A history of the Irish Association The early years

An important step was taken in 1902 at the meeting at Drogheda when, the Association having the requisite number of members, affiliation to the Central Council of Church Bellringers was applied for. Accordingly, Richard Cherry was appointed as the first representative to the Council.

A further advance in change ringing, and therefore in the fortunes of the Association took place in 1909 when Richard Cherry presented two treble bells to St Patrick's Cathedral, thereby giving Ireland its first ring of twelve bells. When the first peal of Cinques was rung in 1911 the Lord Chief Justice himself rang the eleventh. Indeed, this was the first peal on twelve bells to be rung outside England.

No meeting was held in 1910 as a mark of respect for the passing of King Edward VII. In 1913 the Association endeavoured to promote Service ringing by obtaining a silver Challenge Shield to be awarded to the Society with the best attendance for Sunday Service ringing and the Arklow Society emerged as the first winners.

Due to civil unrest in the country, no meetings were held again until 1919, when it was discovered that the Association Account Books had been destroyed during the 1916 Easter Rising. Indeed, due to further civil strife, no meetings took place between 1921 and 1924.

At the 1926 meeting members were welcomed from Bangor and Belfast, and it must have been on the strength of this that the meeting the following year was held at Belfast, when the first lady members, who belonged to the Arklow Society, joined.

The momentum which was gathering in ringing circles in the north of the country resulted in the formation of a Northern Branch in 1927. This consisted of the Societies of St Thomas in Belfast, Carrickfergus and Holywood, with William Pratt of Holywood as the first Secretary. Mr Pratt had done much to nurture change ringing at Holywood and Carrickfergus. Although the Northern Branch was still subordinate to the Association proper, the Bangor Society decided to remain affiliated directly to the parent body. The Northern Branch's first peal was Grandsire Triples rung at Carrickfergus on Boxing Day, 1931. It was conducted by Gabriel Lindoff, who was joined in the peal by his son, Gabriel George. The following year the Holywood Society rang the first Branch peal unassisted, Grandsire Triples conducted by Samuel McClelland.

In 1930 the position of Ringing Master was created, the initial incumbent being Robert S F Murphy. Mr Murphy's ringing career had begun in 1892 at St Canice's Cathedral, Kilkenny. His work as a jeweller took him to Dublin, where he joined the team at St Patrick's Cathedral. His first peal was on the Cathedral's 45-cwt tenor bell, covering Grandsire Caters.

When the Association met at Kilkenny in 1934, a competition was held to raise funds to inaugurate a Bell Restoration Fund. At the same meeting the Ringing Master presented the Striking Challenge Cup which bears his name. The Murphy Cup was first competed for in 1935 at Waterford Cathedral when the local Society beat the team from St Fin Barren's Cathedral, Cork.

Gabriel Lindoff died on 7 November 1941, having served the Association as its Secretary for forty-three years. He had been a driving force in the Association's formation, had worked hard to encourage and cultivate change ringing in Ireland and had carried on the regular administration even during the very difficult periods of unrest in the country. So effective was his work that the 1898 membership of twenty-five had increased to around three hundred by 1941. It is therefore appropriate that he is commemorated by a memorial tablet in the north aisle of St Patrick's Cathedral, placed there in 1942.

Life Membership of the Association was instituted in 1945, and three founder members were honored at this time. They were Rev G Dig by Scott and Rawdon and Harold Greene.