William Martin Murphy.
WAS HE A SAINT OR SINNER |
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William Martin Murphy (1844–1919)
William Martin Murphy was an Irish nationalist journalist, businessman and politician. A Member of Parliament (MP) representing Dublin from 1885 to 1892, he was dubbed "William Murder Murphy" among Dublin workers and the press due to the Dublin Lockout of 1913. He was arguably both Ireland's first "press baron" and the leading promoter of tram development.
Entrepreneurship is lauded today and is something to aspire too, Ireland’s business magnets are often regarded as national heroes. Names we relate to current entrepreneur’s like McManus, Magner, O’Brien, Teeling, Naughton, Kerr, Ryan to name but a few.
In the early part of the 1900’s the word entrepreneur was not in common use. In 1934 Schumpeter described “entrepreneur’s” as “innovators who use a process of shattering the status quo of the existing products and services, to set up new products, new services”.
William Martin Murphy if he lived today would certainly be celebrated as an entrepreneur, but for a twist of fate his memory has been deemed not to be spoke off.
Who was William Martin Murphy?
William Martin Murphy was born in Derrymihan just east of Castletownbere, County Cork on the 6th January 1845, a child of Denis Murphy a building contractor and Mary Jane Martin his mother. He had two brothers who died young and a sister Margaret who married John Cillinane a successful businessman from Bantry, she died in 1936 and is buried with William Martin Murphy in Glasnevin cemetery.
In 1846 his family moved to Bantry, with the growth in the building trade his father had extended his building business and began to retail building materials. His mother Mary Jane Martin died in 1849.
Murphy studied at Belvedere College in Dublin between 1858 – 1863, he stayed at an address on the South Circular Road. The Sullivan family lived at this address, with whom the Murphy's were closely connected. During his time in Belvedere College Murphy made a number of friendships and contacts in Dublin which were to be important in his subsequent life.
While studying in Dublin he befriended A.M. Sullivan who succeeded Gavin Duffy as proprietor of the Nation newspaper it is said that he introduced Murphy to journalism and the management of newspapers at an early age. Murphy recalled how he spent his spare time as a school boy at the "Old Nation" newspaper office on Middle Abbey Street. After leaving school in 1863 he became the pupil of a Dublin architect J.J. Lyons who owned and edited the Irish Builder.
In 1864 at the age of 19 Murphy returned to Cork to assume control of the family business brought on by the death of his father. He continued to completion of unfinished contracts and undertaking a variety of new contracts. Murphy’s business and private life brought him back to Dublin. In 1870 he married Mary Lombard at the age of 25, Mary’s father James Lombard had amassed a fortune in the Dublin Drapery business. James Lombard supported many of Murphy’s ventures. In 1875 Murphy moved permanently to Dublin, he was listed as a contractor from 1877 and had offices at 39 Dame Street and remained at his Dublin business address for many years.
On arriving in Dublin Murphy became involved in Finance, Construction, Management and directing railways and tramways. He was also involved in many business ventures which included Investments, the Imperial and Metropole Hotels and Clery & Co. a large department store. His involvement in the Nation newspaper which subsequently became the Independent newspaper is well documented. It is said that Murphy refused a Knighthood in 1907 when the King was in Dublin for the International exhibition, it is stated that he would not accept the knighthood while Irish home rule was denied.
In 1885 he was elected a Member of Parliament until 1892. He became a major figure in the Irish railways business been involved in the construction of many railway lines across Ireland and on the gold coast of Africa. He was elected to many boards of railways including the great Southern and Western Railway in 1901. Although he made money in railways he was a significant player in the tramway business in the British Isles in the late Victorian era. Murphy built tramways in Cork, Belfast, Dublin, London Southern, Isle of Thanet, Hastings and District, Bournemouth and Poole, Paisley and District, and in Buenos Aires. As a founder of the Dublin Central Tramway Company he went on to extend the tramway from College Green to Rathfarnham with branches at Ranelagh, Rathgar, Rathmines and Clonskeagh. In 1880 most of the major Dublin townships had been reached by three tram companies in the City. January of 1881 saw the 32 route miles of tramway in the City amalgamated into the Dublin United Tramway Company.
Impressive returns for the shareholders were realised from Murphy’s tramways but his labour relations were less impressive. Dublin tram workers earned 25% less than their Belfast and Glasgow counterparts. There is no doubt that this contributed to Murphy’s confrontation with Larkin in 1913. He had resisted repeated demands for a 9 hour working day from the tramway workers since 1890’s, on the establishment of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union 1908 pressure began to bear down on Murphy to concede to their requests. Finally the much anticipated showdown between Larkin and Murphy received more attention than any other chapter in Murphy’s career which revealed a most unsavoury and reactionary aspect to his character.
Murphy mobilised the Protestant and Catholic business elite of the City and prepared to repel the pressures of Larkin his worker and the ITGWU. Much unrest ensued among the Tramway workers which gathered momentum among other Dublin work groups and lead to industrial unrest and great hardship during one of the worst winters on record. The unrest continued during 1913 and culminated in Murphy and the Dublin employers locking the workers out of their premises from August of that year to January of 1914.
So much is has been written on the subject of the 1913 lockout which is remembered on this the centenary year. I have recommended some further reading below to continue your exploration of this historic time.
Further reading;
Morrissey, Thomas: William Martin Murphy, a short biography.
Yeates, Padraig: Lockout Dublin 1913.
Plunkett, James: Strumpet City.
The question I ask of William Martin Murphy was he a “Saint or Sinner”?
Entrepreneurship is lauded today and is something to aspire too, Ireland’s business magnets are often regarded as national heroes. Names we relate to current entrepreneur’s like McManus, Magner, O’Brien, Teeling, Naughton, Kerr, Ryan to name but a few.
In the early part of the 1900’s the word entrepreneur was not in common use. In 1934 Schumpeter described “entrepreneur’s” as “innovators who use a process of shattering the status quo of the existing products and services, to set up new products, new services”.
William Martin Murphy if he lived today would certainly be celebrated as an entrepreneur, but for a twist of fate his memory has been deemed not to be spoke off.
Who was William Martin Murphy?
William Martin Murphy was born in Derrymihan just east of Castletownbere, County Cork on the 6th January 1845, a child of Denis Murphy a building contractor and Mary Jane Martin his mother. He had two brothers who died young and a sister Margaret who married John Cillinane a successful businessman from Bantry, she died in 1936 and is buried with William Martin Murphy in Glasnevin cemetery.
In 1846 his family moved to Bantry, with the growth in the building trade his father had extended his building business and began to retail building materials. His mother Mary Jane Martin died in 1849.
Murphy studied at Belvedere College in Dublin between 1858 – 1863, he stayed at an address on the South Circular Road. The Sullivan family lived at this address, with whom the Murphy's were closely connected. During his time in Belvedere College Murphy made a number of friendships and contacts in Dublin which were to be important in his subsequent life.
While studying in Dublin he befriended A.M. Sullivan who succeeded Gavin Duffy as proprietor of the Nation newspaper it is said that he introduced Murphy to journalism and the management of newspapers at an early age. Murphy recalled how he spent his spare time as a school boy at the "Old Nation" newspaper office on Middle Abbey Street. After leaving school in 1863 he became the pupil of a Dublin architect J.J. Lyons who owned and edited the Irish Builder.
In 1864 at the age of 19 Murphy returned to Cork to assume control of the family business brought on by the death of his father. He continued to completion of unfinished contracts and undertaking a variety of new contracts. Murphy’s business and private life brought him back to Dublin. In 1870 he married Mary Lombard at the age of 25, Mary’s father James Lombard had amassed a fortune in the Dublin Drapery business. James Lombard supported many of Murphy’s ventures. In 1875 Murphy moved permanently to Dublin, he was listed as a contractor from 1877 and had offices at 39 Dame Street and remained at his Dublin business address for many years.
On arriving in Dublin Murphy became involved in Finance, Construction, Management and directing railways and tramways. He was also involved in many business ventures which included Investments, the Imperial and Metropole Hotels and Clery & Co. a large department store. His involvement in the Nation newspaper which subsequently became the Independent newspaper is well documented. It is said that Murphy refused a Knighthood in 1907 when the King was in Dublin for the International exhibition, it is stated that he would not accept the knighthood while Irish home rule was denied.
In 1885 he was elected a Member of Parliament until 1892. He became a major figure in the Irish railways business been involved in the construction of many railway lines across Ireland and on the gold coast of Africa. He was elected to many boards of railways including the great Southern and Western Railway in 1901. Although he made money in railways he was a significant player in the tramway business in the British Isles in the late Victorian era. Murphy built tramways in Cork, Belfast, Dublin, London Southern, Isle of Thanet, Hastings and District, Bournemouth and Poole, Paisley and District, and in Buenos Aires. As a founder of the Dublin Central Tramway Company he went on to extend the tramway from College Green to Rathfarnham with branches at Ranelagh, Rathgar, Rathmines and Clonskeagh. In 1880 most of the major Dublin townships had been reached by three tram companies in the City. January of 1881 saw the 32 route miles of tramway in the City amalgamated into the Dublin United Tramway Company.
Impressive returns for the shareholders were realised from Murphy’s tramways but his labour relations were less impressive. Dublin tram workers earned 25% less than their Belfast and Glasgow counterparts. There is no doubt that this contributed to Murphy’s confrontation with Larkin in 1913. He had resisted repeated demands for a 9 hour working day from the tramway workers since 1890’s, on the establishment of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union 1908 pressure began to bear down on Murphy to concede to their requests. Finally the much anticipated showdown between Larkin and Murphy received more attention than any other chapter in Murphy’s career which revealed a most unsavoury and reactionary aspect to his character.
Murphy mobilised the Protestant and Catholic business elite of the City and prepared to repel the pressures of Larkin his worker and the ITGWU. Much unrest ensued among the Tramway workers which gathered momentum among other Dublin work groups and lead to industrial unrest and great hardship during one of the worst winters on record. The unrest continued during 1913 and culminated in Murphy and the Dublin employers locking the workers out of their premises from August of that year to January of 1914.
So much is has been written on the subject of the 1913 lockout which is remembered on this the centenary year. I have recommended some further reading below to continue your exploration of this historic time.
Further reading;
Morrissey, Thomas: William Martin Murphy, a short biography.
Yeates, Padraig: Lockout Dublin 1913.
Plunkett, James: Strumpet City.
The question I ask of William Martin Murphy was he a “Saint or Sinner”?
DUBLIN UNITED TRAMWAYS COMPANY |
William Martin Murphy and his family lay in an unmarked vault within the O'Connell Circle in Glasnevin Cemetery Dublin. In death his memory has disappeared except for his image existing on the rear of the Dublin chamber of Commerce chain of office and his portrait hanging in the IBEC offices on Baggot Street. In 2014 a stone was laid at his grave, thus marking the existence of the final burying place of William Martin Murphy and his family at Glasnevin Cemetery. |
The grave marking of William Martin Murphy at Glasnevin Cemetery.
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