On the 60th anniversary of his death, Paddy Ryan looks back on the life and prolific output of the Kerry native now best known for his short story ‘The Quiet Man’, later made into the Oscar-winning film directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara. He was one of Ireland’s best-selling authors in the 1930s.

 

Maurice Walsh, who died sixty years ago on 18 February, 1964, was Ireland’s best-selling author for over two decades. Changing times see him now mainly remembered as the author of ‘The Quiet Man.’ Depicting an Ireland, long gone, ‘The Quiet Man’ still draws viewers into that magical world of honour, friendship, love, crafty matchmakers and the rugged beauty of Connemara.

The movie won the 1953 Oscar for best colour cinematography and Maurice Walsh was named winner of the 1952 Award of the American Screenwriters’ Guild. All of this saw him become a household name —literally a star in Dublin where he lived and in his native Kerry which he visited regularly.

Born in 1879 at Ballydonoghue, Co. Kerry, Maurice Walsh was reared in the shadow of the Hill of Knockanure — an area renowned as the site of an ancient Fianna battle. Tragically, during his lifetime it was to see more bloodshed when four local men were massacred by the Black and Tans. They are commemorated in ‘The Valley of Knockanure’ – a song compiled by Bryan McMahon from nearby Listowel.

Joining the Customs and Excise service in 1901, Maurice Walsh soon found himself working at the Ben Nevis Distillery, Fort William, Scotland. It was love at first sight for the young Kerry man and the majestic splendour of the Highlands.

He also found his tribe with fellow Customs and Excise officials. Friendships that would last a lifetime were formed with colleagues when they were thrown together, far from home. He was to spend most of the next decade in Scotland, mainly in Dufftown in Banffshire — a place that would become very dear to his heart. Said to be built on seven stills, Dufftown revolved around the whisky trade, especially the world-famous Glenfiddich.

Apart from his official duties, Maurice Walsh loved the hiking and hunting over the Scottish Highlands, along with fishing the salmon-rich streams. He also found time to write. His historical tale titled ‘The Sack of Athenry,’ set during the Nine Years War in Ireland of the late 1500s, was serialized in ‘The Irish Emerald.’

And he fell in love with red-haired teacher, Caroline Begg whom he married in 1908. Alternating between Scotland and Ireland in the earlier years of marriage, he was appointed Excise Officer in Forres, near Inverness, in 1915, as WWI gained momentum.

Continue reading in this week’s Ireland’s Own