WICKLOW TOWN
WICKLOW TOWN
– Stan O’Reilly
William O’Grady: Wicklow revolutionary republican Sinn Féin’s growth in Wicklow, 1917–18 From May 1917, Sinn Féin flags were flying from sailing vessels in the harbour and openly displayed in Wicklow and district. The local police were quick to remove them, but they were just as quickly replaced. Nationalist sentiment was growing across the country. William O’Grady was at the heart of the Sinn Féin and revolutionary movement in Wicklow. In August 1917, the Wicklow Sinn Féin Club came into existence at a meeting in the Town Hall. Local officers were chosen, and O’Grady was elected Chairman. He and his fellow club members were placed under surveillance by the authorities, subjected to raids and searches of their homes and businesses, and frequently imprisoned. O’Grady, who fathered over 20 children, never faltered in his conviction. The price he and his family paid was considerable. Well-known republicans from Wicklow and district attended meetings in the O’Grady home, including William Kennedy of New Street, and his brother-inlaw Arthur Fitzpatrick. While plotting revolution, O’Grady and his republican colleagues were also kept busy organising dances in their clubroom on Sunday nights. Mr. L. Daly and Arthur Fitzpatrick, later a prominent figure in the War of Independence, were among the organisers. Fundraising, collecting donations and maintaining subscriptions kept the movement solvent. The Wicklow club was named Major McBride Sinn Féin Club. At its AGM in January 1918, the Chair was ‘taken by the President Mr. Wm. O’Grady and there were close on a hundred members present. William was re-elected President. Other local officers elected were James Brennan, L. Byrne, W. J. Cardin, J. Kilcoyne, John Byrne and J. Smullen.’ Sinn Féin held a public meeting in Greenane in February and set up a club there. William O’Grady spoke at a Sinn Féin rally in Barndarrig, and the party was generally active around the county. In September 1918, a public meeting was held in Ashford, at which the main speaker was Arthur Griffith. By November, Wicklow Sinn Féin had also established a Cumann na mBan. In December, a Sinn Féin dance was 225
