Writes Leo McMahon
A man who has made an enormous contribution to community life in Kinsale for many decades, most notably with the Regatta Festival, Tidy Towns, the Temperance Hall and twinnings but also as a building contractor, Ted McNamara, in his 81st year, has no intention of stopping, saying: ‘I just like doing projects and finishing them’.
‘I was born in a house in the middle of the wood near Shippool Castle outside Innishannon on October 16th, 1943, the son of Innishannon man Timothy and Hannah (nee O’Brien from Castledonovan, Drimoleague) McNamara,’ said Ted. ‘My father worked for the owner of the estate, Dr Welpley who later moved to Bandon run a nursing home there, and my mother was the cook in the big house. I lived there up to age of four and my only memory is snow up to the window of the house in the big freeze of 1947.’
Ted was the first of four other siblings: Paddy (RIP), who lived in Sallybrook, Glanmire; Eileen (Lyons), Dunmanway; Kay (Kenny, RIP), Clara, Co Offaly and Martin in Bandon.
Ted went to school in the infants’ class at St Fintan’s National School, Gallows Hill and into primary at Warner’s Lane in Bandon. ‘I was very happy there and teachers I recall were Mrs Downey, Ms Mehigan and Mrs O’Brien. Some of us were too young to go to secondary so we were taught in 7th class by a young Sean O Se who went on to become a famous singer of Irish songs.
Aged 13, Ted went on to Bandon Vocational School, Kilbrogan Hill in the late 1950s and ‘sixties where Padraig O Gallachoir was headmaster. One of the subjects he learned was carpentry from Mr Lynch who was very good. He would also go to carpentry lessons in the old Boys’ Club, North Main Street, Bandon.
‘In my free time, I enjoyed road bowling and played under-age hurling with Bandon although my brother Paddy was much better and also played with Ballinhassig. We lived at St Anne’s just behind what is today Poacher’s Inn (formerly Blanchfield’s Bar).’
Friends from boyhood included Dave O’Mahony (from his first day at school), a fellow carpenter who married Julie, sister of the late councillor and fishmonger, Tim O’Brien, Kinsale; Pat O’Connell, David and JJ Kearney and former Bandon town councillor Domie O’Brien.
Leisure time then for Ted McNamara included Bandon Boys’ Club where there was snooker, rings and all sorts of games in the era before TV in Ireland. The cinema was also popular.
‘Because I was the eldest, I was put out to work to earn a wage aged 14 and started serving at the fuel pumps in the Star Garage in Bandon. I began an apprenticeship there in panel beating under Dermot O’Driscoll but didn’t like the spraying.’
Building trade
A year later, the teenager entered the building trade for the first time. ‘I did snagging - what they call a snag list today – of completed houses and odd jobs like hanging a door or fitting a tap. It was great experience,’ Ted recalled. Among the houses he worked in for contractor D J McCarthy from Drimoleague in the late 1960s, were Bishopstown Court and Drive, Cork on what were once green fields where one of the only buildings before then was Bishopstown Bar.
Just before this, on February 12th, 1966, Ted McNamara married Mary Walsh, daughter of Mossie and Margaret Walsh, Summercove at St John the Baptist Church, Kinsale and the reception was in Coakley’s Atlantic Hotel, Garrettstown.
‘We first met at Charles Fort where Domie O’Brien, who was the only one of us who had a car, along with Pat O’Connell, Dave O’Mahony and my brother Paddy, liked to go on Sundays and also have a drink in The Bulman, Summercove. The rest is history’.
Ted and Mary’s first home was in the dwelling of her aunt Margaret Willis in Summercove. Being the eldest of 12, Mary had lived with her for a number of years.
In 1979, the couple bought and did up a house at Rose Abbey, Kinsale which they turned into a bed and breakfast and also opened a shop which is today a hairdresser’s (Donna’s), he said.
Forty years ago, Ted bought a site and built the current four bedroomed family home at Ardcarraig estate off Bandon Road, Kinsale which has a nice sea view and is in close proximity to the town centre. While doing so, they rented a dwelling across the road.
Ted and Mary have two sons and a daughter. Caroline is married to Paul Murphy and they live at Garagh, Kinsale; Tim is married to Gillian Keary and reside at Coolcorran, Riverstick and Maurice is married to Julie O’Donovan and live in Kinsale. They have five grandchildren: Sean, Conor, Oran, Liam and Caitlin.
Around the time he got married to Mary, Ted was getting three days a week from D.J. McCarthy in Cork and working three days based from home in Summercove. Having built up the latter, he took the brave decision to go out on his own as Ted McNamara Building Contractor and was assisted by his late brother-in-law Sean Walsh.
He was fortunate over the ensuing decades to get almost continuous contracts from Kinsale Urban District (UDC) and Cork County Councils in carrying out repairs to and maintenance of its housing stock etc.
Major projects over the decades included part refurbishment of the Municipal Hall and installing the controversial Arts Council sculpture awarded to Kinsale after winning the 1986 National Tidy Towns competition (which he stressed should never have been painted), restoring the Fish Shed and the Paupers’ Well near the Cosy Café, Guardwell. Other good workers he recalled were his friend Dave O’Mahony, a roofer and Tommy Jones. There were some very good sub-contractors too.
Eventually, the company changed to Ted McNamara and Sons, after Tim qualified as a quantity surveyor and Maurice graduated in building construction.
One of its first schemes was Westwood Gardens, six dwellings close to his home off Bandon Road in 2001 and Victoria Cross Student Accommodation in Cork. A new company was started shortly after that, Aras Developments.
In the early ‘noughties, said Ted, he teamed up with sub-contractors Fergus McCarthy and Tomas O’Donovan to form MMD Construction (named after their surnames).
‘We started the business in the office my house and it proved very successful. Projects included homes in Half Way, Ballinhassig and several local authority projects such as the council offices in Mallow; Ard na Meara, Kinsale; Maulbaun, Passage West and houses in Ballinspittle and Clondrohid.’
In the Kinsale area, Ted spoke of the very good working relationship he had with architect Billy Houlihan; engineer Frank Morrison; supervisor Dan Cummins, town foreman and long-time friend Charles Henderson and several town clerks especially Hugh Peacocke. Now retired from building, he added that he never once had to go to hospital during a long career and liked nothing better than pottering away on projects, mainly on a voluntary basis for different community organisations.
In addition to being a builder, the enterprising McNamara’s set up Bell View Video club in Market Square (now Eithne Ryan’s Market Dental) after the former family home and guesthouse in Rose Abbey. It was run very successfully for many years, said Ted by his wife Mary. ‘It helped put all our children through college’ he said, recalling that popular rentals for £1 a night, were ‘Smokey and the Bandit’ and ‘Grease’.
Today, the 81 year old has plenty to do in home and garden and continues to do his bit as a volunteer in so many positive ways for the town of Kinsale.
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