A Brief History of Quakers in Edenderry
The Religious Society of Friends, commonly called "Quakers" evolved in the north of England during a period of civil, religious and social upheaval in the early 1650's. Many people were unhappy with the established church and were attracted by the teachings of George Fox, the son of a Leicestershire weaver. Fox believed that is was possible to have a direct relationship with God without the need for intermediaries or symbolic practices.
Early Quakers were persecuted because they refused to pay tithes to the church, refused to swear oaths of allegiance or to bear arms, and held their own Meetings for Worship. Not surprisingly they were viewed as radicals and a threat by the establishment. They were imprisoned, whipped, fined and had their goods and belongings seized.
William Barcroft came to Ireland as a Cromwellian soldier but subsequently become a Quaker. He settled first in Lurgan, Co. Armagh, and then in Rosenallis in Co. Laois in 1659, but after being imprisoned in both places for refusing to pay tithes, Barcroft moved to Ballymorane, a townland three miles from the town of Edenderry. Barcroft's son, John, recorded the event and the establishment of a Quaker meeting in Edenderry as follows; "In the year 1673, my parents removed to Ballymorane, in the Kings county (Co. Offaly), where then was no Meeting of Friends, but soon after, divers (sic) friends came to settle near Edenderry, and the Meeting was kept for some time at my father's house."
The early Quaker settlement pattern in Edenderry was overwhelmingly rural, their interest being mainly in sheep and cattle farming, but they were to face significant difficulties during the Williamite War. In 1688, through to 1690, the Quakers in Edenderry were threatened with execution, had livestock and goods taken by the Jacobite forces, and their properties damaged. By 1691 they had abandoned the area, effectively ending the first phase of Quaker involvement in Edenderry. However, in 1692, a number of the original families returned and were joined by a new wave of Quaker settlers. Such was the growth in numbers, a lease was granted to John Pim in 1708 for the establishment of a permanent Meeting House, close to the site of thecurrent Meeting House.
This second phase of settlement saw a change in focus from farming to that of merchant and artisan activities. In Edenderry, Quakers set up shops, milled flour and malt, and ran a woollen manufacturing industry that employed over 1000 people. By 1720, such was the growth in numbers, the Quaker Meeting in Edenderry was the largest in Leinster (outside of Dublin) with over 170 members.
In the years after the 1798 Rebellion and leading up to the Great Famine, hunger and deprivation was prevalent. Many of the people involved in working for the relief of the poor were Quakers, and this was the case in Edenderry. In 1847, at the height of the Great Famine, food was distributed to the destitute at the gates of the Quaker Meeting House.
Throughout the 1800's trade in Edenderry still remained predominantly in Quaker hands. Pigot's directory of 1824 showed that two thirds of the traders were Quakers. Slater's directories of 1846, 1856 and 1871 also record Quaker names - Hoowe, Eves, Barnes, Hanks, Valentine and Williams. The Williams family only ceased trading in the 1960's after nearly two centuries in business in the square.
The arrival of Daniel Alesbury in 1878 heralded a new phase in Quaker industry and prosperity for Edenderry. He began a sawmill and joinery, which at its peak employed over 500 workers. These included cabinet makers, chair makers, French-polishers, upholsterers, coach builders, coach painters, and smiths who did all the iron work. The business survived two devastating fires in timber-built premises, before being located in a stone building that still stands in the Edenderry Business Park
Alesbury’s had a deep sense of commitment to their employees. A "Sick and Funeral Club" raised funds to assist in cases of sickness or injury during work, or on the death of an employee or family member of an employee. During World War I Belgian refugees who arrived in Edenderry were employed by Alesbury's. Alesbury's mill closed in 1932 but remained in smaller premises on the Dublin Road until the end of the 1960's.
The current Meeting House at Fr. Kearns Street was built by 1806, although a new lease granted in 1813 provides the date for the plaque over the front door. Today, the Meeting House is largely unchanged from its original construction. The Friends burial ground, at Daingean Street, dates from 1752. The early graves are unmarked, with the use of headstones only commencing in about 1800.
A Meeting for Worship is still held in Edenderry Meeting House on the second and last Sunday of each month at 10:30 am and all are welcome. For more information please see www.quakers-in-ireland.ie
or contact edenderryquakers@gmail.com
The above information has been extracted from a thesis by local historian ,Therese Abbott.