In the wake of the two trials of Poff and Barrett in December 1882, a 16-verse ballad was composed by a witness to the events, which begins: Come all you lovers one and all, And listen unto me, A mournful execution that happened in Tralee.
The ballad tells how Sylvester Poff and James Barrett protested their innocence of the murder of Thomas Browne of Dromultan. It also tells how the two men, ‘like soldiers bold,’ went up the scaffold in Tralee Jail after bidding farewell to their loved ones, and confessing their innocence before God. They asked that people would pray for them.
Cries of Innocence
Over the ensuing 140 years, their prayers and their cries of innocence were heard. The people of Castleisland carried their story forward from one generation to the next. At various times efforts were made to redeem them. In the 1960s, Eamon De Valera, President of Ireland, was approached for help, and calls were made for the exhumation of their remains for proper burial.
Now at last, with practical community support in Castleisland and beyond, its history society has put in motion application for the posthumous Presidential Pardon of Poff and Barrett supported by the findings of the BBC TV series, Murder Mystery and My Family.
Convictions Found Unsafe
In this documentary, screened last year, their convictions were found unsafe. The latest from the Department of Justice is that the application, submitted last December, is with their Strategic Policy, Planning and Research Team for processing and has been identified as ‘a priority task.’
Keel musician, Richard Prendergast, the man behind the CD Songs from the Past, has put the Poff and Barrett Ballad to music at the request of Castleisland District Heritage.
It accompanies a full transcript of the Poff and Barrett trials and can be heard on the project website.
The Gallows Earl
Notably absent from the Poff and Barrett ballad is the magnanimous effort made to gain their reprieve, which was turned down by John Spencer, the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. Spencer, who held office in Ireland 1882-1885, became known as ‘the Gallows Earl.’
Among those sent to the scaffold during his regime were Francis Hynes, Patrick Walsh, Myles Joyce who has, since, been pardoned and Joseph Poole. Michael Walsh, younger brother of Patrick, was also sentenced to death but being just 16, was jailed for life.
Hostile Reception in Castleisland
He served twelve years but was released from Mountjoy in 1894 due to ill health and died the same year. He weighed four stone on his release.
Spencer, an ancestor of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, received a hostile reception when he visited Castleisland in 1884. A flag, Remember Poff And Barrett, greeted his entry to the town. He was detested by the people, described by one as Satan.
Salute to a Departing Despot
His departure in 1885 was rejoiced, while a Corkman published a book of songs as ‘a parting salute to the departing despot.’
The ‘Gallows Government’ of Lord Spencer can also be read on the project website.
It is hoped that justice can be achieved for Sylvester Poff and James Barrett, and that their descendants can at last have the stain of murder removed from their family histories.
Thanks to Supporters
Castleisland District Heritage extends thanks to Craggeen Employment Ltd and Donie and Noreen Ring, Castleisland for their ongoing and valued support, and to those who purchase the project’s fundraising journals – their sole source of income. Earls of Desmond, wonderfully
illustrated by Noel Nash, is currently on sale in local outlets or from the project office in the Island Centre, Castleisland.
The Castleisland District Heritage website can be accessed at: www.odonohoearchive.com
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