"That's Just How it Was"

As a Social Worker working in many different social work area offices in England I came across social deprivation; poverty and all sorts of physical and mental abuse and much, more on a daily basis .This led me to thinking about my own grandmother and the harsh time that she lived through; following the Famine or "Great Hunger" 1844 as it became known all over the world, and later on another Famine in 1877-1881 devastated Ireland yet again. This book encapsulates the Famine (Great Hunger) , and how it destroyed the lives of millions of families' - the 1916 Easter Rising and the War Of Independence 1919-1921; and why Montgomery St Dublin became known as the Red Light District of Europe; why homosexuality was frowned upon and much more . Although Bridget was not born until 1884 she recalled the terrible mud huts and cabins and cesspits that were the norm that she and her family had to live in due to the harsh regimes of absentee landlords and their ilk; not least by the (British) government of the day. Bridget's life and the life of many, many millions of people in Ireland in this era - were blighted by poverty and deprivation in these living conditions - way, way beyond the imagination of any modern day people in Ireland. Education was not yet mandatory for the masses in the era that Bridget was born into, so when Bridget's parents both died when she was 14 years of age within hours of each other- the Nuns sent her to work in a barrister's office in Dublin. It was while she was working for this barrister that she learned how to read and write, subsequently, education then became her mantra. Bridget acknowledged that her employer was the source of her education and a ticket out of poverty; then meeting and marrying a 'good man' set her apart from those who had no work or trade. Bridget was a person who made the best of things whilst still retaining a sense of pride, of the worth of education as a ticket out of poverty and of the importance of retaining one's dignity and commitment to family through good and bad times. I have used the life of Bridget to celebrate; not only hers, but the achievements of other women in Dublin and Bray, in fact from all over Ireland, in this era, and as such, this story will ring true and be of interest to anyone with Irish ancestry wherever they live .. I hope that readers will enjoy the mix of history and biography as an authentic record of times past and that this hopefully will be an addition to Celtic history, and, will be read as an empathetic story of one woman's courage and determination to keep herself and her children out of the Workhouse and to show current and future generations how personal struggles shaped Irelands ancestry.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements; Foreword; Historical Background; Early Years; Moving to Dublin (Crosstwaithe Park); Getting Married/Living in Dublin; Moving to Bray; Andrew's Death/Life Without Him; Appendices; Bibliography; Books/Magazines/Archive Records; Index.

About the Author :
Mary Thorpe (Author) was born and raised in Wolfetone Sq. Bray Co Wicklow Ireland. She was one of five children of Patrick and Lolly Kavanagh 9neeO'Rourke) . Mary grew up knowing everyone in Wolfetone; she has many happy memories of playing with all her school friends and picking primroses for her Mam and Granny from Sammy John's river. She attended St. Patricks National School where she gained a Cert of Education at aged 14years. She worked in a lot of Factory jobs until she met and married her husband Ian Thorpe in England; they went on to have five children of their own. When Mary was 41years of age -she made the decision to return to Education and undertook a course of study at Langley College Berkshire. Having then gained the relevant qualification to gain entry into University, she applied for and was accepted onto a University Course studying the Social Sciences which included Social Work and Higher Education. On completion of the University Course Mary was appointed to a Locum SW Post in Harrow, then moving onto a more permanent position in Hertfordshire, before being promoted to a Health and Social Care Co-ordinator Post. Mary worked in Oxhey/Rickmansworth/Abbotts Langley /Watford area Offices as a Social Worker and then as a Health and Social Care Co- Ordinator based in Oxhey's GO Surgery covering all the GP Surgeries in the same areas. When Mary's husband and Mother died in 1997 she moved north to Preston to be near her daughter. She was then appointed as a Social Worker in Blackpool - and then re-appointed to a Senior Social Work Position in Blackpool. Mary retired in 2010. Mary Now lives in Preston Lancashire near her daughter and family and with her youngest son Ian.

Review :
"Readers should enjoy this poignant read and be able to experience Bridget's woes and triumphs along with her. Moreover, they will end by thanking God that women like Bridget existed as role models for women everywhere and that such strong, hardy and steadfast women contributed to forming that charming, quirky, determined Irish character which shines in Irish eyes all over the world." (Shayne Langstroth BEd Hons.Med)