An unusual feature of the High School Clonmel campus is the little cemetery hidden away in the far corner of the grounds. It contains the remains of nine Christian Brothers who were interred here between 1891 and 1935. More than two years have elapsed since the community left Clonmel and the once familiar sight of the Brothers moving to and fro between house and school is now only a memory. A short account of the Brothers who died in Clonmel will serve as a reminder of the hundreds of Brothers who gave unselfish and dedicated service in the cause of Christian education in the town for well nigh one hundred and fifty years.

On visiting the cemetery, one is immediately conscious of the extreme youth of three of those buried there. The explanation is a simple if rather poignant one. The dreaded scourge of tuberculosis struck them down or consumption or "the decline" as it was called in earlier times. In all probability it was brought on by under nourishment, a common lot of the brothers in Ireland in the years before the foundation of the State when to a large extent they were dependent on the charity of the people for their daily sustenance.

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St. Patrick's Cemetery

The plaque in the little cemetery contains the names of three others who are buried in St. Patrick's.

 Br. Thomas Sylvester.

Br. Timothy Berchmans Cronin.

Br. Patrick Casimir Redmond.

The Christian Brothers deeply appreciate the gesture of the Principal, Mr Shay Bannon, and Board of Management of the High School who have undertaken the upkeep of the little cemetery. May its presence in the school campus be an inspiration to present and future generations of students to keep alive the ethos and traditions built up by the Brothers in their long association with Clonmel.

M.H. Devaney
27^thOctober, 1995.

 Further reading 

The first grave is that of Br. Arthur Kevin O' Keeffe. A native of Mitchelstown he had begun his teaching career in Limerick but fell ill and was sent to Clonmel to recuperate, he did not recover, however, and departed this life at the end of October 1883 aged twenty one years. The youngest of all was a native of Clonmel. Br. Patrick Simon Norris also began his career in Limerick but contracted the disease and was sent to Clonmel in the vain hope that the native air would bring about his recovery. He died in early February 1890 at the tender age of eighteen.

We know a little more about the third victim of the dread disease. Br, James Anselm English was a native of Knocklofty near Clonmel. He fell ill while still in the Novitiate in Dublin and returned to his own home to be nursed by his family. On his deathbed he requested to be buried in the Brothers' cemetery in Clonmel. He died on the last day of August 1921 aged only nineteen. His people still reside in the area and his brother died in the recent past.

Two of the Brothers died in middle age and their deaths could be attributed to devotion above and beyond the call of duty. They stayed at their post long after they were able to do so.

Br. Francis de Sales Laing was a native of Cork city but was brought up in Manchester. At the age of eighteen he entered the Novitiate in Dublin. He taught in England for a number of years but returned to Ireland and taught in several schools here before coming to Clonmel in 1896a few months before he died aged fifty eight. He was a gentle sociable person with a fine singing voice and was extremely popular.

Br. Denis Hugh Killian was a native of Athlone and was educated by the Marist Brother in that town. One of his schoolmates was the famous tenor Count John McCormack. It is a bit of a mystery how he came to join the Christian Brothers while being a pupil of the Marists! He was very interested in the local history of the various places in which he taught and was one of the few Brothers who didn't mind going around the country "questing", - a nice name for seeking alms to supplement the Brothers' meagre resources - as it gave him an opportunity of indulging his hobby. A few months after coming to St. Mary's, Irishtown, he contracted influenza which through neglect developed into pneumonia and he died on the 22nd January at the age of forty two. He dabbled in writing verse and had had a presentiment that he would die young!

A look now from the four Brothers who achieved more than the Biblical life span of three score and ten:

Br. Patrick Stephen Carroll was born in Dunleer, Co. Louth. In his mid twenties his vocation was foretold by a Cistercian monk who visited the drapery business where he was employed. Some time later it seems he met Br. Edmund Rice and decided to join the Christian Brothers. In the year 1842 he led a band of three Brothers on an ill-fated mission to Australia which lasted only five years. He was one of the first brothers in St. Mary's Irishtown where he spent most of his evenings collecting money in order to feed and clothe the poor children of the area. He collapsed and died in a doorway in Staunton Row on his way to the railway station on 8th July 1889 aged 76.

The early life of Br. Patrick Joseph White was very like that of his founder Br. Edmund Rice. Both were Kilkenny men; both came from well-to-do families, both were prosperous businessmen and both heeded the call of the Master to leave all, give to the poor and follow him. In his mid thirties Patrick entered the Brothers and dedicated himself to a lifetime of service to God. He spent the last thirty four years of his life in Clonmel during most of which he was in charge of monastery and school. For many years he had some of his students in school at 8am preparing them for state exams. He was still teaching up to a few weeks before his death in April 1901 aged seventy nine years. His brother Thomas presented a marble altar and a beautiful stained glass window to the monastery as a memorial to him. His great grandniece Anne lives in Clonmel and both she and her husband John Heffernan teach in the Christian Brothers School, Carrick-on-Suir (John is now principal of The Abbey in Tipperary town).

Br. Joseph John Moy was something of an adventure in early life, having spent some time in Africa and Australia before working for fifteen years with a railway company in America. At the age of thirty eight he abandoned all his worldly affairs, returned to Ireland and spent the rest of his life as a humble lay Brother in the Christian Brothers. He spent the last fort years of his life in Clonmel, looking after a piece of land leased by the Brothers as well as providing for the needs of the community and for many years cooking the Brothers' meals. His only break was a few days each year with his brother who followed a similar vocation and was based in Dublin. He died in May 1912 aged 78 and was revered as a saint in Clonmel.

Br. Michael Francis Cleary was the last and oldest Brother to be buried here. A native of Ballyneety, Co. Tipperary, he joined the Brothers when he was in his early twenties but had to leave after a short time due to ill-health. He came back when nearly forty years of age and had a long, happy and fruitful life in the congregation. A keen lover of nature he had a beautiful flower garden in Clonmel where he spent the last thirty four years of his life. He died just before Christmas 1935 aged 84.

 Br. Thomas Sylvester Condon was born near Mitchelstown at the beginning of the century. He taught in St. Peter and Paul's for a few years and came back to Clonmel, this time to St. Mary's about four years before his tragic death when knocked down by a motor car which out walking on the Waterford Road. A shy diffident man he spent all his religious life teaching in the lower classes of the Primary Schools. He was 59 years of age when he died.

Br. Timothy Berchmans Cronin was a Corkman and came to Clonmel on his official retirement at the age of sixty seven. He continued teaching, however up till the time of his death five years later. He was a talented and painstaking teacher and spent most of his religious teaching the senior classes with notable success. He died suddenly on the morning of the 7th January as he prepared to go to Morning Prayer.

Br. Patrick Casimir Redmond was the last Brother to be buried in Clonmel. A native of the town he was educated in the High School until his sixteenth year when the family moved to Portlaoise. A versatile and highly skilled teacher, he was a great favourite wherever he taught and is especially remembered in Callan and Limerick where he did trojan work. The last years of his teaching career were spent in St. Mary's Irishtown and on his retirement he took up remedial teaching and was involved with the silver band as well as doing research into local history. He died on 1st June 1985 aged seventy five and is held in affectionate remembrance by his friends.