Civilising Rural Ireland
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Civilising rural Ireland Civilising rural Ireland The co-operative movement, development and the nation-state, 1889–1939 Patrick Doyle Manchester University Press Copyright © Patrick Doyle 2019 The right of Patrick Doyle to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Published by Manchester University Press Altrincham Street, Manchester M1 7JA www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk This electronic version has been made freely available under a Creative Commons (CC-BY-NC-ND) licence, thanks to the support of The University of Manchester, which permits non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction provided the author(s) and Manchester University Press are fully cited and no modifications or adaptations are made. Details of the licence can be viewed at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 1 5261 2456 2 hardback First published 2019 The publisher has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for any external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Typeset by Toppan Best-set Premedia Limited Contents Lists of figures and tables page vi Acknowledgements vii List of abbreviations x Introduction 1 1 The origins of co-operation in Ireland 13 2 A civilisation among the fields 41 3 Ireland in the new century 73 4 Co-operation and life during wartime 97 5 The co-operative movement and the War of Independence 122 6 A co-operative commonwealth in the Free State? 162 Conclusion 202 Bibliography 211 Index 227 Figures and tables Figures 1.1 IAOS Co-operative network in 1902 (IAOS, Annual Report 1902). Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland. page 26 2.1 Employees outside Achonry Co-operative Creamery, Harold Barbour Collection, UCD Archive, P168. Image courtesy of UCD Archives. 51 5.1 Advert for Ballymacelligott Legal Indemnity Fund, Irish Homestead, 2 August 1919. Image courtesy of the National Library Ireland. 140 5.2 ‘Those reameries’,C Co-operative News, 20 November 1920. Image courtesy of the Co-operative College. 148 6.1 Sean Keating’s frontispiece to Joseph Hanly’s The National Ideal (1931). Image courtesy of the National Library Ireland. 192 Tables 1.1 Provincial statistics for IAOS creameries 33 3.1 Co-operative societies and members, 1907–14 86 3.2 Structure of organisational staff, 1907 87 4.1 Co-operative societies, 1914–18 108 5.1 Financial position of IAOS in 1919 136 5.2 Declining milk supply to six creameries in counties Limerick and Kerry 137 Acknowledgements The origins of this book project have deep roots. Both sets of my grandparents who lived and worked in rural Ireland were members of the local co-op creamery. Family stories and memories frequently coalesced around the site of the co-op and therefore this project was gestating for a long time. In particular I remember the strong attachment that my grandfather John Durkin had to the co-op and the stories he told me as a child awoke my interest in history. Growing up in Manchester meant that I was aware of the co-operative movement from the consumer’s side of the equation as well as that city’s role in shaping the modern co-operative movement. A desire to link my Irish upbringing to my Mancunian surroundings led to my initial interest and eventual fascination with co-operative ideas and institutions, and the ways in which they connected people. This book has been shaped by the intellectual co-operation of many other people. I am indebted to Pedro Ramos-Pinto, Till Geiger and Natalie Zacek for their guidance during the initial research. In particular, Pedro provided an invaluable source of wisdom and encouragement throughout the writing of the book. For that, and his friendship, I am very grateful. I’d like to thank Peter Gatrell and Cormac Ó Gráda who whose feedback and advice on early drafts shaped the project. I wish to thank Sarah Roddy with whom I have enjoyed talking and working in recent years, and from whom I have learned so much. Christopher Godden provided me with his support and wisdom, frequently dispensed in a chat over coffee, but which was always profoundly affecting. I have also benefited from meeting other co-operative historians with whom I have been lucky enough to discuss my work. In particular, I would like to thank Tony Webster, Mary Hilson, Rachael Vorburg-Rugh and Peter Gurney who provided stimulating insights into the wider history of the movement alongside their collegiality and warm support and welcome to those who work in the field of co-operative research. Any historical research would be a failure before it began if not for the assistance of dedicated archivists. The staff at the National Library of Ireland, the National Archives of Ireland and the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland always viii Acknowledgements provided the assistance and advice on sources that I needed to undertake this work. I have benefited from the deep knowledge and insight that particular individuals have over their respective collections. To that extent I would like to thank Gillian Lonergan and Sophie Stewart at the National Co-operative Archive, Noelle Dowling at the Dublin Diocesan Archive, David Bracken at the Limerick Diocesan Archive and Michael Lynch at Kerry’s Local History Archive, all of whose assistance and wisdom was greatly appreciated by this researcher. I’d also like to thank everyone at Manchester University Press who has made the production of book itself a relatively painless experience. In particular I’d like to thank Tony Mason for his encouraging words along the way and for making the process more fun. James Greenhalgh, Kat Fennelly, Barry Hazley, Tom Sharp, Muzna Rahman, Michael Durrant and Michael Kelly were fine companions at the University of Manchester, sources of intellectual inspiration, and more importantly, friends. Quintin Morgan, James Cregg and Daniel Comerford offered plenty of perspective to the project. Although we share wildly divergent and incompatible views on all matters football related, I am grateful for their patience and good humour. Andy Seddon, Alex Mitchell, Catherine Bolsover and Mark Crosher in Man- chester continue to exert great efforts to watch out for me for which I am truly thankful. In London, I am deeply indebted to Richard Cooke and Amy Cox (thanks for the room!), Tom Green, Laura Teece, Fay Benson, Chris Flavin and Martina Booth. All made my time in the ‘big smoke’ a less traumatic experience. Kim Walker deserves a special mention for convincing me to finally submit a book proposal which I sat on for too long. She was, and remains, an excellent purveyor of sage advice. I have also been blessed with wonderful friendships with people in Ireland. Dorothy Ingoldsby and Áine O’Shea provided me with necessary friendship and support, all of which was offered with characteristic openheartedness for which I am eternally grateful. Thanks also to Brian and Sheila Ingoldsby who took this stranger into their home and ensured I never wanted for anything. Meanwhile, my cosmic twin, Sarah Hunt, has always had my back in Dublin. My family have always supported me in a way that made me feel valued. I’d especially like to thank my aunt, Margaret Doyle, for her hospitality and homemade bread; my uncle and aunt, Anthony and Catherine Doyle, for their generosity and willingness to shepherd me back and forth for research trips to Tralee at the height of the Rose of Tralee madness; my uncle Gerard who put up with my unrequested, but unstintingly endured, history lectures; my aunt and uncle, Helen and Alan Breakey, who provided sanctuary in Monaghan; and my godfather, John Doyle, who has always taken that vow seriously and looked out for me. My sister Ann has always kept my feet firmly on the ground whenever I threatened to lose the run of myself, but has always ensured I had the help I needed without my ever asking for it. Acknowledgements ix Finally, I wish to thank my parents, Michael and Mary. None of this work would have been possible without their encouragement, and they continue to provide me with a source of inspiration. The love and faith in me they have shown down all the years have eased anxieties, doubts and difficulties that I have encountered and given me the belief to continue. I dedicate this book to them. Abbreviations ACC Agricultural Credit Corporation CDB Congested Districts Board CMC Condensed Milk Company of Ireland CWS Co-operative Wholesale Society DATI Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for Ireland DDC Dairy Disposal Company HCPP House of Commons Parliamentary Parties IAC Irish Associated Creameries IAOS Irish Agricultural Organisation Society IAWS Irish Agricultural Wholesale Society ICMA Irish Creamery Managers Association IPP Irish Parliamentary Party ITGWU Irish Transport and General Workers Union NAI National Archive of Ireland NLI National Library of Ireland PRONI Public Records Office of Northern Ireland UAOS Ulster Agricultural Organisation Society UI United Irishwomen Introduction Wherever the problem of rural life, as it is now commonly called, is under discussion, the Irish three-fold scheme – better farming, better business, better living – is regarded as the final solution, and the [Irish Agricultural Organisation] Society is hailed as the parent of a new agency of social service which was needed before any conceivable governmental action could avail to right what was wrong with the rural economy of nations absorbed in the interests of city life.