The Mystery of the Monster of Limerick Docks
After foolishly getting quite excited about (and engaged with) the soul-sappingly predictable thing that was the general election, it's high time I turned my gaze from prosaic matters and focused on more important, magical things. Coming into focus today: Sea Monsters.
Way back in October 2005, when fustar.info was but a mewling babe, I related the blood-curdling (1922) tale of The Mystery of the Monster of Limerick Docks. At the time I promised to dig out a copy of Denis O'Shaughnessy's Limerick: 100 Stories of the Century to flesh out the rather sketchy details I'd gleaned from Graham J. McEwan's Mystery Animals of Britain and Ireland and the Limerick Leader. Despite my half-arsed efforts the book had remained, like mystery beasties themselves, frustratingly elusive. That is, until now.
Goodbye sketchy details, hello not-very-detailed sketch:
The artist was one Stephen O'Gorman (a Limerickian who'd emigrated to Birmingham) and the above depiction was submitted to the Limerick Leader after they'd reprinted the story in 1974. The original witness was Mr. A. E. Aldridge (of Gloucestshire), master of a schooner docked in Limerick at the time. A quick (updated) recap of his account is in order:
He and his crew were getting the ship ready to sail on high tide in the afternoon when the mate called him from the cabin: "Captain! Come up here at once!"
"When I reached the deck I saw the quays on both sides of the river crowded with people and they were watching the most amazing sea creature they or I had ever seen or read about. The object was close alongside my vessel [resembling] in size and shape…a small submarine. It was large and black and shining and it had a very long neck, at least twelve feet long, held proudly erect and shaped like a swan's. It waved its small head from side to side and its bright shining eyes seemed to express alarm.
"Behind its long neck for a distance of ten or twelve feet was a massive black cone-shaped hump."
Mr. Aldridge then stated that at this stage the monster was heading upstream at a very slow speed and seagulls in the vicinity flew off in fright. He then described how the creature eventually turned and headed downstream.
My original post on the incident ended there, but (as Mr. O'Shaughnessy tells us) "this extraordinary story was not yet concluded". Back over to you, A. E. Aldridge:
"After we had passed Foynes [on the Shannon Estuary] it was nearly dark when I and the crew heard a blowing sound, like a porpoise makes when it surfaces for air, and we saw the long neck of the sea creature shoot out of the water; then it disappeared. It returned within a few seconds surfacing to blow and take in air again. This it did again and again and we eventually left it behind. This was the last we saw of it." (O'Shaugnessy, p.7)
As Aldridge notes, the banks of the river were teeming with (presumably) agog locals. One of them was the afore-mentioned Stephen O'Gorman, and his recollections colourfully corroborate those of the bould Capt. Aldridge.
Stephen was a teenager at the time and was playing handball in Shannon Street with several of his pals when suddenly they noticed that people were gathering in large numbers at the quayside. "We immediately joined them and to our amazement saw this strange creature in the middle of the river. It was travelling very slowly towards Sarsfield Bridge."
"The creature travelled as far as Limerick Boat Club and then turned back[...]A group of Free State soliders with rifles came dashing by (I believe they came out of the Strand Barracks) and they kept pace with the creature. When it passed the end of the Docks…they opened fire from Cleeve's Bank and every so often they repeated the shooting until the creature passed Barrington's Pier and finally disappeared into the distance."
"They did not hit it, merely content to hit the water just behind it. I believe they were just trying to encourage it on its way".
Nice to see that the Free State soldiers were operating on a principle later prevalent in 50s B-Movies: "It's something that defies our understanding! Quick, Shoot it!"
So there you have it. What makes the tale so fascinating and unusual is that the incident took place in the middle of a city, apparently in full view of dozens of witnesses. I'm not sure if O'Gorman's sketch was done at the time, or not till 1974 when he offered his account. I suspect the latter, so it's likely his depiction was influenced both by Aldridge's story and the "Nessie" lake/sea monster template that had (by then) become prevalent.
Whatever the case may be, it sure beats readin' or writin' about the terrifying, unstoppable behemoth that is Fianna Fáil.
May 27, 2007
10 responses to The Mystery of the Monster of Limerick Docks
Are you having us on Fustar? I have never heard of a Loch Ness type monster being seen in the Limerick docks, but then I have never lived in Limerick. If so many people saw it, do you remember it being talked about by older people when you were growing up?
I remember that a monster sighting in Connemara (Doolough, I think) was reported in the 1960′s.
You have my sympathy about about “the terrifying, unstoppable behemoth that is Fianna Fáil”. I used to feel like that after elections, but as one gets older one gradually realises that FF is not just a political party; it is more a natural phenomenon such as the weather, earthquakes, tsunamis and the Eurovision Song Contest, so there is not much point in feeling down about it and there is some consolation in the thought that we will be able to continue to ridicule them for another few years.
I’m not having you on…but A. E. Aldridge & co. very well may be.
I never (to my knowledge) heard about the incident when I was growing up, but then Limerick folk are a fairly nonchalant lot, not easily impressed. As the beast sailed back down the Shannon they probably just shrugged their shoulders and returned to their tasks. Young Stephen most likely carried on hopping his handball off the wall in Shannon St.
As for Connemara, sure the place is literally crawling with monsters. Every lake bigger than a puddle seems to have its own peist or horse-eel.
I don’t feel that consoled, but I take your point! I actually feel a bit grubby/sick from my recent over-consumption of politics. I know it’s probably quite irresponsible of me but I tend to side step the “topical” as much as possible. It tends to drag me down and make me lose sight of genuinely important questions and concerns. In this strange (and occasionally nauseating) thing that is Celtic Monkey Ireland we need “old-fashioned” philosophising and tales of death, fairies, otherworlds (etc) more than ever. They’re the perfect tonic.
Too true Fústar, the times is ripe for tales of snakes and serpentine monsters terrorising the natives… it’s not even allegorical! We need our legends to explain or at least try to make sense of the anomalies that present themselves to us every so often (every five years!). At least myths and legends, fairies, péisteanna agus an phúca lend the whole thing an air of glamour and mystique and go some way to demonstrate that there are some things in this life that defy belief! I wonder if the tale of beast of the Shannon is a popular cultural memory of the Limerick Soviet? The dates are a little off but not by much! Ithaca, I look forward to the day when I am no-longer disappointed.
Cnuimh,
I think that the election counts as a thing that defies belief.
Cnuimh.
Did the Limerick Soviet participants sail down the Shannon in a craft resembling a plesiosaur? I may have missed that bit in my browses through the Soviet’s history. Perhaps I’m being too literal…
Incidentally, it’s worth remembering that mythological beasties existed before (yes, it’s true) Fianna Fáil and will (please Grud) outlive it. The ultimate revenge of “old Ireland” will be Bertie devoured by a peist (while on his hols in Connemara). We can but hope.
Simon,
It not only “defies belief”…it’s unreal, out of this world etc, etc. As my ol’ ma would say, “You wouldn’t credit it”. Still, stranger things have happened. See above.
http://www.nessie.co.uk/htm/nessies_news/news.html
http://www.loch-ness.org/news.html
http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1645086?UserKey=
Nessie in Italian attic mystery
Mystery drawing may have been done by master illusionist
By neil macphail
Hi, I thought you might like to know that Stephen (Stevie) O’Gorman was my Grand Uncle.
Stevie died in 1979 and was actually only 9 at the time of the incident above. I remember as a kid asking him about the monster, but he didn’t give me very much info as I later learned he didn’t like speaking about it because people didn’t believe him.
A few years after he died, his best friend who was also a witness gave me a recount of the story. His name was Ignatius Heenan (not 100% sure of the spelling) and he was also reluctant to speak about for the same reasons as Stevie, but I think he made an exception for a curious eleven year old.
He described the monster as something like a “Giraffe” with a long neck which fits in with Stevie’s drawing above which was done in 1974 for the Limerick Leader
Extract from The original draft “Schooner Captain” by Hugh Shaw
Within a couple of days the shooting was over. the government forces brought an eighteen pounder gun into action and the first object they bombarded was the Strand Barracks. after about four shells had made their mark, the fighting was over as far as Limerick was concerned. The next day the city came to life. Shops opened and business was resumed. We moved back to the loading berth ready to commence loading.
We finished loading and we were ready to sail and it was near to high water in the afternoon. I was down in the cabin writing.
My mate suddenly called to me in a very excited voice.
“Captain! come up at once!”
I thought something must be wrong. When I reached the deck I saw the quays on both sides of the river crowded with people and then I saw the reason for this. They were watching the most amazing sea creature they or I had ever seen or read about. This object was close alongside my vessel in fact it was only a few feet away. My first impression on seeing it was of its resemblance in size and shape to a small submarine, it was large and black and shining and it had a very long neck at least twelve feet long held proudly erect and shaped like a swans. it waved its smallish head from side to side and its bright shining eyes seemed to express alarm, behind its long neck for a distance of ten or twelve feet was a massive black cone shaped hump which rose a few feet out of the water but no part of the creatures body could be seen between the hump and the neck this part being submerged.
It was heading upstream at very slow speed All the sea bird resting on the buoys flew away as the creature came near to them. Several people watching near my vessel called to me to ask could i tell them what it was but of course I could not enlighten them. After it passed my ship it saw the bridge close to and straight ahead of it and with movements like a stately ship it made a left handed turn. It did not hurry It now began to head downstream and as it passed some yachts anchored across from where we lay I was better able by comparison to estimate the height of the neck and hump also its entire length. Passing one yacht when its head was in line with the yachts mast the head was halfway up the topmast and when the neck was showing clear of the yachts stern the mid hump was halfway up the yachts lower mast. It continued on its way downstream gathering speed as it cleared the narrows.
One hour later we left on our way to sea. After we had passed Foynes, which is about twenty miles below Limerick, it was nearly dark when I and my crew heard a blowing sound, like a porpoise makes when it surfaces for air, and we saw the long neck of the sea creature shoot out of the water, then it disappeared. It returned within a few seconds, surfacing to blow and take in air again. This it did again and again. It then dropped astern as it was not travelling as fast as our vessel was
motoring. That was the last we saw of it.
Hi Niall, Thanks for stopping by and commenting. Fascinating stuff. I’ve searched through the 1974 Leader archives in the city library but haven’t turned up the story/interview yet. Don’t have a date so it involves trawling through a year’s worth of stuff. When I get a chance I’ll go back and have another look.