Jude Flynn

Jude Flynn (c.1933 – 17 February 2025) was an Irish author, playwright, and local historian. He is best known for his extensive work preserving the oral history and folklore of County Longford and his native County Leitrim. Over a 40-year span, Flynn conducted hundreds of interviews and published the Fireside Tales series of books, chronicling the stories and traditions of ordinary people. A self-taught historian, he was regarded as one of the foremost local historians in Ireland and was deeply involved in community and cultural initiatives in both Longford and Leitrim.

Early Life and Community Leadership in Leitrim

Jude Flynn was born in the townland of Drumgrania, Gortletteragh, County Leitrim, to Thomas Flynn and Emily (née Bohan). From a young age he became active in his local community. In 1958, at age 24, Flynn established a parish branch of Muintir na Tíre (a national rural community development organization) in Gortletteragh, which for many years gave local parishioners opportunities in debating and public speaking. He also revived the age-old Irish tradition of crossroads dancing in the area – in 1959 he organized a bonfire dance at Farnaught Cross, rekindling a social custom that had faded in the mid-20th century.

During the early 1960s, Flynn emerged as a playwright. He wrote two stage plays, Sunset in the Valley and The Warning Light, which were performed locally and earned him nationwide acclaim. The Warning Light was based on the illicit craft of poitín (traditional Irish moonshine) distillation on an island in Drumshanbo South Lake. Flynn’s writing often highlighted the positive aspects of rural life in Leitrim, and these plays established him as the most noted playwright and storyteller that his parish had produced.

Flynn was also a driving force in local heritage projects. He served on the Gortletteragh Park Committee that in 1967 purchased and developed Páirc Gort Leitreach, a community park and GAA sports field. To mark the park’s opening, he researched and wrote a short history of the parish of Gortletteragh. (In 2017, on the 50th anniversary of the park, Flynn and the other committee members were honored with a commemorative plaque for their contributions.) The following year, 1968, Flynn was a founder member of The Leitrim Guardian, an annual magazine devoted to County Leitrim affairs, and he went on to be a frequent contributor to it over the decades.

Career in Longford and Historical Work

Although Flynn spent his early years in Leitrim, in the mid-1960s he moved to Longford Town for work. He was employed at the Longford Post Office and remained with the postal service for his entire career. Settling in Longford, he quickly became involved in that county’s historical and cultural life. In 1967, he was a founding member of the County Longford Historical Society, serving as its honorary secretary for 24 years and later as its president (from 2011). Flynn also helped establish the Longford Genealogy Centre in the late 1980s and was active on the Longford Tourism Committee, reflecting his broad commitment to promoting local heritage. In 2022 the County Longford Historical Society formally honored Flynn for his lifetime of service to local history.

Throughout his life, Jude Flynn researched and wrote about historical figures and events of his region. In 1981, for example, he penned an account of Father Tom Conefry’s involvement in the 19th-century Drumlish Land War, contributing it to a centenary commemorative booklet. He also conducted in-depth research on the life of Bishop Thomas Flynn of Errew (Achonry), work which local historians regard as among his finest scholarship. In 1983 Flynn published a full-length biographical book, The Life and Times of Fr. Peter Conefrey, about a notable County Leitrim priest and cultural activist. Over the years he wrote many articles for local historical journals and parish publications, always aiming to preserve local stories and celebrate rural Irish life.

Flynn’s most ambitious and renowned project began in the 1980s when he started recording oral history interviews. After his wife gave him a tape recorder as a gift, he traveled throughout County Longford (and even abroad to the UK, USA, and Australia) interviewing over 500 people about their lives, folklore, and memories of bygone times. Recognizing that such personal stories would vanish as generations passed, Flynn made it his mission to preserve them. Beginning in 2003, he compiled these interviews into an annual book series titled Fireside Tales from Around Longford Town & County, which appeared every Christmas season. He edited and self-published 19 volumes of Fireside Tales (2003–2021), each filled with narrated recollections, local legends, and historical anecdotes gathered from people all across County Longford. The series became beloved by readers and an invaluable record of Longford’s social history. In late 2020, at age 87, Flynn donated his entire collection of 530 audio cassette recordings to the Longford County Library Archives so that future generations could access this rich oral history resource. Longford’s County Archivist praised Flynn’s dedication, noting that without his work “so many of these stories would have been lost”.

Despite living in Longford for nearly sixty years, Jude Flynn never lost contact with his birthplace or its community. He regularly returned to Leitrim to support local historical projects and shared his research freely with fellow historians in both counties. His dual legacy in Leitrim and Longford – as a community organizer, and as a preserver of local history – has been widely commended.

Personal Life

Jude Flynn married Mary Cunningham in 1973 at St. Mary’s Church in Gortletteragh. The couple had three children (a daughter and two sons). Mary’s death in 1982 was a profound personal loss; she died at a young age, leaving Jude as a widowed father. Flynn devoted himself to raising their children while continuing his writing and community activities. Friends noted that, despite his many commitments, he always put his family first and also cared for other relatives in need.

Death and Legacy

Flynn died on 17 February 2025 at his home in Aughadegnan, Longford, at the age of 91. His funeral was held at St. Mel’s Cathedral in Longford, after which he was laid to rest in his native Gortletteragh Cemetery in County Leitrim. Tributes poured in from across Longford and Leitrim. The Longford Historical Society chairman praised Flynn’s “great service” to local history and the “legacy to the county” created through his 19 Fireside Tales volumes. Community leaders described him as a “remarkable community man” and a true gentleman whose contributions bridged two counties. In the Irish Senate, Flynn was eulogized as “one of the country’s foremost self-taught historians” who had preserved a vault of memories for future generations. His name is inscribed on commemorative plaques and his collected works remain in libraries, ensuring that Jude Flynn’s life’s work – celebrating the people and heritage of rural Ireland – endures as his lasting legacy.