Plaque erected on Carrick-on-Suir's Main Street honours local War of Independence heroes

Picture caption: Tomás Babington (front centre) who unveiled the plaque on the wall of 95 Main Street above the group with Mayor of Carrick Cllr David Dunne, Cllr Kevin O’Meara (front 3rd from left), former senator Denis Landy and musician Kevin Power (second row to right of Tomás Babington) and relatives of the Irish Volunteers of 8th Battalion of the 3rd IRA Tipperary Brigade. Picture: Anne Marie Magorrian

A memorial plaque dedicated to people from Carrick-on-Suir and surrounding communities who fought in the War of Independence, has been erected in Carrick town centre.

The plaque is located at 95 Main Street, Carrick-on-Suir above where the door of the former James Coffey’s Draper Shop would have been. The shop is where War of Independence hero Seamus Babington worked and was used as a dispatch centre for local IRA volunteers.

Seamus Babington was a native of Farrankeal, Killarney, who came to work at his uncle James Coffey’s drapery as an apprentice in 1915.

He later took over the shop and the Babington Drapery shop operated until the 1980s.

It specialised in handknit jumpers made by Mary Babington and the Clancy brothers would have bought their iconic jumpers there.

Seamus Babington held the position of Brigade Engineer in the 3rd Tipperary Brigade IRA, one of the most active of 80 IRA units during the War of Independence.

The memorial plaque, erected by the Babington family, is dedicated to all the Irish Volunteers in the companies of Carrick-on-Suir, Faugheen, Grangemockler, Mothel, Clonea, Rathgormack, Windgap, Ballyneale and Kilamery, which comprised the 8th Battalion of the 3rd Tipperary Brigade IRA, along with their allies in Cumann na mBan and Na Fianna Éireann. The plaque describes 95 Main Street as a dispatch centre for the Volunteers 1918-1921.

The plaque was unveiled at a recent ceremony by Seamus Babington’s son Tomás while John O’Driscoll read the 1916 Proclamation.

Aidan O’Doherty recounted some of the local history of those years about the volunteers who often risked their lives, and the work of the members of Cumann na mBan. He spoke of the Republican plot in Carrickbeg where three young men were buried aged only 17,19 and 32.

Tomás Babingon said this was a commemoration of what happened 100 years ago.
“We must never forget what they fought for, including the right to have education and a roof over their heads.”

Tomás thanked everyone for coming, including Cllr Kevin O’Meara, Mayor of Carrick Cllr David Dunne and former local Senator Denis Landy.

Musician Kevin Power completed the ceremony by performing and singing several beautiful ballads and Amhrán na bhFiann.
Families of Seamus Babingon’s Irish Volunteer comrades were also present at the ceremony.

Seamus Babington’s report of his experiences during the War of Independence is in the Military Archives, which can be accessed online under Babington, 95 Main Street – Military Archives.

It is a detailed account of the IRA volunteers’ activities in Carrick-on-Suir and its environs, what they encountered and their perseverance to survive and fight during that era of grave danger that was the War of Independence.