Search Results for 'statue of Pádraic'

After a prolonged saga, a replica of the original statue of Pádraic Ó' Conaire is to return to Eyre Square following an eleven year absence. The original statue of the famed Irish literary giant dominated the top of the Square since it was unveiled by Eamon de Valera in 1935. The sculpture was a top attraction for visitors to Galway, many of whom had their photograph taken alongside the writer.

Eyre Square’s Kennedy Park may have to be closed to the public so work can take place to restore the grasslands damaged during the Christmas Market.

It lasted only an hour, but for a generation of Galwegians it was a momentous occasion, one that gave a city and a population emerging from the oppressive 1950s, a much needed boost of confidence. It was the day US president John F Kennedy came to visit.

To mark Eyre Square’s 300th anniversary, a new limited edition book on the history of the city’s central point is about to be launched.

“Confining” the statue of Pádraic Ó Conaire to the Galway City Museum and abandoning the idea of a bronze state to the writer is “an insult to his memory”.

The Galway City Museum is asking the public to submit their old photographs taken with the statue of Pádraic Ó Conaire in Eyre Square.

The statue of Pádraic Ó Conaire has become an icon of Galway city, but how many of Galway’s children know who he was and of his importance in Irish literature?