Chairman's Diary
Here Michael Dalton gives his personal account of the Dalton Genealogical Society’s Annual Gathering for 2013 held in Dublin, Republic of Ireland from Friday 26th to Monday 29th July 2013. The weekend was based at the Ashling Hotel, Dublin.
Thursday 25th July
Kate and I flew to Dublin from London Gatwick on an early evening Aer Lingus flight. The flight was notable because of the very severe thunderstorm over Dublin airport which delayed our landing. There were dramatic views from the plane of the dark black mushroom shaped cloud and we were very glad we did not have to fly into it! Once safely on the ground, we were soon taking the airport bus to Heuston Station just near the hotel. We arrived at the Ashling around 9.30 pm, the same time as Howard and Jen, and David and Barbara Dalton, and before long other delegates who had arrived earlier joined us and we were able to have a drink and catch up with everybody’s news.
Friday 26th July
I had arranged a meeting in the morning with Elaine, the Hotel Events Executive. Kate and I had met Elaine back in November 2012 when we visited Dublin to make the more detailed arrangements for the weekend. It is always important to check through everything again just before the event and I discovered that we were to have our Saturday morning conference in a different room – the Kilmainham Suite on the lower ground floor. No matter, it was a more suitable room for our meeting and it was still planned that the annual dinner would be in the Liffey Suite on the first floor. This is the room which we used back in 2005 when we held our first DGS Gathering in Ireland. Since then the Ashling Hotel has been transformed with a major rebuilding and refurbishment programme undertaken 4 or 5 years ago. For those of us who were there in 2005, the hotel is hard to recognise and we were all very impressed with the improvements.
Once I had met with Elaine, I had a number of other things to check through and soon it was time for a lunch break with David Preston and Maureen Collins who were still in the hotel. Others had gone out sightseeing in Dublin and Bernie Walsh had arrived to lead a group visiting the National Archives of Ireland. After some useful discussions with both David and Maureen, it was time to set up the DGS Reception Desk in the main foyer of the hotel, and this was ready by 3 pm, the scheduled opening time. For the remainder of the afternoon I was fully occupied greeting delegates as they arrived, handing out the programmes for the weekend, answering their queries and generally taking the opportunity to meet old faces again, and new ones who had only previously been in touch with me either by email or telephone. Out of nearly 40 delegates, I counted 12 from North America, 3 from Australia, 8 from Ireland and 15 from the UK. Seven attendees were joining us at a DGS Gathering for the first time and 25 of the group claim Irish Dalton descent, or they are the spouse of an Irish Dalton descendant. So the mix of delegates was really excellent, with very good representation from overseas and a majority having a direct interest in Irish Dalton families. It was good to see new faces and returning ones, and particularly those who we had met back in 2005 or 2008 at our previous Irish Dalton gatherings. It was good to see everybody! …..and when we congregated in the Iveagh Bar for a drink before dinner there was soon a real buzz as delegates started chatting and catching up with each other – a hallmark of DGS gatherings wherever and whenever they are held. You cannot stop Daltons talking! A special area in the hotel’s Chesterfield Restaurant had been reserved for dinner and the talking continued as we enjoyed an excellent meal. The hotel staff looked after us extremely well and this was to be a feature of the weekend that we all commented on. The Ashling Hotel did us proud! All too soon the evening drew to a close – it had gone by very quickly.
Saturday 27th July
Following breakfast in the hotel delegates made their way down to the Kilmainham Suite in good time for the advertised 9.45 am start. We were joined by a few locally based DGS members attending as day delegates, who I had time to meet and greet personally. I was able to open our morning conference on time and it was a pleasure to welcome everyone officially to Ireland, to Dublin, to the Ashling Hotel, to the DGS weekend, and to our AGM, the first session on the programme. The formal business of the AGM was dealt with as efficiently as possible and concluded just ten minutes beyond the time advertised for the coffee break. I am not going to reiterate all the details here as the minutes will be published on our website soon and in the DGS Journal Vol 59 due out at the end of the year. We were very sad to lose the services of both Mel and Dairne Irwin after so many years and I am most grateful to Howard Dalton for agreeing to take on the role of DGS Treasurer on a caretaker basis until a more permanent successor is found. Our webmasters, David Preston and Martin Fitzgerald working in conjunction with a few committee members have a vision for a new more interactive website which will take over the role of "Daltons in History" and David outlined his initial ideas to the meeting. I must also mention Bernie Walsh here who had done so much to help with the preparations for the gathering. Kate and I met up with Bernie and her husband Eddie during our November 2012 visit to Dublin. With Bernie living in Gorey, Co Wexford, a few miles south of Dublin and with her professional genealogical experience, she had proved herself invaluable during the past six months. Whilst mentioning Bernie, I must say how delighted I am that she is stepping into the role of DGS Irish Secretary in succession to Ciaran Dalton.
So, with the AGM concluded and the coffee break over, we moved on to the second element of the conference agenda, a talk by DGS Committee member Mike Dalton entitled “The Eirann Daltons”. As coordinator for DIDP Group B, one of two key Irish Dalton genetic families in our DNA project, Mike was well placed to bring us up to date with the traditional family history research being undertaken both in Group B and interestingly in Group D. He referred particularly to work undertaken by DGS member Eric Dalton of Michigan, USA (a member of the Group D genetic family) on a tree linking back to the earliest Irish Daltons who settled in Co Westmeath. Helen Smith in Australia, along with Mike a member of Group B, had been in contact with a Dalton who is descended from this tree and persuaded him to take a DNA test. The result was astonishing – he unexpectedly matches Group B rather than Group D – and this has suggested that all members of the Group B genetic family link back to these early Irish Daltons. There is more work to be done on this exciting discovery but it gave Mike the opportunity to give us a very entertaining presentation on early Irish Dalton family history, including the link with the famous Strongbow, and suggest that they are his and Group B’s ancestors. Everyone much enjoyed Mike’s talk, even if he did take a little licence in arriving at the conclusions drawn. We look forward to reading a full write up on these exciting discoveries as an article in the DGS Journal, and to hearing more about the ongoing research. It is a wonderful example of genetic genealogy and traditional research working together to produce some really exciting and interesting results.
Our final session was led by Bernie Walsh. Bernie gave a very useful account of the Irish Census records now available online, and she was able to demonstrate to us how to access and use them. She showed us various Dalton records and answered many questions from delegates. Accessing original sources of data is such an important part of family history research and, of course, so much of it is now available on the internet and we no longer have to leave home to use it. Practical sessions such as this one by Bernie are much appreciated by DGS gathering audiences and it was particularly relevant to all with Irish Dalton descent. So many thanks to you, Bernie!
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Delegates assemble for our AGM and Conference |
Patrick & Patricia Dalton speaking with Michael |
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Michael talking with Etta Rodriguez |
Maureen Collins with Hannah & Edna Redpath |
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Karen D’Alton with her parents Colum & Joy |
Mike Dalton giving his presentation |
All too quickly the formal part of our conference had come to an end – our buffet lunch awaited us. This was served at the back of the room and everyone was able to carry on chatting informally and following up on outstanding points from the morning. During the afternoon, most delegates took the opportunity to go out and explore the City of Dublin. The Ashling Hotel is conveniently situated near the centre and there is a tram service (the Luas) which goes right past the hotel for those not wishing to walk too far. Kate and I visited Christ Church Cathedral which we had missed on previous visits. This is the Anglican cathedral for Dublin and it has a history extending back to the 11th Century. Unexpectedly we were able to enjoy the singing of a visiting choir and we also found the tombstone of Strongbow, buried in the cathedral in 1176 – now assuming more importance for Irish Daltons following Mike’s revelations in the morning!
On Saturday evening we held the Annual DGS Dinner in the Liffey Suite at the Ashling Hotel. Pre-dinner drinks were served from 7 pm, and at 7.30 pm 34 of us sat down at four round tables for dinner. The food we were served was excellent – the only complaint I heard was that the portions were too generous! The starter was a smooth chicken liver pate; there was a choice of chicken or salmon for the main course; and the dessert was an apple strudel – all absolutely delicious! During the meal we were entertained by two young local lads who played Irish folk music. They were very talented and their music was much appreciated. Along with the candlelit tables, the music lent great atmosphere to our annual DGS dinner. I have to thank Bernie for finding our musicians – we really enjoyed the entertainment they gave us and I am sure they have a great musical future ahead of them.
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Howard J Dalton with Bernie Walsh |
Kate with David & Barbara and Howard & Jen |
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Table 3 enjoying the occasion |
Etta Rodriguez, Howard J, Hannah and Edna |
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Barbara D in earnest conversation with Pat Robinson |
Our young entertainers playing Irish folk music |
Sunday 28th July
Sunday required a brisk start as everyone was asked to be ready to board our coach for a 9 am departure. Bernie had booked the coach from a company local to her home in Gorey and coach and driver arrived punctually to pick us all up. We knew that we had a two hour journey ahead of us to get to Kildalton College, our first port of call. The time passed by quickly and by 11.00 am we were in the village of Piltown. Pat and Geoffrey Robinson had travelled ahead of us by car and they were waiting at the gate of the College with Noel Nugent, our guide, Noel’s wife and Gerard Dalton, a local resident with whom Pat had been in contact. Noel is a lecturer at the College and had kindly agreed to act as our host and we are most grateful to Noel and his wife for giving up their Sunday morning to show us round. The history of Kildalton and the Daltons who used to live in Kildalton Castle before the Civil War has been described in an article by Pat Robinson in the DGS Journal (Vol 57 pp 24-27) and a further piece appeared in "Daltons in History" in February 2013 (Vol 16 No 2) so I will not try to summarise those details here. Although nothing of the castle remains and the present house was completely rebuilt after being burned to the ground in 1923, this is still a place of considerable interest to anyone with Irish Dalton ancestry. Historically the Daltons who lived in this area link back to those Daltons of Co Westmeath referred to by Mike in his talk. Noel welcomed us most warmly and we were able to see inside the house as the photographs show and we were also shown round the modern facilities that the College has to provide first class training in agriculture for its students today.
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Kildalton College, formerly Bessborough House |
The DGS Group on the staircase inside |
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Inside what is now the College’s boardroom |
Inside the Bessborough Room |
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Old print of Bessborough House as it was then called |
Pat Robinson with Gerard Dalton |
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Pat Robinson, Kate and the group outside the house |
The back of the house and the former chapel |
After our very interesting visit to Kildalton, we went on to Kilkenny where our driver was able to drop us off close to the centre of the city and the castle. As it had not proved possible to make a group booking for a castle tour, we split up into small groups and each found their own way. Most of us went on the very interesting self-guided tour round Kilkenny Castle – the ancestral home of the Butler family, Marquesses of Ormonde. We know of links between the Daltons and the Butlers and these have been written about in the DGS Journal. Just near the castle is the old part of the city with its cobbled streets and quaint houses and shops and we wandered round there too. Everyone was mindful of the time that we had to be back at the coach and having “counted them out” I “counted them in” and we were on our way back to Dublin.
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Finding the way round Kilkenny |
Entrance to Kilkenny Castle |
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Inside the castle |
Our journey back to Dublin was without incident and we were back at the Ashling around 6.30 pm giving everyone time to ready themselves for the evening. During the day we had been lucky – threatened rain turned out to be just a shower when we arrived at Kildalton College and the Neil Diamond outdoor concert at Kilkenny had threatened gridlocked traffic which did not materialise.
Our final event on the programme was dinner at Ryans, a restaurant in the first floor room above a pub just a few steps from the hotel and renowned for its steaks. We had spent a very enjoyable Sunday evening here back in 2005, and everyone enjoyed an informal meal in typically Irish surroundings. At the conclusion of the meal I took the opportunity to thank everyone who had contributed to making the weekend such a success and then Wendy Fleming presented me with a card signed by all and a bottle thanking me for arranging the gathering weekend. This gesture was totally unexpected and much appreciated – thank you to one and all!
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Patrick & Patricia Dalton, |
John D, Nancy Piastuck, Wendy Fleming, |
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Karen Preston, Michael D, Mike D |
Three Mrs Daltons, Maureen and Velma Boudreau |
All too soon the evening came to an end, and it was time to bid farewell to those not staying at the hotel. On returning to the Ashling, there was the opportunity for a final drink before retiring and reflecting on a busy and action-packed weekend.
Monday 29th July
The day of departure and saying goodbye. Inevitably all good things have to come to an end and I think all who attended agreed that it had been a most successful weekend. Kate and I were busy saying our goodbyes at breakfast as we had to get to the airport for our mid-morning flight home, and only two days at home before flying off to Canada for the month of August.
Inevitably this record cannot include everything that each delegate may wish to read and so I hope that you will fill out this account with your own reminiscences. Some of them follow in the next section, but I am sure there are more to be written and shared!
