Cross along the canal: the murder of Mary Walker

Regan Kelly

Those of us who regularly stroll along the Royal Canal in Mullingar, may have the name Mary Walker ingrained in our minds. An unassuming steel cross sits at the grass verge, carrying a simple passage: ‘RIP, Mary Walker, Born 10th July 1877, Died 7 July 1909, aged 32 years.’

Mary worked in the local post office as a telegraphist and a sorter, and was highly regarded as a friendly young woman. She was originally from Bagenalstown, County Carlow and arrived in Mullingar around 1901 to take up a job in the post office, having been transferred from Blackrock in Dublin.

Mary would work unsocial hours at the post office, and many people remarked that she had enjoyed the freedom that came with it.

Often, she would take walks in the early afternoon, and on July 7, 1909, she did no different, informing her landlady that she was heading out, at around 3pm.

The last people to see Mary were Thomas and Michael Nooney, who had been fishing along the canal that day. Mary knew Thomas, as he was employed at the post office.

Mary was due to return to her lodgings for food at 6.30pm before returning to work, and when she didn’t return at that time, her landlady became concerned.

She sent her son to look for Mary, and he set off along the Royal Canal in search for her, having spoken with the Nooney brothers earlier.

Just down from that grass verge, Mary’s body was found, covered with grass and her clothes torn up.

The Westmeath Examiner detailed the case at the time, and reported: “Dr Joseph Dillon Kelly was sent for by the police, and went up the Royal Canal.

“He made an examination of the body and found her face covered with blood and grass, and he found a wound four inches long in front of her throat.” Shortly before the Nooney brothers saw Mary, they saw a local man named Joseph Heffernan following the path Mary was on.

Jack Kiernan, who wrote a book about the case, called ‘Is it me?’, describes Heffernan as being locally referred to as ‘The town fool’.

He was a distinctive character and known around Mullingar at the time, working as a seasonal labourer and often seen drunk.

During the initial investigation, the police took plaster casts of footprints that they had discovered at the scene.

On the morning of July 10, the day after the murder, police arrived at the home of Joseph Heffernan and found that his boots matched the plaster casts of the footprints. Heffernan was then charged with the murder and taken to Dublin under police escort.

Multiple witnesses had emerged following Joseph’s arrest, including a 16-year-old boy and a woman who had seen Joseph washing his hands in the canal after the time of the incident.

Following the presentation of forensic evidence and witness statements, the trial would conclude on December 10 1909, at Green Street Courthouse in Dublin, and Joseph was sentenced to be hanged on January 4, 1910.

Joseph was the last man ever hanged at Kilmainham Jail in Dublin.

Since the horrific crime occurred, there have been speculations that Joseph wasn’t responsible for the murder. One person who believes that is Jack Kiernan, local author and historian.

Jack decided to look through court documents and newspaper coverage from the time, and says he found many inconsistencies and anomalies which open the possibility that Joseph Heffernan was an innocent man.

In his book, Jack writes of who he believes killed Mary: “Of course, it is impossible to name the person responsible for the horrific murder of Mary Walker – however, after taking all the evidence into consideration, I have no hesitation in saying that he was not a local.”

There was another man the police questioned, but he had been released when it was found that he had an alibi for the time of the murder.

Jack believes he may have been Mary’s killer, stating that a man had spoken with the Nooney brothers and asked, ‘Is this the Royal Canal?’.

Jack believes that man may have been a British Soldier stationed at Wellington (Columb) Barracks, who had the skillset needed to carry out a crime such as the attack on Mary. “I feel that this man was a British Soldier, attached to the 4th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers, who were stationed at Wellington Barracks, and left two months after the murder. This man would have taken part in foot patrols of the area, and soldiers are able to locate any area without the use of a compass. Quite a lot of soldiers who fought in the Boer War were stationed in Mullingar; they were experienced men who were trained to kill.

“Those men were hard, battle-worn men, many suffering from ailments such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Many of the soldiers suffering from conditions like those were moved to garrison towns and cities throughout Ireland instead of being discharged from the forces.”

We may never know the full story of Mary’s murder, although it remains a historically important point for discussions on women’s safety.