A history of the Irish Association The post war years

The present Districts within the Association, i.e. Northern, Southern and Eastern, were set up in 1947. Since this time each District has appointed its own Secretary, Ringing Master and Treasurer and has representation on the Executive Council, which is under the auspices of an Association President, General Secretary and Ringing Master. By 1950 each District had its own striking competition. The Northern District competes for the Cunninghain Cup which was presented by James Cunningham, JP of Rostrevor, the Eastern District trophy is the Lindoff Cup in honour of Gabriel Lindoff, whilst the Association's first President is recalled by the Southern District's R R Cherry Cup. Since the formation of the Districts the winners of these regional competitions have then competed for the Murphy Cup.

The decade and a half following the end of the Second World War was a period of great activity for ringing in Ireland. Many rings of bells were restored, particularly in the Northern District where the enforced silence of the war years had resulted in the deterioration of a number of rings. There were also a number of augmentations or new ringing installations, in particular the superb ring of ten was installed at Mount Saint Alphonsus in Limerick, whilst a ring of six and a ring of ten were installed at the Churches of St Donard's and St Mark's, Belfast.

Change-ringing, too, was making advances and was spreading beyond its traditional strongholds, with methods being rung in places as diverse as Londonderry, Limerick Cathedral and St Donard's, Belfast. Within a short space of time each of these teams progressed to ringing peals. Change-ringing on handbells developed at St Peter's, Drogheda, where many peals of Doubles were rung. At Ss Augustine and John in Dublin the local ringers rang a number of half-peals of Plain Bob Major on handbells.

Throughout Ireland at this time, there was an increase in interest in developing change-ringing and most towers had a team capable of ringing some form of method.

Ringing at Holywood Parish Church particularly was of an advanced nature, and the tower saw Ireland's first peals of Wath and Pontefract Delight Major, as well as the first ever peal of Holywood Delight Major. Only once since has an Association team rung and named a first peal in a method, ie Drumbo Delight Major at Drumbo in 1990.

The "Irish Bell News", the Association's Journal, commenced publication in 1951, and continued under the dedicated and good-humoured editorship of Fred Dukes until 1987. It was appreciated as a ready source of information not only in Ireland, but further a field. Since 1987 each District has been served by individual Newsletters.

The highlight of the active period of the 1950s was surely the visit of the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers to Dublin in 1958. This visit coincided with the celebrations for the Association's sixtieth anniversary. Eighteen peals were rung during the visit, including one of Bob Major on handbells rung in the small hours of 25/26 May in Dublin's Central Hotel. During the Central Council visit the first peal was rung on the newly-restored bells of St Fin Barre's Cathedral, Cork.

Bob Murphy passed away in 1960 and was succeeded as Ringing Master by John T Dunwoody of Holywood. In 1962, the President, Fred Bogan, was invested with a Presidential Badge of Office, which had been presented by Miss E M Young of Carrickfergus. She subsequently gave a Cup (the Young Cup) to be awarded to the Northern District team which showed the best improvement in striking from the previous year.