2. Stirring Memories - "Are you goin’ for a dip?"

10/19/22 • 15 min

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown’s coastline has been a buzzing social spot over the years, as well as a busy workplace. Wonderful memories were shared of watching the mail boat come into the harbour and its cargo methodically placed onto the train before setting off down the tracks. There was outdoor entertainment at the weekends and sunny days in the Baths.
When people wanted to go further afield, jumping onto the boat to Holyhead was easy with the Harbour on your doorstep, although the rough and ready, stomach-churning Princess Maud was avoided wherever possible. Over the years, locals of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown have certainly made the very most of having the seaside a stone’s throw from their homes.
ABOUT 'STIRRING MEMORIES':
What was life like in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown over the years? Storyteller Helena Byrne posed this question to members of local day care centres in the county over a number of months last year. Trips to the Baths on sunny days, shopping in the much loved local shops of the past such as Lee’s and Lipton’s; and getting dressed up for a Saturday night out in the Top Hat!
These audio recordings were collected and curated by Helena Byrne with the members of day care centres around Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown in Summer/Winter 2021.
A huge thanks to the staff and members of all the participating Day Care Centres for sharing their stories especially: Beaufort Day Care Centre (Glasthule), The Clevis Unit (Leopardstown), Leopardstown Park Day Centre, Mount Merrion Friendship Club and Shankill Day Care Centre.
The project, a joint initiative of DLR Libraries and DLR’s Age Friendly Programme, was supported by the Creativity in Older Age Fund, part of the Creative Ireland Programme.

Previous Episode

1. Stirring Memories - "It grounds you when you know the value of things"

It’s difficult for many of us today to imagine all the children in the family being bathed in a galvanised bath by the fireside, or not having the simple luxury of a toilet in our homes, but this was a reality for many people who were raised in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown some decades ago. The schooling system, by many accounts, was harsh. Money was tight for some families and food was simple, not plentiful. It was undoubtedly a very different time to grow up in when compared to the comforts we often take for granted nowadays.

Despite this, interviewees shared so many fond memories of growing up here. Entire days spent playing with neighbours on the beach, waiting on the bridge for the steam trains to go by below and enjoying the simple pleasure of butter and jam sandwiches after a dip in the Dún Laoghaire Baths.
ABOUT 'STIRRING MEMORIES':
What was life like in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown over the years? Storyteller Helena Byrne posed this question to members of local day care centres in the county over a number of months last year. Trips to the Baths on sunny days, shopping in the much loved local shops of the past such as Lee’s and Lipton’s; and getting dressed up for a Saturday night out in the Top Hat!
These audio recordings were collected and curated by Helena Byrne with the members of day care centres around Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown in Summer/Winter 2021.
A huge thanks to the staff and members of all the participating Day Care Centres for sharing their stories especially: Beaufort Day Care Centre (Glasthule), The Clevis Unit (Leopardstown), Leopardstown Park Day Centre, Mount Merrion Friendship Club and Shankill Day Care Centre.
The project, a joint initiative of DLR Libraries and DLR’s Age Friendly Programme, was supported by the Creativity in Older Age Fund, part of the Creative Ireland Programme.

Next Episode

3. Stirring Memories - “Have you picked up your gas mask yet?”

While Ireland was of course neutral during World War II, childhood memories for those growing up in the Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown area were undoubtedly still impacted by this huge historical event. Some of the darkest aspects of what the Irish government called ‘The Emergency’ were seen through the rose-tinted glasses of youthful innocence. Collecting your gas mask from Dalkey Town Hall and playing with it on the walk home was an exciting novelty, and the Air Raid Shelters scattered around the County made for the best makeshift playgrounds. Certain foods such as flour were rationed, leading to what was by all accounts, a very unpleasant ‘Black Bread’. Childhood naivety aside, the sense of danger generated by bombings in Dublin, still created palpable anxiety in the local community here.
ABOUT 'STIRRING MEMORIES':

What was life like in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown over the years? Storyteller Helena Byrne posed this question to members of local day care centres in the county over a number of months last year. Trips to the Baths on sunny days, shopping in the much loved local shops of the past such as Lee’s and Lipton’s; and getting dressed up for a Saturday night out in the Top Hat!

These audio recordings were collected and curated by Helena Byrne with the members of day care centres around Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown in Summer/Winter 2021.

A huge thanks to the staff and members of all the participating Day Care Centres for sharing their stories especially: Beaufort Day Care Centre (Glasthule), The Clevis Unit (Leopardstown), Leopardstown Park Day Centre, Mount Merrion Friendship Club and Shankill Day Care Centre.

The project, a joint initiative of DLR Libraries and DLR’s Age Friendly Programme, was supported by the Creativity in Older Age Fund, part of the Creative Ireland Programme.