 HISTORY
OF ATHENRY INTRODUCTION This article restricts its study exclusively to the chronology of the smallpox epidemic in Athenry from its outbreak in March 1875 through to its cessation in October of the same year. In order to carry out this research the principal contemporary sources include the Minute Books of the Loughrea Board of Guardians available in the Galway Count Library and the Chief Secretary's Office Registered Papers in the National Archives of Ireland. The bulk of the records relating to the epidemic centre on communication with Dr. Brodie, the Local Government Board Inspector and Dr Leonard, the medical officer for Athenry. The surviving files from the Chief Secretary's Papers provide a wealth of detail and portray a vivid picture of local happenings. The national and local newspapers of the period also recorded the events of the community and of the activities of both official and voluntary agencies. Reports from the national papers were generally more sensational and alarmist and generated lively responses in local papers which repudiated the exaggerated nature of their reporting techniques. 1 OUTBREAK OF SMALLPOX The origins of the outbreak of
the disease in Athenry can be traced to Saturday 17th. February 1875 when
William Burke, in his late teens or early twenties 2
and a native of Tiaquin about six miles from Athenry, contracted smallpox
at Tuam where he was employed as a baker's assistant. The following Monday
he was visited by Dr. Turner who ordered his immediate removal to hospital
and instructed that his bed and blanket should be either disinfected or
destroyed. The medical officer's instructions were disregarded and
instead his employer, Patrick Corcoran, accompanied the patient to the
railway station and hurried him into a carriage thus evading the notice
of the railway officials. Corcoran subsequently bought a ticket for
Burke and returned home.
The Galway Express was the first local newspaper to prophetically mention the threat of smallpox in an article entitled ‘an imminent danger’: ...The latest intelligence is that the disease has actually appeared at Tuam ... It is to be remembered that one case surrounded by encouraging conditions is sufficient to give the first impulse to what may prove to be a wide spread and total epidemic… 4 Within three weeks William Burke
was dead and his father who assisted in carrying his remains to the grave
was also attacked but subsequently recovered from the illness. The Roman
catholic curate, Fr. Walsh who attended the
In this case of Mr Kinneen, a wealthy man appears wilfully to ignore the law against the spread of infection and if the Local Government Board consider it of sufficient importance to vindicate the law, I would respectfully suggest as the most efficient means, that the Inspector General be requested to direct the constabulary, whose barrack is immediately opposite the hotel, to take cognisance of the facts with a view to ulterior proceedings. The transmission of persons suffering from small-pox, and the conditions under which they are lodged and cured, and the facilities of inter-communication, all combine to limit or extend the disease, and I think it is necessary to fix public attention in a marked manner upon cases such as the removal of the deceased man "Williarn Burke”, and the treatment of the Rev. Mr Walsh in a public hotel frequented by persons who are wholly ignorant of the presence of such dangerous contagious disease. 5 By 28th March 1875 the hotel was closed to guests in accordance with the notice served on Mr. Kinneen. The following morning Fr. Walsh, the second casualty of the disease, died. Dr. Leonard fearing the result of prolonging interment, gave orders for the priest to be buried on the evening of his death. His death, no doubt created a sensation that might well be called painful and profound. The whole town was moved to grief - many to tears - at the death of the gentle and youthful priest, whose last words, spoken to the worthy Parish of Athenry were “tell the people of Athenry how much I love them” 6 A small graveyard beside the Roman Catholic Church in Athenry contains the grave of the Rev. John Walsh. The monument was erected by the parishioners and the inscription mentions smallpox as the cause of death 7 (Fig. 1). Mr Kinneen, the proprietor of the hotel promised to have the bed, bedding, and every article of furniture in the roorn in which the priest died, burned, the paper removed from the wall, and the wall well lime washed. On 30th March a boy aged twelve
who lived in Newcastle, (not far from where William Burke died), was infected.
The father, mother, niece, five children, a cow and a horse all shared
the same house. 8 An
analysis of housing conditions can be made by measuring the proportion
of families inhabiting each of the four types of dwellings as classified
by the census commissioners. In 1861, for example, 14% of the families
in the Parish of Athenry resided in fourth class houses defined as one-room
hovels by the census commissioners. 48% resided in third class houses,
defined as dwellings consisting of two to four rooms. 32% resided in second
class houses defined as dwellings with five to nine rooms, and 6% resided
in first class houses with ten or more rooms.9
On 15th April Dr. Leonard removed
Catherine Cannon labouring under the disease to the Loughrea workhouse
hospital for treatment. The transfer caused great consternation in
Loughrea when the patient was driven through the crowded streets of a town
unaffected by the disease. The members of the Loughrea Board of Guardians
severely criticised and censured Dr. Leonard for having caused the removal
of a smallpox patient to hospital at their meeting 17th April. 11
The Board also agreed to take immediate, steps towards providing hospital
accommodation for patients labouring under the disease.
... they searched, but could get no person to consent to let a house, or a field or paddock, for a site for the hospital. 12 At the meeting of the Board of Guardians on 24th April the clerk produced letters and telegrams received from Mr. Goodbody of Clare, relating to the site for the iron hospital on one of his farms near Athenry, the result being that he regrets he could not comply with the request of the Board, on the grounds that his people object to have smallpox patients in their neighbourhood .13 The Athenry Dispensary Committee met on 3rd May and unanimously agreed to a site for the erection of the hospital, namely the waste plot of ground near the old barrack, and close to the river. The proposed new site was promptly opposed by the inhabitants of the town, and a petition of protest was signed by thirty-seven of the parishioners including John O'Grady, the Parish priest and Fr. James Ronayne, the Curate. The opposition lodged by the protesters asserted that the selected location was commonage, and furthermore, that "every means will be adopted to prevent its erection, and that should it be peristed in, violence will be resorted to by the people." 14 A site was eventually agreed upon
through the intervention of Mr. Lambert and Mr. Irvine, his occupying tenant.
A part of his field in the neighbourhood of the town was chosen as a site
for the hospital. To avoid further delay in persuading tradesmen
to carry out construction work, Mr. Irvine made an offer of the house in
which he resided which could be made available for the reception of smallpox
patients within days. Dr. Brodie 15
subsequently visited the house about a quarter of a mile from the town,
and declared it to be suitable in every way for the purpose. His
Report to the Local Government Board on 2nd May 16
appended a useful summary listing the smallpox patients in the Athenry
Dispensary District from 1st March to 30th April 1875 as follows:
Dr. Brodie reported nine fresh cases of smallpox in the town of Athenry on 5th May, four members of one family, three of another, and one of each of two others. The following day two further cases of the disease in Athenry we reported. By 12th May the running total of smallpox cases in the town and neighbourhood totalled forty, of whom eight died, nine recovered and twenty three remained under treatment. 17 With the exception of Athenry, the disease had assumed no formidable proportions in the county. Three cases occurred in Dunmore (Tuam Union), two at Abbey (Tuam Union), one in the Calway Union and five or six at Rusmuck in the Oughterard Union. However, these official figures may not represent a true reflection of the smallpox cases. Correspondence from Dr. French, the Abbey Dispensary District medical officer cites three particular cases that were not reported. ... I discovered a case today from the unusual number that came to be vaccinated, they having stated a case of smallpox existed in the village, a very populous and poor one (Feigh). I went there, and found a bov named Murphy eleven days lying ill from the disease, which was not reported to me; in fact they had three labouring under the disease, from the dread of having them removed to the workhouse. 18 Dr. Brodie now considered that
smallpox was increasing in virulence and fatal results 19
and during the week of 17th May he reported six fresh cases and four deaths
in Athenry town. By the end of May the total number of smallpox cases
in the three month period since 1st March reached seventy-five comprising
sixteen deaths, twenty recoveries and thirty-nine under treatment.
On 24th June six locals were infected, three from the town and three from
the rural district. 20
However, by this time the disease appeared to have assumed a mild form
and a marked decline in the number of cases was evident. Dr. Brodie
announced on 28th inst.
 On 13th July Dr Leonard confirmed that every house in Athenry where smallpox appeared had been thoroughly disinfected and concluded his report to Dr. Brodie on an optimistic note: “It is a salutary change and leaves me to hope that smallpox has run its course in my afflicted district." 22 The hint of optimism turned to jubilation when Dr Brodie reported It is a cheering fact that in the town of Athenry, the hot-bed and focus of disease, a single individual has not been attacked with smtilpox during the twenty two days previous to this date, and that the patients from Athenry in hospital, four in number, will be discharged on Monday perfectly cured, leaving four members of one family, from the neighbourhood of Moyode, distant three miles from Athenry, under treatment. The outbreak in this locality need not be viewed with much dread as it is not likely to spread there, the houses being isolated, well ventilated.- and the resident proprietor, Mr Burton Persse, taking much interest in the cleanliness, order and satisfactory (in a sanitary point of view) manner in which they are kept. 23 On 1st October Dr Leonard stated
that all patients had been discharged from he smallpox hospital'' 24
and the clothing and bedding were burned in accordance the order of the
Board. On 21st October the horse which had been employed at the smallpox
hospital was sold by auction and realised a sum of £5:10:0. It is
significant that within three weeks of the last smallpox patient being
realised from the hospital it was considered safe to purchase the hospital
horse. This reflects a revival of confidence in the community and the first
indication of recovery of normal trading practices.
CONCLUSION The study of the smallpox epidemic in Athenry in the 1870s highlights the vulnerability of all classes to the disease harboured by the poor and raises questions as to why, up to the outbreak of smallpox, pressure was not brought to bear on the authorities to ensure that Athenry did not lag to the point of disaster in providing cleansing, drainage and other health services. Despite the devastating effect of the smallpox epidemic on the Athenry community life returned to normal soon after the disease had passed. The epidemic, though voilent, occurred only once and produced a single shock which apparently was quickly forgotten. Families in the parish rallied around each other and operated as a powerful support mechanism in the community. The Roman Catholic marriages in Athenry Parish dropped significantly in 1875 indicating a lack of confidence in the community associated with a fear of planning ahead in an uncertain future. The already declining baptism numbers also decreased in 1875. However the following year the marriage figures rose dramatically indicating onfidence was restored in the community and the baptism numbers correspondingly recovered in 1877.  In the short term the outbreak of smallpox drew attention to the overcrowded and insanitary living conditions and produced a campaign of cleaning and disinfecting infected premises and their surrounds. Dr. Leonard, the dispensary medical officer, emerges as the hero during the epidemic. The evidence portrays the doctor as devoted and capable of working day and night, not concerneed about material gain and capable of dealing with any emergency. He was the friend of all classes, ready to provide treatment and advice on medical and personal problems. It is more difficult to ascertain the impact of the epidemic in the long term. The medical system in force did not improve or alter to any measurable extent and the sanitary system was not expedited in the district as a result of th outbreak. The power and efficiency of the Board of Guardians must be questioned especially with regard to their handling of the iron hospital contract and the proposed sewerage system. In 1876 the Board of Guardians of the Loughrea Union only succeeded in securing a loan of £200 from th Commissioners of Public Works to sink a well in the town of Athenry. However the disease in the community was successfully contained within a relatively short period of time. After four months the worst of the epidemic had passed and by late June 1875 the disease assumed a mild form. A marked decline in th number of cases was evident and by 1st October all patients had been discharged from hospital. The combined efforts of the medical officer, the Board of Guardians and the local community ensured that the epidemic did not continue to rage out of control and ceased without recurrence.  1. This article is adapted from a thesis submitted in 1994 in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of MA from St. Patrick's College Maynooth. This article, published
in "The Journal of the Galway Archaeological & Historical Society"
Vol. 48: 1996 was reproduced in "The Athenry Journal" Spring 1996 with
the kind permission of the Author - Anne Walsh
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