On This Day / December 17, 1920
Go BackReproduced with permission from The Irish News.
19201217
Reference Date
19201217
Publication Date
Listen Along in Éamons Voice
Summary: On This Day – 17th December 1920, an Auxiliary shot dead Canon Magner in West Cork, while the Ulster Assizes opened the trial of four men accused of a brutal robbery-murder in Gilford, Co Down. Edited by Éamon Phoenix.
Auxiliary Kills Priest | On This Day – 17th December 1920
OUR Cork correspondent wires: Bishop Cohalan of Cork yesterday received a telegram from the Catholic curate at Dunmanway, West Cork, conveying the terrible news that the Very Rev Canon Magner, PP (70) had been shot dead in Dunmanway that day by an Auxiliary policeman. Canon Magner was never prominently identified with politics.
The Press Association states that the Canon was taking a walk when he came upon a cyclist who was being threatened by Auxiliary police.
Canon Magner interfered with a view to saving the man and, it is alleged, a policeman shot him dead. The crime was witnessed by a local Resident Magistrate.
(Eamon Phoenix editor’s note: Canon Magner and a local farmer were shot dead by an Auxiliary, said by his comrades to be ‘off his head’.)
The Gilford Murder
AT THE Ulster Winter Assizes the trial commenced of William Conlon, Gilford; William McConville, Gilford; Francis O’Boyle, Beragh and Hugh Rogers, Sixmilecross, County Tyrone who are charged with the murder of William McDowell, a motorcar proprietor at Gilford on September 3rd last.
Sergeant Hanna, KC (for the Crown) said the crime was murder associated with highway robbery.
If they found four men were engaged in a common felonious enterprise and life was taken in the course of it, the four were equally guilty.
In this case the person killed was McDowell who was driving a motorcar containing the prisoner, McConville, and a large sum of money.
The foundation of the Crown case was that these men were engaged in the felonious enterprise of robbing this money and, that as McDowell stood in their way, they did him ruthlessly to death.
McConville was the cashier of the firm of Dunbar, McMaster and Company and the only one who would know every detail as to the transfer of the money.
It was a question whether the idea of the robbery originated in his mind or in that of Conlon who also belonged to Gilford and was an American citizen.
The other two, Rogers and O’Boyle, were garage proprietors who provided the two motorcars necessary for this premeditated felony.
One car, a black car, was used in the actual robbery, and the other car, a red car, used by these two men to return home. The RIC found a fully-loaded revolver in the black car.
On the eve of the tragedy Conlon had sent a telegram to O’Boyle, saying: ‘Mare going well. Bring boys prepared to back her Friday in the big race.’
The only race they were concerned, Counsel said, was the race to get the £1,300 which they knew was taken every Friday from Banbridge Bank by McDowell and McConville.
On This Day – 17th December 1920
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
19201217
Reference Date
19201217
Publication Date
Listen Along in Éamons Voice
Listen Along in Éamons Voice
Summary: On This Day – 17th December 1920, an Auxiliary shot dead Canon Magner in West Cork, while the Ulster Assizes opened the trial of four men accused of a brutal robbery-murder in Gilford, Co Down. Edited by Éamon Phoenix.
Auxiliary Kills Priest | On This Day – 17th December 1920
OUR Cork correspondent wires: Bishop Cohalan of Cork yesterday received a telegram from the Catholic curate at Dunmanway, West Cork, conveying the terrible news that the Very Rev Canon Magner, PP (70) had been shot dead in Dunmanway that day by an Auxiliary policeman. Canon Magner was never prominently identified with politics.
The Press Association states that the Canon was taking a walk when he came upon a cyclist who was being threatened by Auxiliary police.
Canon Magner interfered with a view to saving the man and, it is alleged, a policeman shot him dead. The crime was witnessed by a local Resident Magistrate.
(Eamon Phoenix editor’s note: Canon Magner and a local farmer were shot dead by an Auxiliary, said by his comrades to be ‘off his head’.)
The Gilford Murder
AT THE Ulster Winter Assizes the trial commenced of William Conlon, Gilford; William McConville, Gilford; Francis O’Boyle, Beragh and Hugh Rogers, Sixmilecross, County Tyrone who are charged with the murder of William McDowell, a motorcar proprietor at Gilford on September 3rd last.
Sergeant Hanna, KC (for the Crown) said the crime was murder associated with highway robbery.
If they found four men were engaged in a common felonious enterprise and life was taken in the course of it, the four were equally guilty.
In this case the person killed was McDowell who was driving a motorcar containing the prisoner, McConville, and a large sum of money.
The foundation of the Crown case was that these men were engaged in the felonious enterprise of robbing this money and, that as McDowell stood in their way, they did him ruthlessly to death.
McConville was the cashier of the firm of Dunbar, McMaster and Company and the only one who would know every detail as to the transfer of the money.
It was a question whether the idea of the robbery originated in his mind or in that of Conlon who also belonged to Gilford and was an American citizen.
The other two, Rogers and O’Boyle, were garage proprietors who provided the two motorcars necessary for this premeditated felony.
One car, a black car, was used in the actual robbery, and the other car, a red car, used by these two men to return home. The RIC found a fully-loaded revolver in the black car.
On the eve of the tragedy Conlon had sent a telegram to O’Boyle, saying: ‘Mare going well. Bring boys prepared to back her Friday in the big race.’
The only race they were concerned, Counsel said, was the race to get the £1,300 which they knew was taken every Friday from Banbridge Bank by McDowell and McConville.
On This Day – 17th December 1920
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
19201217
Reference Date
December 17, 2020
Publication Date
Listen Along in Éamons Voice *
Summary: On This Day – 17th December 1920, an Auxiliary shot dead Canon Magner in West Cork, while the Ulster Assizes opened the trial of four men accused of a brutal robbery-murder in Gilford, Co Down. Edited by Éamon Phoenix.
Auxiliary Kills Priest | On This Day – 17th December 1920
OUR Cork correspondent wires: Bishop Cohalan of Cork yesterday received a telegram from the Catholic curate at Dunmanway, West Cork, conveying the terrible news that the Very Rev Canon Magner, PP (70) had been shot dead in Dunmanway that day by an Auxiliary policeman. Canon Magner was never prominently identified with politics.
The Press Association states that the Canon was taking a walk when he came upon a cyclist who was being threatened by Auxiliary police.
Canon Magner interfered with a view to saving the man and, it is alleged, a policeman shot him dead. The crime was witnessed by a local Resident Magistrate.
(Eamon Phoenix editor’s note: Canon Magner and a local farmer were shot dead by an Auxiliary, said by his comrades to be ‘off his head’.)
The Gilford Murder
AT THE Ulster Winter Assizes the trial commenced of William Conlon, Gilford; William McConville, Gilford; Francis O’Boyle, Beragh and Hugh Rogers, Sixmilecross, County Tyrone who are charged with the murder of William McDowell, a motorcar proprietor at Gilford on September 3rd last.
Sergeant Hanna, KC (for the Crown) said the crime was murder associated with highway robbery.
If they found four men were engaged in a common felonious enterprise and life was taken in the course of it, the four were equally guilty.
In this case the person killed was McDowell who was driving a motorcar containing the prisoner, McConville, and a large sum of money.
The foundation of the Crown case was that these men were engaged in the felonious enterprise of robbing this money and, that as McDowell stood in their way, they did him ruthlessly to death.
McConville was the cashier of the firm of Dunbar, McMaster and Company and the only one who would know every detail as to the transfer of the money.
It was a question whether the idea of the robbery originated in his mind or in that of Conlon who also belonged to Gilford and was an American citizen.
The other two, Rogers and O’Boyle, were garage proprietors who provided the two motorcars necessary for this premeditated felony.
One car, a black car, was used in the actual robbery, and the other car, a red car, used by these two men to return home. The RIC found a fully-loaded revolver in the black car.
On the eve of the tragedy Conlon had sent a telegram to O’Boyle, saying: ‘Mare going well. Bring boys prepared to back her Friday in the big race.’
The only race they were concerned, Counsel said, was the race to get the £1,300 which they knew was taken every Friday from Banbridge Bank by McDowell and McConville.
On This Day – 17th December 1920
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
On This Day is a daily column in the Irish News looking back either 50 or 100 years. The column was compiled by Dr Éamon Phoenix from the mid 1980s until autumn, 2022. The Foundation is very grateful to the Irish News for giving permission to reproduce Eamon’s columns. Funding gratefully received from Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and the Magill Trust.
* The Foundation has worked hard to recreate Eamon’s distinctive voice through AI. Since this is an emerging technology, occasional imperfections may be audible.