Last woman to be hanged in Carlow inspired new collection of short stories
New book recounts grim tale from Co Carlow
A WRITER who bought his first books as a child in Carlow town has come full circle as his latest novel features Lucinda Sly, the last woman who was hanged here.
Kieran Fanning writes children’s books and his latest one is .
With a story from each county, Kieran was naturally down to the story of Lucinda Sly, who was hanged in the county prison, which is now Carlow Shopping Centre. Ever since poor Lucinda took her last gasp in March 1835 as she hung form the gallows , rumours have persisted that she’s still around, haunting the place and making her tragic presence felt.
Kieran recounts the story: “Lucinda came from near Tullow and when her husband died, leaving her to bring up her son alone. She took to the streets of Carlow selling butter to make ends meet. It was there that she met a farmer and horse dealer from Old Leighlin called Walter Sly. They got friendly and started seeing each other.
“Walter proposed to her soon after and Lucinda said yes on the condition that she could keep her farm in Tullow. The couple were married and moved in together to Walter’s farm. They were happy for a while, but Walter resumed the drinking he had put on hold while courting Lucinda. One drunken night, he sold his wife’s farm without consulting her. When Lucinda confronted him about this, he beat her black and blue.
“After that, Walter Sly took to drinking heavily and regularly came home drunk to beat his wife. Lucinda was left to manage the farm alone, and when she complained, her husband hired a young man called John Dempsey to help her. Working side by side on the farm, Lucinda and John became close and soon became romantically involved. They conspired to kill Walter Sly and make it look like a robbery.
When Walter came home drunk, they murdered him and called the police, who quickly found holes in Lucinda’s story. She and John Dempsey were arrested for murder. The pair were found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging. On 30 March 1835, a huge crowd gathered outside Carlow gaol to see the execution of ‘Hag of the Butter’ and her conspirator. They cheered when the trapdoors were sprung and Lucinda and John died on the end of two ropes.
Author Kieran, who hails from Stratford-on-Slaney, went on to become a teacher, where his love of stories continued. He completed a master’s in children’s literature and started writing his own books. Haunted Ireland is his eighth book for children. The book is published by Gill and will be available from 3 October.
For more information, see www.kieranfanning.com.
