OLD BRIDGE — A historic map of Ireland that has been on display at the Friendly Sons of the Shillelagh for more than 25 years has been restored, with help from a county grant.
The map has a colorful history.
It was first displayed in 1964 at the New York World’s Fair in Flushing Meadows, where it was featured in the Irish Pavilion. It is unique in that it displays both the names of the counties and the historic surnames associated with each. For example, County Donegal features the name O’Doherty, and County Wexford has the name Kennedy. The hundreds of Irish surnames placed across the map had drawn thousands of American/Irish to the Irish Pavilion in search of their ancestral Irish county roots.
After the fair, the map ended up as the centerpiece in Molly Blooms, a famous New York City Irish pub. In 1982, when the pub owner decided to renovate, the future of the map was in jeopardy. That’s when Bob Arthur, a member of the Friendly Sons, stepped in and asked the pub owner if the Friendly Sons could purchase the map.
Arthur, along with Dennis Murphy, a former president of the Shillelagh, went to New York to “rescue” the historic map. The map, which eventually hung in the main hall, is in four sections representing the four provinces of Ireland. Over the years, the 12-by-10-foot map was damaged and was in need of repairs and restoration.
A
working committee was formed to investigate
costs involved and find a qualified restorer. The Middlesex County Cultural and Heritage Commission approved a grant award in December 2007, and the chosen restorer was Bob’s Signs of Old Bridge. The grant program was made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
Bob’s Signs has completed the restoration project, John Wagle, president of the Friendly Sons in Old Bridge, announced.
The public is invited to view the map at the Friendly Sons hall, Route 18 and Oak Street, on Oct. 12 between 3 and 7 p.m. Chris Finnegan and Ron Keaveney will provide music.