In 1957 the late John O’Grady got a contract to remove windblown timber in Dundrum which fell from a big storm. He decided to leave the timber yard in Clonmel and wanted his family to move to Dundrum. However, he was not able to find accommodation in Dundrum which brought him to Hollyford the nearest place he could rent a house. (Which is now an Airbnb )
John developed a good relationship with one of the foresters John Hanly. When his contract was finished the forester sold him good oak timber from Dundrum and started to make oak stakes. They were sold for a pound a dozen. A local man Jimmy Allis still has some of those stakes to this day. They were cutting and pointing stakes from the side of the house with a tractor. 2 and 6 pence would buy you a half barrel of 6 inch blocks at that time.
In the early 60’s Ned Quirke in Hollyford sold John O’Grady half an acre of land for £80. It was a very small business for a couple of years. Raymie Shanahan Foilmcduff, Joe Gleason Foileen and Tom Ryan (Matt) started their working life here mostly cutting, pointing and selling the stakes from that yard and helped to make it what it is today.
It continued as a sawmill until the early 70’s. Raymie and his colleagues went on to better things. After about 10 years, Seán O’Grady (John’s Son) started a farm machinery business selling tractors and farm implements etc and bought more land from T.J. Quirke, Glenmorgan, and had that business for the best part of 10 years.
In around 1982, a sawmill came up for sale in Kenmare, Co.Kerry. A Company by the name of Mid Cork Pallets, owned by Seán Lehane and Tommy Butler, his business partner, had a pallet factory. They approached Seán and offered to finance the sawmill for him on the condition that he supplied them with the pallet board as they were finding it difficult to source pallet board for their factory. They were to be prioritized over any other customer. This Deal was done on a hand shake of a Friday for £11,000.00. And both stayed true to their word.
Seán hired Gerald Russell, Curraheen, Hollyford, to help him take out that sawmill. The contract between Seán and Gerald was that Seán paid his fertiliser bill for him and he would take out the sawmill. Seán’s own son, Seán O’Grady Jnr., who was only eleven years old at the time, also went down to help.
The first load of pallet boards was delivered to Mid Cork Pallets in May 1986 and a cheque was given for £2,000.00. From May 1986, the sawmill went from strength to strength and we got more and more customers and Mid Cork Pallets are still with us today and we are still here.
Throughout the years, the mill faced many a dark hour where the mill had to close because of different pressures but mainly financial. Our family who were central to the working of the mill spent many an hour working without any wage trying to keep the mill from closing and when it did close weworked and prayed even harder to make sure we reopened. Even as young children they sacrificed a lot all for the good of the mill. It is a thriving business; we still have a lot of up and downs but nothing we can’t handle.
Today on average we cut 700 tonne of timber a week and employ around 35 people. 90% of our products is pallet board but we have other products such as picket fencing, post and rail, sleeper and decking as well as sawdust and bark mulch. We are still a family run business. Three generations now and it won’t be long before the forth will be joining us please God. But it is because of the good will and support of the local community (our friends and neighbours) and our family, the wonderful men and women who worked and are still working in the mill and of course our loyal customers who stuck with us through thick and thin throughout the years. We are still here Thank God over 65 years later.
Eileen O’Grady
10/12/2023