Art O’Leary (aged 61)

I paid a visit to the home of Art O’Leary, who informed me that the townland, Ballinagrane, translates as ‘the townland where the sun always shines’. Art is a retired schoolteacher who spent five years of his life studying for the priesthood. The recording began with stories of his upbringing in Graiguenamanagh, the family bakery there, and the contentment and happiness enjoyed by his family despite their lack of material possessions. We walked down a passageway towards the banks of the Barrow, and the beautiful sunny autumn morning provided the perfect background to Art’s reminiscences on his family history, which included stories about John O’Leary, President of the Archaeological Society in Kilkenny, and John O’Leary’s sister Kate, known as ‘Kate the Poet’.