Charles J. Kickham.

Charles J.Kickham, (1828-1882) poet, writer, patriot and Mullinahone’s favourite son had his home in Fethard Street. His father, John Kickham owned a drapery there and his mother was an O’Mahony from near Cashel, Co. Tipperary. His grandfather, also Charles, had owned property in the village since the 1790s.

When 13 or 14 years old, young Charles J. had an accident when trying to dry out gunpowder. The resulting explosion impaired his sight and hearing for the rest of his life. Educated locally at a Mr. Jenkins Academy he was intended for the medical profession until the accident intervened.

Becoming interested in nationalism and political causes he attended a rally for Daniel O’Connell in Thurles in 1845 at 17 years of age. He became a lifelong member of Fr. Theobald Mathew Pioneer movement (1843). At 20 years of age he was one of the first to welcome William Smith O’Brien, the Young Ireland leader and revolutionary to Mullinahone (1848), ringing the Church bell to rally the people.

Patriotic songs and ballads:
After the collapse of that movement he kept a low profile and turned to writing poems and articles of a patriotic nature for ‘The Nation’ newspaper. In his lifetime C.J. Kickham contributed or wrote over 40 poems or ballads. His better ones being, ‘She lived beside the Anner’ ; St. Johns Eve ; Carraigmoclear ; Patrick Sheehan ; Rory of the Hill ; Soggarth Aroon ; and the Tipperary ‘National Anthem’ ‘Slievenamon’. Fenianism : In the 1860s he joined the Fenian movement, a physical force body aimed at achieving Irish freedom by force of arms, the country being quite downtrodden then. Arrested in 1865 he was sentenced to 14 years penal servitude. Released after 4 years because of ill-health he turned again to writing. His novels during this period were ‘Knocknagow’ a story of rural society in Ireland during and after the Great Famine, ‘For the Old Land’ ; ‘The Eagle of Garryroe’ . ‘Sally Cavanagh’ was an earlier novel also on the Famine times together with many more literary works.

Charles J. Kickham died in August 1882 and is buried in Mullinahone Churchyard.
The centenary of his death was honoured with week long celebrations in 1982. Since then there is an annual "Kickham-Country Weekend" held every August in his memory.