1860 - Jailed for whiteboy outrage

1860 Jailed for whiteboy outrage A Kilbeggan whiteboy incident resulted in a three-year jail term for a man who violently attacked a man who had taken over a lease on a plot of land which a local family had relinquished due to high rents. John Daly was charged with violently attacking James Boake on January 15, 1860. The victim was the agent of the Grand Canal Company at Kilbeggan and about 7.30pm on the evening concerned, a man, identified as the prisoner, came to his house, gave a double knock at the door and entered the hall. The defendant asked for Boake and then made inquiries of him relative to the charge for a freight of potatoes and when a boat would leave Kilbeggan. The prisoner got witness into a corner and struck him a violent blow over the left ear. The servant girl came to his assistance, and Boake perceiving two other men in the vicinity with sticks, fled to the house of Laurence Hughes and sent for the police. The court heard the victim had previously taken land from Mr John Michael Ryan. After the victim had escaped, the raiders went into the kitchen and one was about to strike the servants, but another said not to strike the women. When leaving the building, one of the men said: "Let him not bring us here again, if he does he will not get off so safe." The prisoners was later arrested by a police constable and had in his possession a knotted stick with hair upon it. After the jury found the defendant guilty, Judge Keogh sentenced Daly to three years imprisonment. 1910 Athlone are county football champions St Mary's of Athlone were crowned senior football champions of Westmeath on March 6, 1910, after defeated Riverstown Emmets by 0-4 to 0-2 in the final in Mullingar. A special excursion train was placed at the team's disposal by the Midland and Great Western Railway company and a large crowed of supporters accompanied the team. The journey was enlivened by the strains of the local brass and reed band, which also paraded around Mullingar before the game. The Westmeath Independent said the result of last Sunday's match certainly will give a stimulus to Gaelic football and gaelic pastimes in Athlone such as it has not got for years. The paper continued that the club had carved out the victory "in spite of many difficulties and under the most adverse conditions". "Their efforts to preserve the national game have been afforded little encouragement in their native town." The 13-man team published in the paper was: W. Byrnes, T. Nolan, J. Quigley, H. Heslin, P. Henry, J. Murphy (captain), P. Shanny, D. Acton, J. Dunne, S. Jordan, J. Duddy, M. Coakley and A. Madden. The sides were level 0-2 to 0-2 at the interval but two points from Heslin and Henry secured a famous victory for St Mary's. Handsome building erected on town corner On Saturday, March 12, 1910, the Westmeath Independent reported that "a new premises erected at the corner of Church Street and Northgate Street was opened to business by Messrs Parsons, the structure as completed is a handsome and striking additions to the buildings of the town. The contractor was Mr Steel, Connaught Street and the architect was Mr C. E. Mulvaney. 1960 Boat Club anger at customs levy Athlone Boat Club was up in arms when the State customs service stuck its oar in on the matter of an imported racing boat, the Westmeath Independent reported in March 1960. The AGM of the boat club heard that the boat cost £270 and had to be purchased in England for the simple reason that such craft are not made in this country. Before the boat was delivered, the boat club were billed with an import levy of £123 which they were forced to pay to the State. The secretary P. Geoghegan told the AGM: "This boat was paid for entirely out of the funds earned through the efforts of the Club Committee. The need for this boat had long been felt and with its launching we can truly say we have rowing equipment second to none. "It might be pertinent here to protest against the penal import levy of £123 charged on this boat by the customs authorities. It is surely ludicrous to impose such a charge on an item which everyone would be only too pleased to purchase in Ireland if such boats were made in this country. We are constantly hearing about juvenile delinquency but it appears that one of the antidotes to this evil is to encourage sport in all its forms. Who will say that our Government is doing this when such excessive levies are imposed on sports equipment not manufactured in any case in Ireland."