The Swan, County Laois

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The Swan
An Eala

Location

WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates:
52°53′20″N 7°09′37″W / 52.888828, -7.160244

Irish grid reference
S563825

Statistics

Population ()

The Swan (Irish: An Eala) is a small village in County Laois, Ireland. It is situated near the County Kilkenny border where the R430 regional road crosses the R426. The village is part of the Ballyadams parish.

1 Fleming's Fireclays
2 PJ Fleming
3 Sport
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Fleming's Fireclays

Fleming's brick factory at The Swan

Fleming's Fireclays was started by PJ Fleming in 1935. It generated employment for the village and the surrounding areas and provided housing for many of its workers. These houses constituted nearly all the dwellings in the village until 2003, when two new housing projects began and the number of houses has almost doubled as a result. The factory utilises fireclay, which is an abundant local resource, to make bricks and chimney flues. The factory currently employs over 40 people.

[edit] PJ Fleming

PJ Fleming, the founder of Fleming's Fireclays, was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army which orchestrated the Easter Rising of 1916.

[edit] Sport

A variety of sports are represented in the village including Gaelic football, soccer, boxing and horse racing. Gaelic players in the village play for St Josephs along with players from Luggacurren, Wolfhill and Ballyadams. Some players of note from the Swan over the past number of years are Tom Kelly and Joe Higgins, both of whom received GAA All Stars Awards in 2003 after Laois's successful Leinster campaign. Joe Higgins also brought boxing glory to the village with a total of 9 Leinster Titles and 2 All-Irelands. ^[1]

The local soccer team, Wolfhill Athletic, play in Division 1 of the Carlow League after recent demotion from the Premier Division. In 2006/2007 they lost the Divisional Cup Final to Burrin Celtic after penalties. Their most successful year was arguably 2004/2205 when they won the Carlow Challenge cup. There is also an over 35's team which won their league in 2006/2007. ^[2]

Former jockey turned trainer, Kevin O'Brien, and his stable of horses have established themselves in the village. Recent successes include Unique Moment and Duty, horses owned by a local syndicate.