'Too Dirty for School?' - History lecture in Nenagh

The extremely popular local history talks 'Talking History at Steeples' return to The Belfry at Steeples, O'Rahilly St, on Monday next, October 3rd.

Following on the format of the last two series, the talks by John Flannery will look at aspects of Nenagh and Tipperary history. 

'Too Dirty for School? Defending the honour of the children of Nenagh' is the title of the first lecture in the new series. This talk will look at the appointment of the first County Medical Officer of Health in North Tipperary and his subsequent assertion that several children attending Nenagh Convent School were “too dirty”.

The assertion provoked a storm at a Nenagh Urban District Council meeting, where statements by the late Dan Morrissey were perceived as slanderous by the medical officer, Dr Denis McCarthy. The case ended up in the High Court, with hearings in both Dublin and Nenagh, where the opposing parties both expressed their trenchant views.

The court case was probably one of the most extensively reported cases in the annals of the Nenagh Guardian - running in one issue to six pages.

This intriguing story will cover aspects of the foundation of the county public health system in Tipperary, including the row over where the Medical Officer should be located and the above extremely public spat, which influenced Dr McCarthy's departure from Tipperary. All talks commence at 11am and admission is €5.