Great historian and conversationalist

RIP The late Jude McGovern, Swanlinbar

Swanlinbar lost a most illustrious character on Saturday, November 4, peacefully, at Cavan General Hospital. So often when the death of a family member or friend is lamented, people say how much they would love to have just one more conversation with the deceased. That sentiment was a repeated phrase around Swanlinbar as news spread that Jude McGovern, late of The Irish House, Main Street, Swanlinbar, Cavan, had sadly died.

Many had hoped that he would live to celebrate his 90th birthday in the Spring and that he would have enjoyed some more years with us. A couple of close friends had even discussed the possibility of doing a documentary programme with him.

Jude was a great local historian and a wonderful man in conversation. He could talk on any subject under the sun. He was particularly wonderful to listen to when he spoke about New York and all the very many places that he had travelled to in the United States of America. He was very interesting when he would converse about history, religion, politics, sports and indeed any topic that one cared to engage with him about. He was very insightful about books. He was a ferocious reader and had a great library. He was also a collector and had very many interesting items to show his visitors. He loved recounting about his friendships with so many high achievers, the actor Bonar Colleano, his wife Susan Shaw and the accomplished pilot Amy Johnson to name just three.

Patrick Jude McGovern was born on March 10, 1934, to Bartley and Bridget (nee Healy) McGovern. He was one of nine children and was predeceased by Joe, Teresa, Cait, Atti and Philomena. He is survived by his three sisters, Maureen Martin (Swanlinbar), Rosario Gormley (Ballinamore) and Daria Dolan (Bundoran).

Jude was educated locally in the Uragh boys’ national school and afterwards went to Terenure College and St Patrick’s College in Cavan. Like so many of his generation he emigrated to England and worked in pubs across London and subsequently got a job driving the underground train on the Central Line in London and was very proud that he was able to do so at the age of 17 years. One of his work colleagues then exclaimed that not everyone in England can drive a Rolls Royce but anyone in America could drive a Cadillac. The lure and appeal of America beckoned Jude and he often reflected that he was eternally grateful to be sponsored on his first trip to work in America by Peter Edwards from Bawnboy, as it was then mandatory for an immigrant to have a sponsor when seeking employment there. In order to achieve citizenship, he was conscripted and joined the American Army and often remarked that he was a late joiner at the age of 27 and was posted in Fort Hood Texas where Elvis Presley was also a recruit. He served his time in Germany as part of the 5th Armoured Division, whose motto was ‘We shall be known by our deeds alone’, a quote which he used often. He spent a few years in Greenland working continuously on a BMEWS army base which was the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System during the cold war whose radars were sited to provide early warning of a Soviet Ballistic Missile nuclear attack on the US at that time.

Being the adventurous type, Jude, with his business partner J Hardy opened a pub in Jackon Heights in New York under the company name JJ Jude incorporated. He Joined the New York Police Department looking forward to the future, which was short lived as New York city went broke in the early 1970s and couldn’t pay its employees. He managed to get a position in Rackers Island as a correction officer making many long life friends there including Jack Clark now in Florida and the recently deceased Richie Washington.

Jude soon got a transfer to a handy number in the courts where he could read many books. He was located near where he lived in Woodside, which enabled him to walk to work and of course walk his beloved dog, Hemingway. He retired after 19 years’ service and remained in New York and, because he was a licensed firearms holder, worked with several security firms including Avon and at Twin Towers Manhattan and in Newport Rhode Island. He refused a position in providing security driving Ivanka Trump the first wife of the from US president as “it would interfere with his social life”.

Jude had a very happy childhood in Swanlinbar and often reflected on those years. He had beautiful memories of time in the company of his mother when she sang and played music that everyone could hear on the street. He often spoke with great emotion when he talked about his mother singing a song about Sean MacEoin, the Blacksmith of Ballinalee. He was very informative about all the family connections with the Blakes and the Cooneys and knew exactly who the General’s mother was. Jude also often recounted about cycling with his mother to Enniskillen when he was a boy. He recalled dancing across the Border with his sister Maureen and he spoke highly of all his siblings and the happy times he had. No matter where he travelled, he always wanted to return to his native Swanlinbar that he loved so much.

He always spoke his mind and could string together several words and insults, which are not to be found in the Oxford English Dictionary. His first port of call every morning was to his good friend Michael Curry in Kilnawley to collect The Irish Times. He loved the crossword puzzle which he completed every day and would revert back to it several times. Each evening he delivered the newspaper to his sister Maureen. He was a great lover of the GAA games both in Breffni Park and Croke Park. Of course, Jude would purchase two season tickets, one for himself and the other for his beloved dogs. He took great satisfaction in telling patrons where to go when he was asked to remove the dogs from the seat at the games. He didn’t get the same satisfaction in Croke Park however as he was refused admission on entry with the dogs and then, of course reluctantly, had to revert to bringing a lesser class of animal, humans to the games. His family and his friends are saddened by his loss and certainly agree ‘there was a great book in Jude’. He will be remembered for a long time in Swanlinbar and surrounding area as one of the great characters who called Swad home.

Jude’s remains reposed at Lakelands Funeral Home, Cavan, with Cremation on Monday, November 6.