After the owners of a rural Co. Waterford pub called time on their running of the premises, 13 of their loyal customers who saw the closure as a huge loss to the community, decided to take action and reopen it, 14 months after it closed.
Haughton’s pub which is five miles outside the village of Kilmeaden, half way between Kilmeaden and Kilmacthomas, on the Waterford greenway, is believed to date back 200 years.
In a case of putting your money where your mouth is, the group of 13 customers who are all friends, put money in the pot to carry out essential work and lease the premises.
The owners, Gerry and Margaret O’Connell, retired from the trade in August last year.
One of the 13 friends, Ross Kavanagh said that the characterful pub was the only facility in the community and was a huge loss when it closed.
“Everyone missed it”, Ross said.
The 13 shareholders all bring their own skillsets to the venture which operates on a not-for-profit basis.
“None of us are bar men. We’d rather be on the other side,” laughed Ross, who is an electrician. The aim, he said, was to get the pub open and cover their costs.
While they were nervous about the undertaking, the support and reaction has been tremendous, according to Ross:
“The response from the local community and people further afield has been fantastic. We open at weekends and we were open on the Thursday for Halloween. We also have a lot of bookings coming in for Christmas parties.”
Customers often enjoy a game of cards or a sing song: “The pub has a great history of music for decades and cards are played on Friday nights. We have no WiFi or phone signal so the art of conversation, song and music plays a big part,” Ross added.
“Our goal is to just have it open. Any money that we generate is put back in. Potentially, if we can build up the pot, we might be able to employ someone as we are all busy during the day,” he added.
The pub is a great resource to the local farming community, according to Shane Fitzgerald, whose dairy farm was visited by King Charles.
Shane and his dad, John, enjoy the ambience. ‘it is a traditional pub with great character. When it closed, there was nowhere like it and my dad stopped going out,” said Shane.
“There’s not much TV there and people aren’t on their phones. You can have a proper chat and while the main cohort is aged in their 40s and 50s, an older crowd go and more younger people are going now that they have expanded the range of taps and there is live music and a card machine.
“There will always be a few people there who aren’t drinking and who will give you a lift home. Everyone is welcome. I mightn’t go for months on end but when I do, I feel very welcome.
“As former customers, the people that have taken it over know what Haughton’s is about,” said Shane.
The reopening generated keen interest: “We’re getting a lot of people calling out to have a look,” Ross said.
“We have had great support from other local bars and businesses with helpful advice and loans of equipment, namely Dunphys at The Sweep Bar; the Bohill family at the Holy Cross bar; Philip Brady at Jarrz bar and Clem Jacob Hire.
“Without their support, I think it would have been a very difficult journey.
“We have no long-term plans at the moment. We are just happy to have our little pub with a big character open,” Ross said.