Ardfinnan Woollen Mills: Difference between revisions

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===1914 – 1960s===

===1914 – 1960s===

The [[War Office]] had back-to-back contracts with ”Mulcahy, Redmond” throughout the [[World War I|First World War]] to produce khaki [[Serge (fabric)|serge]] for their military uniforms, frieze for overcoats and blankets.<ref>In a Time of War: Tipperary 1914-1918, John Dennehy, Merrion, 2013</ref> It was famed that they produced cloth for the [[Imperial Russian Army]].<ref>”Images of Clonmel,” Donal Wylde, Clonmel, 2011.</ref> After the war, the mills expanded to the opposite side of the road with overhauled machinery from the late [[Henry Beresford, 6th Marquess of Waterford|Lord Waterford]]’s woollen mills and had the largest boiler in the south of Ireland, imported from [[Glasgow]].<ref name=”:6″>{{Cite news |title=Ardfinnan Woollen Mills |work=The Clonmel Chronicle |page=3 |publication-place=Clonmel |publication-date=14 September 1921}}</ref> Ardfinnan Suitings gained prestige internationally in tailoring houses in [[London]], [[Paris]] and [[New York City|New York]].

The [[War Office]] had back-to-back contracts with ”Mulcahy, Redmond” throughout the [[World War I|First World War]] to produce khaki [[Serge (fabric)|serge]] for their military uniforms, frieze for overcoats and blankets.<ref>In a Time of War: Tipperary 1914-1918, John Dennehy, Merrion, 2013</ref> It was famed that they produced cloth for the [[Imperial Russian Army]].<ref>”Images of Clonmel,” Donal Wylde, Clonmel, 2011.</ref> After the war, the mills expanded to the opposite side of the road with overhauled machinery from the late [[Henry Beresford, 6th Marquess of Waterford|Lord Waterford]]’s woollen mills and had the largest boiler in the south of Ireland, imported from [[Glasgow]].<ref name=”:6″>{{Cite news |title=Ardfinnan Woollen Mills |work=The Clonmel Chronicle |page=3 |publication-place=Clonmel |publication-date=14 September 1921}}</ref> Ardfinnan Suitings gained prestige internationally in tailoring houses in [[London]], [[Paris]] and [[New York City|New York]].

[[File:Ardfinnansuitingsathickeywexford1936 (2).jpg|thumb|210x210px|Ardfinnan Suitings placard, 1936]]

[[File:Ardfinnansuitingsathickeywexford1936 (2).jpg|thumb|210x210px|Ardfinnan Suitings placard, 1936]]

John Mulcahy bought Ardfinnan Castle in 1921.<ref>{{Cite news |date=25 March 1960 |title=Death of Mr W.J. Mulcahy |work=Munster Tribune |pages=5}}</ref>

John Mulcahy bought Ardfinnan Castle in 1921.<ref>{{Cite news |date=25 March 1960 |title=Death of Mr W.J. Mulcahy |work=Munster Tribune |pages=5}}</ref>

Wool mill in County Tipperary, Ireland

Mulcahy Redmond, 1869 to 1973 was a family run textile and garment manufacturing company at the Ardfinnan Woollen Mills that traded as Ardfinnan on the underlying banks of Ardfinnan Castle in Ardfinnan, County Tipperary, Ireland.^[1] A woollen and worsted mills, it was known for woollen Irish tweed, worsted suitings, overcoatings, blankets, knitting yarn, and ready-made suits as the only factory on the island of Ireland completing all stages of processing from sheep to tailored clothing.^[2]

History

Early history

John Mulcahy established Mulcahy, Redmond & Co. Ltd. woollen mills on March 5, 1869, at the watermill of Ardfinnan Castle on the River Suir.^[3]

The Suir flowed through the watermill via the weir and mill race before exiting under one of the 14 arches of the medieval Ardfinnan bridge, insuring a powerful flow. It was also along the coach road from Dublin to Cork. The mill was likely in this advantageous position since the construction of the bridge, soon after the castle in 1185, as a source of milled flour or cloth for the knights, with the first map reference in the 17th century.^[4]

The earliest mill here would have adjoined the monastic site before the present castle, said to be founded by Saint Finnan (locally associated with weaving and to whom Ardfinnan is named) in the 6th century on Saint Declán‘s early-Christian 5th century pilgrim path. The exiled Saint Carthage and his craftsmen monks took refuge here by the river bank c.632 AD, establishing Ardfinnan Abbey and the present village, along with his great school of western learning at Lismore Abbey 12 miles further south on the same path.^[5] This would have brought sheep for parchment and wool, weaving for vestments and milling for flour. Strong traditions of hand-weaving and spinning on Factory Hill provided a skilled local workforce into the 19th century.^[6] Traditionally the village green was used for tentering cloth and drying locally sourced wool, from sheep in the surrounding valley and Galtee, Knockmealdown and Comeragh mountains. It is believed these traditions date back to the monastic settlement and frieze cloth fulling at the mill by the Knights Templar beginning with the 13th century demand for woollen Irish cloaks to mainland Europe from the port of Waterford, on which border Ardfinnan Castle defended and was directly navigable downstream via the river Suir.   Fulling mills were principally run by ‘dyers’ in this era. A freeman (skilled artisan) named William le Teynturer (Norman English: William the Dyer) is recorded in the village in 1295.^[7]

Mulcahy’s father-in-law at Rossmore Mills represented the Irish woollen industry among 12 firms at London’s Great Exhibition.^[8] Just four of these were outside of Dublin. Irish frieze for clothing and horse blankets was exhibited internationally for the first time.^[8] Mulcahy overhauled Rossmore Woollen Mills also under Mulcahy, Redmond until 1891 and in June 1883 took lease of Castlegrace Mills to process wool close to his Ardfinnan Woollen Mills.^[9][10] On 1 October 1883 a fire destroyed the main six-story watermill building at Ardfinnan and damaged Mulcahy’s adjoining former family home at Mill House, with 50 to 100 workers affected.^[11][12] A new double-roofed watermill was engineered by a Dublin firm to house a water turbine built in New Jersey by T.C. Alcott & Son. It was among only two other mills in Munster to use a water turbine, being Ashgrove Woollen Mills and Kerry Woollen Mills.^[4][13] The new building had a monastic style bell for work hours, adjoining communal canteen and retained the much older castellated annex office with gothic door and gate that survived the fire. It was “fitted on an extensive scale with the most improved machinery known in England or America for the manufacture of the very best Irish tweeds”. Mulcahy, Redmond advertised in the late 1880s as makers of Irish tweeds, friezes, blankets, shawls and railway rugs.

Mulcahy, Redmond represented the Irish Woollen Industry among 12 firms at the Cork International Exhibition of 1902.^[14]

Galtee Motor Cloth

Frank Mulcahy was one of the first ten motorcar owners in South Tipperary.^[15] He patented Galtee Motor Cloth in 1906, an innovation combining warmth with a unique waterproof-breathable functionality.^[16] It was named after the Galtee Mountains and targeted the emerging motoring clothing market, advertised as “the warmest cloth ever made for motor coats and motor rugs”. It was a layered cloth of traditional Irish frieze and mohair inter-woven with merino. The weave was breathable when dry, described as hygienic, but as the surface became wet the weave contracted and became rainproof.^[17] This functionality was lacking in popular fur coats, rubber Mackintosh or cotton Burberry raincoats.^[17]

In November 1906 King Edward VII ordered Galtee Motor Cloth from Mulcahy, Redmond and had a motoring coat made from it, with which he expressed great satisfaction.^[18] Edward VII was reputedly familiar with the Mulcahy family and their early involvement with motoring after a stop at their mills in 1904 en route to Lismore Castle, sister castle of Ardfinnan Castle, where his host the Duke of Devonshire was a local patron of the mills for estate tweed and gamekeepers tweed.

Galtee Motor Coats were first made and sold by Pim Bros department store, South Great Georges Street, Dublin, with the Galtee Motor Coat as the highlight of their stall at Ireland’s first motor show, the 1907 Dublin Motor Show.^[19] Irish motoring pioneer Richard J. Mecredy wrote in 1909 “I have used one of these coats for several years” and praised the unique scientific qualities of the cloth in his book Health’s Highway.^[20]

At the Irish International Exhibtion Mulcahy, Redmond displayed woollen and worsted goods alongside ‘Motor Clothing, including our Speciality-“Galtee” Motor Cloth’.^[21]

1914 – 1960s

The War Office had back-to-back contracts with Mulcahy, Redmond throughout the First World War to produce khaki serge for their military uniforms, frieze for overcoats and blankets.^[22] It was famed that they produced cloth for the Imperial Russian Army.^[23] After the war, the mills expanded to the opposite side of the road with both new machinery and recently overhauled machinery from the late Lord Waterford’s woollen mills and had the largest boiler in the south of Ireland, imported from Glasgow.^[24] The sum of the invesment totalled £250,000 (approx. ten million in 2026).^[24] Ardfinnan Suitings gained prestige internationally in tailoring houses in London, Paris and New York.

John Mulcahy bought Ardfinnan Castle in 1921.^[25]

Following Irish independence in 1922, the Irish Free State commissioned Mulcahy, Redmond under the direction of William Mulcahy to produce uniform cloths again, for the new public service, civil service and Defence Forces. This included exclusive commissions for the suits and overcoats for Head of State Éamon de Valera to wear in Switzerland representing Ireland at the League of Nations from 1932 to 1939, including both as President of the Council of the League of Nations in 1932 and President of the Assembly of the League of Nations in 1938. William Mulcahy served as President of the Industrial Development Association and was later a first director of General Textiles cotton mills, Athlone, when it was opened by Seán Lemass in 1947.

In 1947 a men’s, boy’s, and later a women’s ready-made suit department employing over 70 female workers was operated at the mills, making Mulcahy, Redmond the only factory on the island of Ireland that was completing all stages of clothing manufacture from raw fleece to finished garments. It was already unique for its specialisation in both woollens and worsteds. Under the direction of Jack and Dick Mulcahy it was therefore the most vertically-integrated woollen mills and also had a darning department for repairing customers woollens.^[2][26]

Ardfinnan House, 17 Trinity Street, Dublin 2, was the address of their wholesale store, showroom and office in the capital city.^[27] It was the first of its kind in Dublin, selling directly to tailors, drapers and fashion brands in the 1950s and 1960s. The sign “Ardfinnan House” remains on this building today. A trade showroom was also on South William Street in Dublin.

The signature green Aer Lingus uniform was made from cloth designed and produced at Mulcahy, Redmond before the airline changed to Donegal tweed from Magee in 1963. In both 1961 and 1962, Ardfinnan Thornproof Tweed won the Premier London Award and Georgian Silver Cup at international level in London.^[2] The Ardfinnan brand was also known for Tipperary Tweed, Tipperary Luxury Tweed or Ardfinnan Tweed. A Gold Medal of Industrial Excellence was presented to Jack Mulcahy and tweed designer Eddie O’Flynn for Mulcahy, Redmond’s bouclé tweed at the 1965 Leipzig Trade Fair in Germany, out of 350 entries from all fields of industry.^[28]

Redundancy

The firm supplied to the knitting industry in the wake of the declining domestic market and increasingly relied on large commissions such as for Macy’s in the USA. With up to 500 people directly and non-directly dependent on the mills, it closed in January 1973. Competitive disadvantages climaxing with Ireland’s admission to the EEC were blamed.^[29] A large protest in Clonmel led by the directors, workers and Mulcahy family followed, as promises by the government to support the Irish woollen industry were not upheld.

In the village today there are workers cottages that were built by the company, an agricultural co-operative, Ardfinnan GAA founded in 1910 by workers who had played football on the green and tennis courts opened in 1926 ^[30] With its own gas and hydro-electrical supply predating 1921, the latter was provided to local housing and electric street lights until the ESB took over the supply in January 1953.^[31][24]

References

52°18′40″N 7°52′46″W / 52.311222°N 7.879583°W / 52.311222; -7.879583