110 years of history at Barnycarroll Post Office

THE LAST POST Mary and Pat Hunt are pictured with family members, postman Padraig McHale and some of their final customers at Barnycarroll Post Office last Friday.

110 years of history at Barnycarroll Post Office


Michael Commins

IT was the end of an era in Barnycarroll Post Office in the parish of Claremorris on Friday. When Mary and Padraig Hunt handed over the mailbag to An Post collector Frank Hyland from Ballindine just after 5pm, the curtains came down on 110 years of service by the Hunt family to the people of the locality.
Padraig (Pat) and Mary Hunt and family had spared no effort in ensuring their last day serving the people in their community was a memorable one. There was ample food and drink for all who rambled along and a real social atmosphere prevailed throughout the day.
The Post Office has been in the Hunt family since 1900. Padraig’s grandfather was ‘evicted’ from lands just a few hundred yards up the road. One must remember that Ireland was under direct rule from London back then. “We made enquiries as to exactly when the Post Office started out in Barnycarroll and I suppose it is a measure of the quality of the records they have kept in London over the years that they were able to tell us that their postal archives stated that Barnycarroll PO commenced business in 1900,” says Mary.
The Postmaster in Claremorris, who must have known John Hunt at the time, decided to offer the Post Office to him in 1900. It was an offer he gladly accepted. He continued in that role through the change-over from British to Irish rule in the early 1920s until his death in 1928.
His son, Walter Hunt, father of Padraig, took over the post office and ran it until he died in 1950, the year Mayo won their second All Ireland senior title. His wife Bridie then became postmistress and she remained in charge until 1977. Padraig married Mary Boyle in 1971 and Mary assisted Bridie with the office for some time before eventually taking charge in 1977, a position she held until last Friday.
For Mary and Padraig, Friday was an emotional day.
“Davy Dowd (from Rockfield) came here for over 70 years. His sister May (Jennings) came for even longer. She remembered when it was a thatched post office. They were very lonely when they called for the last time. So too was our neighbour Mrs (Delia) Murphy who was one of our most senior customers. She came over to wish us well. You can never forget moments like that, especially from the older people. They have been so much a part of life in this area all through the years. It was very much a place for a social gathering every week,” said Mary.
People associated with the post office and the delivery of mail in the region were recalled by Padraig Hunt. “Both my grandfather and father delivered post by foot in the area. When my father started cycling with the post, it was regarded as a major change. My brothers Sean, Luke and Miko did the post for a while too. Barney Egan commenced delivering post in 1961 and did so until around 1980. Colm Murphy (Tulrahan) did it for another while before Claremorris took over the postal deliveries around the region,” recalled Padraig.
“Ger Walsh was the collector of the mail for years. He was from Ardroe and was father of Michael Walsh, the American based boss of Delta Dental (DeCare) in Claremorris. Various drivers from Claremorris Post Office collected our post over the years since then.”
The Marian Shrine was built across from Hunt’s Post Office in 1954. The light was on a timer and was operated from Hunt’s for many years. When the new N17 went through some years ago, the shrine was moved from one side of the road to the other. Local man, Owen McLoughlin, since deceased, presided at the special ceremony and thanked the Hunt family for their great contribution and care of the shrine over the years.
For other local people like Kathleen Connaughton, Breege Duggan, Maudie Finn, Marie Prendergast, Marian Merrick and Gerard McLoughlin, who were there when I rambled along on Friday, this was a special day tinged with real sadness. And for folks like Jenny and Roger Jordan, who moved from England to nearby Mace in recent years and who cultivated the friendship of the Hunt family through the Post Office service, it was also a time of loss and reflection.
Numerous messages of goodwill, cards, and phone calls were received by Padraig and Mary in recent days. “The kindness of so many people has touched us in a special way,” said Mary. “We are going to miss the regular calls, especially on Thursday and Fridays. They were so much a part of our lives over the decades. We served the finest of people and you would always be proud of them. Ordinary country people who were the salt of the earth. We had the finest of neighbours and friends around here. It was our privilege to serve them.”
Barnycarroll Post Office, 1900-2010, was in the ownership of the Hunt family from start to finish. A truly remarkable era of service to the local community came to a close on Friday evening.