that time were of a different style to the present day lorries, I got to know the highways and byways of West Clare from Kilrush to Kilkee to Lahinch to Ennis. Dairying duties were all part and parcel of life at ‘The Castle Dairy’, which became its adopted name in later years. I worked side by side there with many locals. The social side of life was not neglected with plenty of fun and banter among the workers.

I again changed employment, ploughing with Michael Meehan, Clooneylissane.   I did many tasks to ‘earn a crust’. In 1977, I joined the Clare County Council where I spent 21 years. This was a great decision as I got to retire with a pension and enjoy restful days walking my dogs, reading, and catching up on local and world affairs through the media of TV and Radio.’

Looking back on Joe’s recollections, we realise he was always happy to help out a neighbour, as he speaks of happy days spent with neighbours especially Tommo Lucas and visiting neighbour Mrs Pete Cunningham.