A FORMER British MP has written a new book that tells
the painful story of a young boy who was sent to a little known institution run
by a religious order on the Southside in the 1930s.
Published this month,
‘The Pigeon House’ is a
startling and moving revelation about a tough childhood in Ireland. It tells
the story of Larry Kelly’s first 17 years in Dublin and details the poverty,
neglect and illness he endured and how it resulted in his near death from tuberculosis
at the age of seven.
He spent four years in the Pigeon House sanatorium for
adult tuberculosis sufferers, which was run by Catholic nuns on the Pigeon
House Road in Ringsend.
The book tells how he eventually escaped from the
sanatorium and fled to England, where he settled.
Larry only revealed the full truth about his life to
James Plaskitt, a former Labour Party MP for the Warwick and Leamington
constituency, shortly before he died. Mr Kelly was the father of Mr Plaskitt’s
partner.
He wrote the book based on Mr Kelly’s own notes and
extensive interviews. Mr Kelly approved the final draft of the manuscript just
days before he died, shortly before 80th birthday, in May 2011.
Mr Plaskitt said the institution was run as a TB
sanatorium that closed down in the 1950s. However, he said that despite
extensive research he had failed to identify the religious order that ran it.
The Pigeon House Sanatorium was opened in 1907 and is
described as an
“isolation hospital
? in a Dail Debate in February 1948. At the
time there was a high prevalence of tuberculosis throughout the country.
Mr Plaskitt explained that as a very young boy, Larry
had no permanent home and went without food, surviving on scraps from market
stalls.
“Weak from hunger, he easily succumbed to tuberculosis,
which was rife throughout the Dublin tenements in the 1930s,
? Mr Plaskitt said.
Larry eventually ended up in one of the city’s
hospitals where he was diagnosed with tuberculosis.
The book also reveals how, despite his traumatic early
life, Larry went on to enjoy a successful career as a manager with General
Motors in Dunstable in England and was happily married with three children.
According to Mr Plaskitt, Larry returned to Dublin for
the first time in 1997. He said this visit prompted him to write down his
experiences.
“I sensed he was finding an essential inner peace by
revealing the full truth and by unburdening himself of memories that he had
carried quietly but painfully throughout his adult life,
? Mr Plaskitt added.
“He explained that by telling his story he wanted others to know that, although
painful, memories cannot be erased, they can be conquered.
?
‘The Pigeon House’ can be purchased directly from
lulu.com. It is available in hard back, paper back, large print and e-book
versions.
Further information about the book and background to
the story can be found at www.thepigeonhouse.info
Mr Plaskitt would like to hear from any local people
from the Ringsend and surrounding areas who have any knowledge of the
sanatorium on Pigeon House Road or the religious order that ran it. He can be
contacted by emailing thepigeonhousebook@hotmail.co.uk