Dear Cristopher
What a lovely surprise, l got to see my NewsFour on my return from my week in Queensland. l just had my 80TH birthday in February - a great night with my 10 children, 23 grandchildren and lots of my Dublin and Cork friends; one hundred people in all were there. I still get homesick for my Raytown when l read NewsFour. My children all want me to go home once more, maybe even to meet the staff of this great paper.

Looking at photo on page 4 of the last issue, l knew Bernard Flood and all his family. The picture of Boland’s Mill was fantastic. I passed it for 10 years twice a day on my way home from Arnott’s, before l got to the bridge l had to pass the Bottle House where all the lads used to sit outside on the footpath eating their lunch - a lot of wolf whistles went on as the girls passed by (good auld days). Again, thank You for the beautiful memories.
Mrs J Lynch
nee Josie Campbell
Victoria, Australia

Growing Up In Irishtown
I was born in Stella Gardens in 1921. My parents were Matthew (Sailor) Doyle from Bath Street, and Annie Doyle (Nee Smyth) from Shamrock Avenue, long since gone and now the Square. Shamrock Avenue gave it’s name to the famous Shamrock Rovers as some of the founder members lived there. My oldest memory is when our houses were flooded when the Dodder burst its banks at Fitwilliam Quay, this would have been in 1926 or 27. As our part of Irishtown was then in Sandymount, I attended Star of the Sea School until 1935. In 1932, for the Eucharistic Congress, we were lined up along the Merrion Road to greet the Papal Legate as he travelled by coach from Dun Laoghaire into the city. A few days later we attended the Childrens’ Mass in the Phoenix Park and there were children from all over the country there. After leaving school in 1935, I went to serve my time as an Iron Moulder at the foundry in Windmill Lane. Long gone of course, as are all the other foundries in Dublin. All my old schoolmates have now passed away, a lot of them played football, Benny Henderson for Drumcondra and Paudge Gregg for Rovers. Paudge - whose father James (Jemmy) Gregg was a founder member of the Hoops – scored the only goal in the 1945 cup final to win the trophy for Rovers.

In conclusion, my father, Sailor Doyle, sailed all over the world, rounding the Horn many times as the Panama Canal was not yet built. He visited Australia many times, where he had an uncle also called Matthew Doyle who worked as a stevedore in Sydney. Unfortunately, as far as I know, he never looked him up. If he had, we might be in touch with that branch of the family today.
Regards
Oliver Byrne
Ballyfermot
Dublin 10