That Beats Banagher Festival draws large crowds to Offaly town

ON Saturday there was an intermittent sprinkling of rain as the blacksmiths set up for the Banagher Furnace Festival, organised by James O Connor.

Despite the rain the fires were soon lighting with the help of a variety of bellows. The scent of charcoal and reddened steel soon pervaded the air in the Bridge Barrack Yard which was a whirlwind of sound from hammers on anvils. A very large crowd assembled to view this ancient art and craft whose exponents are all working blacksmiths.

Paul Prondelez, a Belgian who lives in Macroom, conducted tours of the many working blacksmiths. He wants to train local people and has secured a grant from the Heritage Council. Banagher being in the centre of Ireland and easy to access would be an Ideal location for an annual festival. Paul explained that using bog iron ore from nearby Coolderry Bog, they were able to smelt iron ore directly into a block of wrought iron. The block would then be transformed into a beautiful tree, ornament or working tool, round or square or both, fashioned by the blacksmiths.

Kate Surrage from London using bellows and a graphite crucible with Sam loading the charcoal, smelted copper which was then poured into a mould which cooled into a beautiful artefact. Gerard Loughran from Armagh wearing a traditional leather apron was hard at work. He did admit the he would stop to watch the All Ireland football final on Sunday.

Colin Dawson from Antrim, a retired blacksmith, was a spade maker. He used to start with a block of steel and fashion it into shape with a five pound sledge hammer and red hot heat. He was very helpful in explaining the intricacies of the craft and the tools they used. There was an image of an intricate dragon on Gerard Loughran’s wooden block. It was beaten out from the back and was called repose technique. A Flattener was a big hammer to flatten a steel block. Reece Saul Foster From Mountshannon Forge, 270 years old, used a traditional hand bellows for his fire and traditional skills. He was the winner of the challenge. Kieran Keenaghan, disguised as a farmer, wheelbarrowed blocks of wood to the fires.

Across the bridge was a food and craft market with jewellery, books, cakes, food, antiques and crafts for sale. Marty Guinan, Bulfin Lodge, Clonony introduced me to the next generation of the Bulfin family of Derrinlough. Eddie Bulfin specialises in jewellery, also fire breathing.

Sunday was sunny and warm. Again the festival was thronged with people, parking spaces all full. James Scully, local historian extraordinaire, published writer, expert on The Brontes, Trollope and all the local history, responsible for gathering all the visible information displayed in the town, conducted a walk and talk from St Paul's Church, built in 1829. His very informed and witty delivery told us about the role of the Brontes in the church and also Hill House, kindly facilitated by Nicola , the current owner. She has restored the house to its former glory and has preserved the well in the room at the rear of the house. The opening at the top of the well is closed and covered by reinforced glass. The house is now an upmarket B&B.

Next stop was St Rynagh's Church built in 1825/26 which houses some notable works of art and Dublin granite. It was designed by Dublin architect William Hague. Daniel O Connell visited the church and was astonished that 15,000 people came to hear him speak. His favourite phrase was, “That beats Banagher”.

We visited St Rynagh’s Church and graveyard. The North side of the graveyard was “The devil's side” so people didn’t want to be buried there, it was the area for the poor! The Armstrong Crypt is in Cill Rynagh. The site goes back to St Rynagh. Sir John McCoughlan was head of the McCoughlan Clan and powerful Chief. His tombstone reads, that he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth in the 16^th century. Every graveyard had a WW1 grave including this one.

Finally we finished at Crank House which houses a display about Anthony Trollope, a failure in the London Post Office. Banished to Dublin and posted to Banagher where he bought a horse at the Horse Fair in September. This changed his life, he went hunting, dancing and drinking! His lifelong servant was Barney McIntyre who woke him at 5am and he wrote till 8am before carrying out his duties for the post office. He invented the post box and designated that a postman could only walk 14 miles in a day. He subsequently wrote 47 novels, two set very favourably in Ireland.