History of 7th of March, 1976

On the 7th of March, 1976 a car-bomb exploded at Main St., Castleblayney killing Mr.Patrick Mone, Tattinclave, Castleblayney. Mr.and Mrs.Mone were in Castleblayney that Sunday night to leave a relative, a Mrs.Mary Hughes of Calledon, Co.Armagh, to the bus. She was travelling on to Dublin that night to visit her daughter. Patrick {Packie} had just stepped out of the car when the bomb went off at 8.20, just two minutes before the bus arrived. Packie was badly injured, losing a leg, and he died in the ambulance at Annyalla, on the way to Monaghan General Hospital. His wife Anna and Mary Hughes who were still in the car when the bomb went off suffered minor injuries. Anna vividly remembers seeing a blue flash and then hearing a loud bang. The car was turned over by the force of the blast. According to the Northern Standard fifteen others sustained injuries and some were detained in hospital. The Standard’s edition of the following Friday, 12thMarch set out the names of those injured and detained in hospital as follows:

Mrs.Eileen Cumiskey,The Crescent,Castleblayney.
Mrs.Enda Denny,Bree,Castleblayney.
Mrs.Margaret Coyle,Main St.,Castleblayney.
Mrs.Bridget Doherty,Main St.,Castleblayney.
Mr.Edward John Murphy,Tullynagrove,Castleblayney.

Those reported with minor injuries and/or shock were:
Paddy,Pauline andJoseph McGuigan,Drumsill Park,Armagh.
Peter Cumiskey,the Crescent,Castleblayney.
Ann Connolly,Rossulus,Castleblayney.
Mr.and Mrs.Paddy Sherry,Rossmore Park,Monaghan.
Mr.Sean Duffy,Tullycarragh,Castleblayney.
Ms.Rose Finnegan,Broomfield,Castleblayney.
Ms.Mary Courtney,Castleblayney.
 
A number of others were treated for shock at the scene.
Packie Mone was 56 when he was killed. He worked as a bicycle mechanic all his life in Isaac Hillis’s shop in Muckno St.,Blayney. When the shop closed in 1974 Pakie retired. He occupied his time with some part-time farming. In his leisure time he liked to play a game of cards. His widow Anna remembers him affectionately as a very jolly, quiet person who was sorely missed at Tattinlave. She recalls that they never went to town at night but were there on that fateful Sunday night to meet the bus  taking Mrs. Hughes to Dublin. Anna continued on to look after her aging aunt who lived with her. She remarried some twenty years after Packie’s death and her second husband, Patsy McEneaney died in 2004. In 2003 Castleblayney Town Council unveiled a plaque to the memory of Packie Mone near the location where the bomb exploded.

The Castleblayney bombing has always been linked to the troubles in Northern Ireland. No organization took responsibility for the atrocity and to this day there have been no arrests or convictions.

A Fracturing of Time by Artist Remco de Fouw

Time, or more specifically the fracturing of time, is a central theme of the Mone memorial. The devastating explosion, tragic death and suffering it caused, punctuated people’s lives and so the history of  Castleblayney with a break in continuum, before and after a fracture. This Irish limestone memorial is relatively conventional with a well crafted, peen hammered texture,recessed chiselled edges and hand carved lettering. However this contrasts with a crack or break revealing a rough natural broken stone interior. This separation reveals a cast glass block internally lit from within the sculpture. Floating in the glass are various clock parts, a printed ceramic image of Mr. Mone and some cloudy wispy blue and yellow colours. This creates a mixture of colour, texture, depth and a play of light. The impression aimed for is that of cosmos, stars and nebula thrown out across space at the dawn of time. The so called ‘big bang’ or origin of all creation is alluded to but also refers to clockparts being found in the debris indicating a timing device used to detonate the explosion. This theme is expanded upon and personalized by the use of  some cast bronze bicycle cogs and shiny dome nuts set into the stone in clusters and appearing something like stars. The main bicycle drive cog is a reference to Mr.Mone’s past profession but also a fortuitous and playful symbol of community and the revolving cycle of life. The simple sundial overhead completes the loop from earth to sky, from creation to destruction,from a moment frozen in time to the rotation of the solar system and the journey of the soul towards the heavens.

Remco De Fouw is a graduate of the National College of Art and Design in Dublin. Recent public art commissions include Silent Witness at Meath Co.Council Offices, Ashbourne, Dissolve at Drogheda Municipal Swimming Pool, First Conondrum at Edinburgh International Conference Centre and Perpetual Motion on Naas By-Pass. He, his wife and family live in Co.Carlow.

Teachtaireacht Ón Meara Chontae - Message from County Council Mayor - Cllr. Gary Carville

Ar son Comhairle Chontae Mhuineachain molaim agus guím ráth Dé ar an sár obair atá deanta í mBaile na Lorgan í gcuimhne Padraig Ó’Mocháin, a fuair bás í ndiaidh an phleascán ar an 7ú la de Mharta 1976. Go ndeana Dia trócaire ar a ánam.

Today is an important day for Castleblayney and especially for the Mrs Anna Mone-McEneaney and the Mone family and the families of all those injured or affected by the terrible bombing in Castleblayney in March 1976. It is a time to remember, a time to recall and a time to look forward with hope.

Time and Remembrance are intrinsically linked. Today is about both. It recalls the awful tragedy that visited our town on that night thirty two years ago and it also points us to our eternal destiny, in the fullness of time. Time since 1976 has witnessed many more tragedies on the island of Ireland and also many heroic acts of courage, personal and political. Today, as we acknowledge that everything has its time, we must also recall that we have now reached “a time for peace” (Ecclesiastes 3:8). The peace which we now experience is the result of much soul searching and courage on the part of many, not least on the part of one of Ireland’s greatest sons, Nobel Peace Laureate John Hume, whom I welcome to our town and county today for this unveiling.

Monaghan County Council is honoured to be associated with this initiative and I particularly commend the Mayor and Members of Castleblayney Town Council and especially Tony McDonagh, Project Co-Ordinator, and all of our professional team for their contribution. I thank and congratulate Remco de Fouw for his outstanding work, professionalism and understanding as we all made this journey together. I thank also the Remembrance Commission and the Arts Office of Monaghan Co Council for their financial assistance which made the project possible. The Justice for the Forgotten group played a key role in this initiative, which I also acknowledge. On a personal level, as one who remembers the events of the night of 7 March 1976, I am pleased that both as Mayor of Castleblayney in 2006-07 and now as Mayor of the County of Monaghan, I have been able to play a small part in enabling us all to remember those events and to put in place a suitable memorial which will give expression to our burning desire that time will allow wounds to heal and peace to take root and blossom, so that we can promote and enjoy what is best in our people.

As we honour the memory of Patrick Mone today, let us never forget the sacrifice he made. Let us never forget that so many others also were given no choice but to make a similar sacrifice. But let us also re-commit ourselves to ensuring by our efforts, as individuals and as a community, that such events will never occur again and that dialogue, trust. tolerance and understanding will be manner of our political and social interaction and the treasure of our time for the future generations to come.

Is mise,

CLLR GARY CARVILLE MCC, TC
Mayor of the County of Monaghan.

A message from Cllr. Jackie Crowe, Mayor of Castleblayney, Chairperson of the Memorial Committee and Member of Monaghan County Council

As the Mayor of Castleblayney and chairperson of the memorial committee I very much welcome the unveiling and dedication of the Patrick Mone memorial. Words can hardly address the grief and loss felt by Patrick’s widow, Anna, and by the other members of the Mone family. It is to be hoped that the presence of a physical memorial will assist the healing process and allow people to move on. We must not forget,also,those who were injured and suffered shock and their families. Thirty two years have elapsed since the atrocity and many of those who were injured by the blast have since passed away. They are also remembered at this time. A sincere expression of thanks must go to the artist Remco de Fouw, who has created a work of profound significance, at all times sensitive to the requirements of Anna Mone-McEneaney and the Mone family.

Elsewhere in this booklet Castleblayney Town Council acknowledges the help and support of so many people and organisations in completing this project. I would like to thank again the Remembrance Commission, who are the substantial funders of this project and the respective Local Authorities, Monaghan County Council, Castleblayney Town Council and the Public Arts Committee who also contributed funds.

Thanks also to Justice for the Forgotten who represent the victims and families of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings and similar tragic events such as this one. A word of thanks to the members of the memorial committee, especially Anna Mone-McEneaney and Tommy Mone, who gave of their time in attending so many meetings since work began in 2006.

We are honoured to have Mr.John Hume as special guest to unveil the memorial along with Patrick Mone’s widow. Mr.Hume was deeply involved in the peace process and from the Hume/Adams talks to the Good Friday Agreement his achievements were greatly recognised when the Nobel Foundation conferred the Nobel Peace prize on him. He is very welcome to Castleblayney today and let us hope and pray that the peace which which now exists on this island of Ireland will continue long into the future. With that thought in mind let us remember Patrick Mone and those others who have since passed away and the saying ‘to live in the hearts of those we love is not to die’.

Cllr. Jackie Crowe MCC TC,
Mayor of the Town of Castleblayney.

Joint Message from County Manager Declan Nelson and Town Manager David Fallon

Monaghan County Council and Castleblayney Town Council are privileged in their role of honouring Patrick Mone, a quiet hero killed in the bombing incident in Castleblayney in March 1976.  The sense of loss suffered by his family, particularly his widow, Anna, is still palpable and it is hoped that today’s commemoration will partly ease that suffering.

Patrick Mone is a worthy representative of all those ordinary people who acted with extraordinary courage on that fateful day in 1976 and throughout our recent history.  Following the bombing, the emergency services leaped into action to administer to Patrick and those many people who suffered injuries and shock.  It is fitting that we should remember the Fire Service, An Garda Siochána, the Ambulance Service and the staff of both Monaghan Hospital and St. Mary’s Hospital, Castleblayney.

As the County Manager and Town Manager we wish to thank all those associated with the honour accorded to Patrick Mone and his memory, the artist Remco de Fouw, Project Co-ordinator Tony McDonagh, the Members of Castleblayney Town Council and Monaghan County Council, the Arts Office of Monaghan County Council, The Remembrance Commission, the Justice for the Forgotten group ,the adjudication panel and the Town Council Staff.

In honouring Patrick Mone, who sacrificed his life, it is fitting that we have in our midst, Mr John Hume, Nobel Peace Laureate, who gave his public life in his efforts to achieve lasting peace with justice. 

Let the light shine from this Patrick Mone memorial as a symbol of hope and a reminder of the sacrifice made by his family and many others.  Their sacrifice has not been in vain.

 

Declan Nelson, Monaghan County Manager
David Fallon, Castleblayney Town Manager