Chairman’s Report for the year 2022/2023
The Society’s AGM took place on 16th September 2022, with the re-election of the Chairman and existing committee members for a further year. As there was one vacancy on the committee, Frances McMichael was proposed, seconded and duly elected. Following the formal part of the proceedings, musical entertainment was provided by Deirdre Goodlad and then volume 49 of The Glynns was launched by the editor, Donnell O’Loan. Finally, Certificates of Achievement and the Malachy McSparran Cup were presented to pupils of St Killian’s College in appreciation of the articles they contributed to the youth section of The Glynns.
The usual lectures programme, in the customary venue of St. Mary’s Parish Centre, Cushendall, commenced in October 2022, with Alison McCaughan speaking on the subject of “The First Mass Migration from Ireland to America in 1718” and, in November, Paddy McLaughlin gave an illustrated talk on “The History of Lifeboats in Cushendall”, a particularly appropriate topic as the Lifeboat Station there was celebrating its 75th anniversary. Unfortunately, the January 2023 lecture had to be cancelled at short notice due to a sudden bereavement suffered by the scheduled speaker, and also because of a heavy snowfall that day. In February, Bernie Frayne took us on a nostalgic
trip back to the 1970s with his topic “Ballycastle and the Showbands,” while in March Dr Desmond McCabe spoke on the topic “Local History: The Potential of the Public Record OfficeNI.” The lectures programme was completed in April when Maurice McHenry gave us a detailed insight into “North Antrim Connections with Slavery in Jamaica.”
On the afternoon of 14 th March 2023, in the Sheskburn Recreation Centre, Ballycastle, a very special event took place to mark the importance of the late Frank Rogers to not only the Historical Society but to the wider Ballycastle and Glens communities, and indeed beyond. Before his sudden passing, Frank had prepared a presentation on the topic “Songs and Poems of County Antrim” and it was felt that this, his last work, should be completed and presented as a special tribute to him. The event, jointly hosted by The Glens Historical Society, Ballycastle and District Probus Club and the Glens and Dalriada U3A, featured songs by the Glens and Dalriada U3A choir, poetry readings by the Palaver Group and a power-point presentation and commentary by Iain Bradley. It was a delight for all of us to welcome several members of Frank’s family to this event and the attendance of some 140 people reflected the esteem in which Frank was held throughout the
community.
Meetings of the committee took place as required during the course of the year to oversee the ongoing business of the Society and to consider future events. In particular, as the Society will be sixty years old in 2025, work will consist of compiling articles and illustrations for the planned publication of our 60th anniversary book that year. The book will consist of articles describing sixty sites of special historic interest throughout the nine Glens of Antrim. Special thanks are due to Catriona Duncan, editor of the planned book, and to the various committee members who will be supplying text and/or photographs. It is hoped that this special project will be informative, attractive and appealing to both locals and, especially, visitors to the area. During the course of the year, the Society was fortunate to be awarded a “micro-grant” from the Department of the Environment, Agriculture and Rural Affairs to replace the lighting system and fittings throughout our office base in The Old Schoolhouse, Mill Street, Cushendall. This new, energy-saving lighting system has greatly enhanced the appeal of our displays of tourist information, books and publications.
As in recent years, the Society maintained a presence at the Rathlin Sound Maritime Festival, held on the last Saturday and Sunday in May, in Ballycastle and on the island. The Society stand in the main marquee, staffed by volunteers from the committee, provided information about the work of the Society, and about the planned lecture programme for the following year, as well as offering for sale some of our own past publications and a range of donated second-hand books.
The 2022/2023 season was unfortunately also a very sad one for the Society, with the passing of three members who had served for many years on the committee and who had faithfully supported the work of the Society in a variety of ways. Frank Connolly was the last of the three founding members of the Society, back in 1965, and he served as the first secretary for sixteen years. He regularly attended lectures and was present at the AGM in September 2022. A fitting tribute to him is paid elsewhere in this journal. Patsy McKay was the second secretary of the Society – she became a member in 1979 and was secretary from 1981 until 1988, remaining on the committee until 2002. She remained a Life Member until her passing. Sheila McGoran also served for many years on the committee and was secretary from 2001 until 2008. On behalf of the Society I convey our continuing sympathies to the families of these three stalwarts of our organisation. During the past year a number of other long-standing members of the Society and contributors to The Glynns have sadly passed away and again our sympathies go out to their families.
The culmination of our 2022/23 season will be the launch of the 50th anniversary edition of our annual journal, The Glynns. To mark the anniversary, the Volume 50 edition is specially expanded and our thanks are due to the editor, Donnell O’Loan, not just for his usual care and efficiency but also for the extra work incurred in producing this edition. As this report suggests, the Society continues to function successfully, thanks especially to the committee members who are focused on ensuring that the Glens of Antrim Historical Society remains active and very much in the public view. On your behalf I convey to Mrs Bernie Delargy and all the office staff our thanks for their efficient day-to-day running of our base in The Old Schoolhouse.
Finally, on a personal level, it has been a tremendous privilege for me to have been Chairman of the Society for the past four years, 2019 to 2023, and I have been honoured to represent the Society at many public functions during this time. I convey my thanks to the members of the committee for the pleasure of working with them, with the aim of preserving the culture, history and heritage of the Glens of Antrim. To my successor as Chairperson, Catriona Duncan, I convey my best wishes for an enjoyable and rewarding term in office and I know she will find the role as fulfilling as I did.
Leonard Quigg, Chairman, The Glens of Antrim Historical Society.