A Painstaking Task
Part of the Rian Bó Phádraig
An image of the Knockmealdown and Melleray section of the Rian Bó Phádraig in the early twentieth century. This is located on the border of Waterford and Tipperary. This was around the time when Canon Power tried to re-discover the road by himself on foot.
Part of the Rian Bó Phádraig
Part of the Rian Bó Phádraig
An image of the Knockmealdown and Melleray section of the Rian Bó Phádraig in the early twentieth century. This is located on the border of Waterford and Tipperary. This was around the time when Canon Power tried to re-discover the road by himself on foot.
The Ancient Highway of the Decies has long been part of Waterford tradition, but its history was forgotten for a long time. That is until Charles Smith (1715-1762) first examined the road in some detail in his history of Waterford, first published in 1746.
Nearly 150 years later, a priest called Canon Patrick Power (1862-1951) took up the study of the road again. He walked over fences and through fields trying to retrace the steps of Ireland's ancient saints. When he was unsure of the way, he interviewed local people to to unearth any traditional knowledge he could.
Then, almost 100 years after the efforts of Patrick Power, a historian called Michael Mulcahy took up the story of the ancient path in his article 'St. Declan's Road' in the Ardmore Journal in 1988.
Thanks to these sources, which record the local traditions associated with the ancient track, it remains a part of the local history of Tipperary and Waterford.
Nearly 150 years later, a priest called Canon Patrick Power (1862-1951) took up the study of the road again. He walked over fences and through fields trying to retrace the steps of Ireland's ancient saints. When he was unsure of the way, he interviewed local people to to unearth any traditional knowledge he could.
Then, almost 100 years after the efforts of Patrick Power, a historian called Michael Mulcahy took up the story of the ancient path in his article 'St. Declan's Road' in the Ardmore Journal in 1988.
Thanks to these sources, which record the local traditions associated with the ancient track, it remains a part of the local history of Tipperary and Waterford.