Wexford man George Walsh was a highly respected ploughman

Irish Independent

22-05-2025

George was born at Island Farm where he lived all his life, on June 18, 1932 to parents James and Alice (nee Bailey). George had two older sisters, Elizabeth and Lucetta and he was called after his grandfather George.
George was first and foremost a gentleman, he had many talents and many interests. He liked to read the daily newspaper and kept himself fully abreast of world events and current affairs right up to weeks before his passing.
In addition to his love for his wife Violet, who he married in June 1959, and his family, he was a true Christian man who attended his place of worship weekly. George loved his family, church, farm and ploughing and lived his life with great contentment. He always said, 'if you are working at what you love it's not really a job at all'.
Following his early education in Kilnamanagh National School and then Kilmuckridge Technical School, he came home to farm in the mid-1940s. Island Farm was a typical mixed farm of its time and it was more or less self-sufficient with dairy cows, cattle, sheep, fowl of all kinds.
He grew wheat, oats, barley, sugar beet, swedes, mangolds and there was a vegetable garden to be looked after as well. He worked hard and long hours, but always in a measured way and generally didn't get into a fuss or fluster about too much. He gave every day its own measure.
His children were remarking at his funeral that their father would come in for his tea after evening milking, then usually went out again to his workshop, where he'd be fixing a machine or making something, but he often came back in at bedtime to say their prayers and read a story with them.
In 1970, George entered his first ploughing match in Kilmuckridge in the Parish Class and won first prize. That was the start of his long association with the Kilmuckridge Ploughing Association and ploughing competitions at county and national level.
He was chairman of the local club for many years and was president of the club up to his death. He was also the chairman of the Wexford Ploughing Association for a long stretch in the 1970s and 1980s and was very involved in the ploughing matches in Rosegarland, Wellingtonbridge in 1973 and 1981 and the Wells Match in 1976.
He loved all aspects of ploughing, meeting fellow ploughmen and he also enjoyed competing in them. He competed at parish, county and national level. He won the Vintage Tractor Class with his David Brown Cropmaster tractor and plough in the National Ploughing Championships in 1999. For many of these matches he was accompanied by his sons, James and Eric who both also competed.
George along with his great friend the late Murt O'Sullivan, travelled the length and breadth of the country attending matches and judging competitions. It wasn't just Ireland where he attended and judged ploughing. He also went to judge the Europeean ploughing in Belgium, Czech Republic, Wales and Switzerland and to plough in the UK to represent his country in the vintage 2-furrow class.
ADVERTISEMENT
Learn more
The support of the ploughmen from all corners of Ireland at his wake and funeral services was testament to the high esteem in which George was held by many. He was a ploughman who had ploughed the furrows along with them in the course of his life.
In addition to his love of ploughing, George was a member of the Kilmuckridge and Kilnamanagh Church of Ireland Community and was a Vestry Members and Representative at Diocesan Synod for over 40 years. George was also a member of the IFA and was one of the founder members of Wexford Mart.
He also liked to recall stories and the one that fascinated him most was when he was 8 years old he was the first on the scene, quickly followed by his mother, when an RAF Hurricane Fighter Plane crash landed in the 'Big Field' at Island Farm. The pilot, Paul Mayhew, landed safely and George remembers his mother brought him into the house for some tea before the local military police came to arrest him and bring him to the Curragh Camp.
When he was a bit older, he was asked by the Doyne Family from Wells House to be one of the coffin bearers for Miss Kathleen Doyne's funeral and it wasn't a job he had much practise at up to then but he seemingly managed well as he carried a lot of coffins after that one throughout his life.
George led a good life, he was a sincere and helpful neighbour, friend and family man. His love of new farm methods and new ideas helped him to move with the times. He was never afraid of innovation or some new way of doing things, particularly, if it saved him time and was a more efficient way to get the job done. He was also very fond of machinery and for many years did harvest contracting for a number of local farmers.
George will be sadly missed by his wife, Violet, daughters, Olive (Thorpe) and Alison (Williams) and his sons James and Eric. His son's- in- law, Desmond and Neil, and daughters-in-law, Allyson and Odette. His grandchildren, Stephen, Sarah, Grace, Ruth, Rebecca, George, Lydia, Andrew, Victoria, David, John and Ben and his ten great-grandchildren, his extended family, and all his neighbours and friends.
His family thanked all who expressed sympathy, the HSE home carers and staff of Wexford General Hospital, as well as the clergy for their support at this time.