Sir,—With every issue of History Ireland, my university days (Sussex, in the days of historian Asa Briggs) are vindicated. In those days, as well as the main course, there were term-time contextual courses—i.e. looking at the main through different angles, seeing things sideways, taking another stance etc. Damian Murphy’s interesting piece on Kildare Cathedral (HI 34.1, Jan./Feb. 2026, p. 29) reminds me that the restoration of this cathedral in 1896 occasioned a large output of souvenir china.
With the ever-changing personnel in the major garrisons at the Curragh and Newbridge, there was a busy trade in souvenirs, made by potters such as Goss, Arcadian etc. In Kildare town there were two retailers who differed in their stock, whether deliberately so or not we do not know. Bridget O’Conner in Claregate Street had a china-room and sold ware bearing a constructed blazon of round tower, castle ruins and the new cathedral tower. Also in Claregate Street was Lily Malone’s shop (still trading in 2026), which sold souvenirs with transfer print views of the cathedral. The 1896 restoration made money in the shops!—Yours etc.,
JOHN STOCKS POWELL
Portarlington