Athenry News & Views Spring 2026

Athenry News & Views

End of Gardner Family Legacy

By: Jarlath Cloonan

When Gabe Gardner locked the door of M. J. Gardner & Sons at the Square in Athenry last December, his retirement marked the end of a family run business dating back almost two centuries. For sixty six consecutive years, Gabe turned up for work at the family workshop where he first learnt his trade, like many others alongside his father, Michael John, fondly known throughout the town simply as “the Merchant”. Gabe and his late brother Paddy mastered the skills passed down through generations, combining craftsmanship, practicality and an understanding of customer’s needs that defined traditional Irish family businesses. The Gardner family originated in Knockbrack, just outside Athenry, where in the early 1800s they were renowned as coach builders, joiners and manufacturers of domestic furniture. Their work served a rural society dependent on horse-drawn transport and handcrafted household goods. Their reputation for reliability and quality craftsmanship became firmly established in the locality. As times changed, so too did the family enterprise and they moved to Athenry in 1947. They continued as a sawmill, general woodworkers, joinery, furniture makers and funeral undertakers. The business evolved to meet the everyday needs of a growing town and its hinterland. Under successive generations, the premises at the Square became more than a workshop; it was a place of advice, problem solving, conversation and local news exchange, a cornerstone of daily life in the town. Customers called not only to make funeral arrangements or get household furniture but for practical wisdom and neighbourly exchange. Like many traditional merchants, the Gardners knew their customers by name, understood their needs and extended quiet acts of kindness, when it mattered most, that went far beyond business transactions. The closure brought to an end a chapter not only for the Gardner family but also for a style of local commerce rooted in skills, craftsmanship and personal connection. In an era of rapid change and large-scale retail, the passing of such a local workshop reminds us all of the enduring value of community centred enterprise. In the 1800s, the widespread use of horse drawn transport created a steady demand for skilled coach builders throughout Ireland. Coach building was a multi trade craft requiring expertise especially in carpentry and blacksmithing. James Gardner (1820-1893), who was also a domestic furniture maker, established a thriving coach-building business. Local demand grew rapidly for jaunting cars and sidecars for passenger travel, pony traps used by shopkeepers, traders and doctors and sturdy farm carts essential to rural life. Ownership of a well-made sidecar or trap was not only practical but also a sign of prosperity and pride

in the work of local craftsmen. Athenry’s position as a busy market town made horse transport indispensable. Farmers travelled from surrounding districts such as Craughwell, Monivea, Kiltullagh, Newcastle and the Gurteen area, often using locally built carts or sidecars to bring goods to market and return with supplies. Coach building frequently ran in families, and the Gardners were no exception. Skills were passed from father to son over generations. Although the arrival of the railways reduced long-distance coach travel, horse transport remained essential in Athenry and rural east Galway well into the twentieth century. As transport technology evolved, many coach builders diversified. The Gardner family, however, continued their specialised craft of restoring coaches and “shoeing” carriage and cart wheels into the 1980s. Customers travelled from across the country, particularly from Connemara and the Aran Islands, to avail of their expertise. The Gardner Family in 1915 (left to right) Kathleen, Brigid (nee Cusack married to James), Mike, James, Brigid, Michael John, John, Catherine (nee Mullins married to Mike) and Mary Ellen (Ryan)

Michael J. Gardner fondly known as the ‘Merchant’

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