An attic full of Champion history

THE Clare Champion received a gift from the past this week – an archive of ’Champion newspapers spanning a 50-year period. The collection was presented to the company by John Ryan, who lives in Ennis.

Mr Ryan has been reading his favourite weekly since the 1930s. A native of Kilnamona, he was the director of the quarrying company, Ryan Brothers Ennis Ltd, which advertised with the newspaper until the business was sold on.
Mr Ryan, who is now in his 80s, said he wanted to make some room in his attic and approached the ’Champion and made a valuable contribution to the newspaper’s records.
“I’m clearing out my attic and I thought The Clare Champion might be interested in having the old copies, as people might be looking for them. I wouldn’t say I have all of them but I’d have about 90% of them going back 50 years and they do mount up.
“I kept collecting them over the years but I need space now, as I was making room for some other stuff in the meantime.
“I always collected The Clare Champion. The local news was of interest to me and we also advertised with them,” Mr Ryan outlined.
Glad of the additional space, Mr Ryan was also happy in the knowledge that the papers would supplement the company’s archives.
“We advertised with the ’Champion going back to the 1930s or 1940s and we always got it so I hung onto the papers in the attic. Ryan Brothers was a quarrying company supplying materials to the county council and to the public. The ads would have been for sales promotion. About 10 years ago, it was taken over by Roadstone Quarries,” Mr Ryan added.
Another of his connections with the paper was that he is a school friend and a former neighbour of Flan Galvin, retired owner of The Clare Champion. “I have kept in touch with him regularly over the years,” said Mr Ryan.