The first show was held on Thursday, September 12th, 1901. The advertisement
on the Southern Star read as follows: -
One of the many features of the first show was a recital by Greenmount Industrial School Band. The Irish language and the old Gaelic sports and past-times were being revived throughout the country at the time, the society contributed £5 plus private subscriptions for prizes for stepping dancing, Irish songs, etc. There were also special railway excursions to the show and special arrangements were made for the transfer of entries the day before the show. There were 300 exhibits in the horse, cattle, sheep and swine section. Gate receipts amounted to £144 and the profit at the end of the year was £126.
In 1902, the entries in the horses, cattle, sheep and swine section had increased
to 346, the gate takings were £140 and the society had £170 to their
credit at the close of the year.
The 1903 show was held on 25th June. An addition to the programme was a poultry
section. The judge, Mr. Langlande said
"the collection of poultry was one of the finest he had seen for some
time, and must be a valuable incentive to the small farmers and cottiers of
the district to keep better breeds as poultry keeping is now a good second to
the cattle and dairying industry of the country"
There was a special prize fund of £80 for competition amongst farmers
within the Rural District of Clonakilty, where the valuation of their farms
did not exceed £30 in order to assist small farmers in their efforts to
improve their conditions. There was also a special class for cottiers and labourers.
The number of entries in the horse, cattle, sheep and swine section had grown
to 421 but unfortunately the inclement weather conditions on the day reduced
the gate takings to £82.
The present grounds were acquired in 1904 and the first show was held there
in 1906 when gate and grand stand receipts totalled £220 5s 1d, a notable
record against present day money values.
In the successive years up to 1912 one-day shows were held by the society and
in 1913 a two-day fixture was inaugurated, resulting in the Society losing £107
on the year’s work. One June 18th, 1914, the last (pre World War One) show
was held and the programme included an aviation display by Lord Carbery. Shows
were abandoned during the war years and the society was dormant during the next
10 years, the grounds and premises went to disrepair, and the society’s
debt rose to the figure of £457.
In 1924 a new society was formed under the Presidency of Mr David White, P.C.,
M.C.C. and Secretary P. O’Donovan. David White was a brother of Michael
White, Irish Ambassador in New York and in the Vatican. This society held its
first show in the present Fair Field in 1925, and it was very successful. In
the end of that year the secretary resigned and on January 1st, 1926, Mr T H
Bateman, Shannonvale was elected secretary, a post he held during the ensuing
2 years, during which time the newly formed society made rapid advance and staged
two very successful shows, having a credit balance of £294 14s, at the
end of 1927.
In 1928, negotiations commenced between the old and the new agricultural societies
in connection with the amalgamation and the taking over the Show Grounds and
Premises and putting them into repair. On January 27th 1928, Mr Maurice McCarthy
was elected secretary. A very successful show was held that year (the last held
in the present Fair Field), and at the end of year the society had £437
12s to their credit in the Bank.
Towards the end of 1928 negotiations for the amalgamation of the two shows proceeded
apace, and on January 11th 1929, both committees amalgamated following protracted
conferences, the terms of the union being that the 1901 Society hand over grounds,
premises, etc conditional on the amalgamated Society taking immediate steps
to having the grounds and hall put in proper repair and a hoarding of corrugated
iron erected around the Show Grounds in addition to accepting liability for
the old debt of £507. The work of laying out of the grounds was executed
by Patsy Walsh, contractor at a cost of £903 and this sum together with
the debt £507 which amounted to £1,410 was the liability facing
the society in 1929.
At the following Annual General Meeting, Mr David White P.C., M.C.C. resigned
and Mr T. J. O’Donovan T.D., Island House, Clonakilty was unanimously elected
President and continued in this capacity until his death on July 28th 1957.
Under his guidance and ably assisted by Maurice McCarthy, Secretary, the Society
went from strength to strength. Having in the meantime made far-reaching improvements
in Grounds and Premises, the Society in 1957 had £477 to their credit
in the Bank.
It is remarkable that the President and Secretary, who worked so hard in the
Society’s interest for almost 30 years, should die within 6 months of each
other, for on January 29th 1958, Maurice McCarthy, Secretary, passed to his
Eternal Reward.
The ensuing elections resulted in Mr J J O’Donovan, Island House, Clonakilty
(a son to the previous President) being elected President and Peter O’Neill
being elected Secretary.
Margaret O’Donovan, wife of T J O’Donovan T.D. and mother of J.J.
O’Donovan held the position of Lady President for over half a century until
her death in the late 70’s.
Every President and Secretary left their mark on the show, in the William Eedy
and John K. Kingston we saw the rise and decline of the dance era. Both these
gentlemen met all the big names in the show bus world. While Richard Kingston,
Tim Hurley,Michael O’Donovan and Richard White have seen the reviving of
the Industrial Hall into the area of teenage discos and what is now known as
"The Boiler Room" and for making Clonakilty Show one of the wealthiest
shows in the country.
So too have the secretaries been a source of inspiration, David Walsh, Raymond
O’Neill, Richard Kingston and Thomas P Kingston, Mary O’Leary, Marie
Dillon and Donal McCarthy. Mary O’Leary will be remembered for her meticulous
approach to the work of secretary, these were the days prior to computers where
everything had to be hand written. Mary served as secretary for 8 years and
a further 9 years as assistant secretary. Marie Dillon brought her flair into
the cattle world and much of the improvements we see to day are the results
of the work of Marie and Kevin.
We are now entering another era, the era of technology and mass production,
we would hope that some of the past traditions which are part of our heritage
will continue to survive and maybe 100 years from now, our grand children will
witness a second list of members on the membership page of this web site to
honour the people who will serve on the committee of Clonakilty Agricultural
Show 2001 – 2100.