Dan Kelleher (b. 1936) (Part 1)

Track 1: Aghabullogue in Co. Cork was the birthplace of Dan Kelleher, whose family farmed there. He discusses his education, graduation from UCC and his appointment to Moorepark in Fermoy. Track 2: His appointment by the OPW to manage the Bourn Vincent Estate in Killarney in 1963 is discussed. He provides a description of his brief and illustrates the history of Muckross House and estate and its transfer to the State. The furnishings in the house and their fate are also discussed. Track 3: The restoration to the house and estate carried out by the OPW before it was opened to the public are described. The forty outhouses on the estate and the tenants who worked on the estate are recalled. A description is given of the refurbishment of Muckross House in 1983, and of the celebration on the re-opening. The official opening to the public in earlier days is also recalled, as is the proposed takeover of the house by the Institute of Public Administration and CIÉ prior to the takeover by the OPW. The people who were the driving forces behind the setting up of a Trust Board and the opening of the house and estate as a vistors attraction are named. Track 4: Farming on the estate, the management of sheep and cattle, crop growing and self sufficiency are discussed, as is the control of the rhododendron plant on the estate. Track 5: Dan Kelleher recalls taking on responsibility for the Derrynane Estate on its takeover by the OPW in 1965, and he describes his first impressions of the derelict state of the house, its restoration, its official opening and its management by Michael and Mary Maher from 1967. Track 6: A chronological account of the responsibilities held by Dan Kelleher in Killarney over the years is provided, including management of the Bourn Vincent Estate, the Kenmare Estate and the Killarney Estate, previously owned by the McShain family. In total, he was responsible for the management of 26,000 acres in Killarney, and he mentions the great assistance given to him by Lady Grosvenor over the years.