From Ballot Box to Council Chamber: Kildare’s first County Council elections of 1899
County Kildare Archaeological Society event – Saturday 13th April, 2.30pm, at Naas Library and Cultural Centre.
The County Kildare Archaeological Society are holding an open event for their April meeting. The event will be a talk by Naas historian, Liam Kenny, marking the 125th anniversary of the first elections to Kildare County Council in 1899.
In this talk, Liam will highlight how the 1899 elections achieved notable ‘firsts’ under a number of headings – not least being the first time that women were granted the franchise on the island of Ireland. ‘From Ballot Box to Council Chamber’ focuses on the inaugural Kildare County Council elections of spring 1899 as a case study which was reasonably representative of the elections which took place across Ireland. There is also a contemporary topical note in that local elections are due in June 2024, 125 years after the first local elections in 1899. Liam will bring a light touch to the topic with amusing accounts of election shenanigans in Co Kildare from the early years of popular politics.
Further information on the County Kildare Archaeological Society, including their busy annual programme of activities, is available on their website www.kildarearchsoc.ie
All are welcome to this history talk. No booking required.