The Hickson Estate, an area referred to as tClucan (anglicised Tullighan) by T M Donovan in his Popular History of East Kerry, was the property of George A E Hickson of Woodville House, Ballyegan, Co Kerry. It was sold in 1906:
Sale of a Trinity College Estate. The sale of the Hickson estate, situate in the Clogher district some three miles from Castleisland, constitutes the first satisfactory negotiation of a Trinity College estate in this part of Kerry since the introduction of the new Land Act of 1903 … great credit is due to the Rev McCarthy O’Connor, parish priest of Clogher, for carrying through the negotiations.[1]
In 1910, in the court of the Land Commission, the lands were identified as Coolgarriv, part of Ballyegan, part of Cragg, part of Mweenalaa, part of Nohoval South, barony of Trughanacmy.
George Archibald Erskine Hickson (1854-1921), Civil Engineer and JP, was son of Robert Conway Hickson (1812-1878) of Fermoyle House, Castlegregory, Co Kerry and Jane Theresa (died 10 March 1889), only daughter of Captain Patterson (or Paterson) O’Hara of the Cavan Militia and Araminta Erskine. George succeeded to the family estates in 1879 on the death, on 28 September in that year (according to the Diary of Timothy O’Flaherty), of his brother, Patterson (or Paterson) O’Hara Hickson (1845-1879), JP.
George was involved in the construction of the Tralee and Dingle Light Railway.[2]
He married in Tralee on 26 January 1884 to Lena Maria Josephine, daughter of barrister Mahony Harte (1805-1863) of Batterfield House, Rockfield, Milltown, Co Kerry and Ballyard House, Tralee.[3] They had two sons, Robert Conway Hickson (1884-1962), civil engineer, and George Lionel O’Hara Hickson (1887-1946).
George Archibald Erskine Hickson died at Woodville House, Gortatlea, on 25 February 1921. Lena Maria Josephine Hickson of Dooks, Glenbeigh, Co Kerry died on 25 June 1939. Probate to her nephew, Robert Brinsley Fitzgerald.
[1] Kerry Evening Post, 31 October 1906. [2] See Dictionary of Irish Architects. [3] See ‘A Kerry Estate and its Encumbrances’, Kerry Evening Post, 29 January 1902 which contains genealogical detail of the Harte and Mahony families. [4] A copy of this image held in the O’Donohoe Collection, ref: IE MOD/C45.
