This certified true copy of Memorial of an Indenture of mortgage dated 12th day of July, 1921 was signed by Thomas Murphy of Straboe in the County of Carlow, Farmer, Michael Doyle of Tullow Street, Carlow in the County of Carlow Merchant, Edward S. Campion of Tinryland in the County of Carlow, Catholic Curate, and John C. Kelly of Rathoe in the County of Carlow, Catholic Curate, (therein called the Trustees) and The Governor and Company of the Bank of Ireland (therein called the said Governor and Company) to purchase Duckett’s Grove estate lands as outlined in the First and Schedules therein.
Twenty eight local farmers and labourers, named in the Third Schedule (therein called and became the Beneficiaries) of parts of the said lands of Duckett’s Grove estate located in the townslands of Friarstown, Kneestown, Moorestown, Russellstown, Greenane, Newtown, Killamaster, Straboe and Rainestown in the Counties of Carlow and Kildare.
This Memorial of an Indenture of Mortgage dated 12th day of July, 1921 was signed, sealed and delivered by Thomas M. Murphy, Michael Doyle, Edward S. Campion and John C. Kelly
in the presence of:
Edwin Lanphier, Bank of Ireland, Carlow (Agent) and Samuel Roche, Solicitor, Tullow, Co. Carlow, lodged in the Registry of Deeds Dublin at 10 minutes after one o’clock on the 5 day of August 1921 and initialed by J. K. Quail A.R.
After Maria Georgina Duckett permanently left Duckett’s Grove circa 1916 to reside in Dublin, Duckett’s Grove estate was reduced to approximately 1,300 acres as a result of various Land Acts. The estate was leased for grazing and tillage until 1921 when it was put under the management of an agent where twenty-eight Beneficiaries consisting of local farmers and labourers under the umbrella of Duckett’s Grove Land Committee purchased the estate with a £32,000 loan from the Bank of Ireland with a vision of establishing a Forestry College in the Mansion. By 1925, the farmers and labourers were unable to agree the division of the land and no repayments had been made to the bank. On June 20th 1925 the bank issued the committee members with a bill for £38,217.18.6 with a threat that legal action would be taken against them. After approximately two years of negotiations the Land Commission took over the estate, the bank retained the mansion and eleven aces of land which was sold to Fredrick Thompson of Hanover Works for £320. He demolished some of the outbuildings and the granite was used in the building of the Christian Brothers School in Carlow Town. The Land Commission cleared the Duckett’s Grove Land Committee bank debt, by 1930 the division of the land was complete and all twenty-eight Beneficiaries consisting of farmers and labourers re-purchased the landholdings.
Article by J. Doyle – Founder, Owner and Administrator of DuckettsGrove.ie