Quaker artefact brings visitors to Castledermot

A STEADY stream of visitors turned out in Castledermot last week to see a rare 17th-century sampler stitched by an 11-year-old Quaker girl, as renewed interest grows in the town’s forgotten Quaker heritage.

The sampler, created by Sarah Sparrow in 1692, was brought back to Castledermot during National Heritage Week, with the public invited to view the historic piece at the Teach Diarmada community centre. Local archaeologist Dr Sharon Greene said organisers were delighted with the response to the event, which ran from 2pm to 7pm on Wednesday 19 August.

“There were lots of new faces, and some people had travelled quite some distance to see it,” she said.

Visitors ranged from young children to older members of the community, with the sampler proving particularly interesting to younger visitors because of its connection to an 11-year-old girl.

“We were really delighted because the sampler was made by an 11-year-old girl,” Dr Greene said. “There were a couple of young girls who came in and had a look, and one or two were into sewing themselves.” 

The event also provided an opportunity to gather new information about Sarah Sparrow and the Quaker community in Castledermot. Dr Greene said there is still relatively little known about the family and that research is continuing. Organisers displayed information about the Quaker family tree in Castledermot, as well as details about Sarah’s family, including her parents, grandparents, husband and children.

The event also produced some unexpected leads, with members of the public sharing local folklore about properties that may have been connected to the Sparrow family.

“We had one or two people come in with little titbits to follow up on,” Dr Greene said. “That was another valuable thing about the day as well.” 

The sampler is particularly significant because there is little physical evidence remaining of Castledermot’s historic Quaker community. The town’s former Quaker meeting house has disappeared and the site now lies beneath the car park of the local church.

Dr Greene said the return of the sampler had helped revive interest in an important part of the town’s history.

“It’s kind of revived a little bit of interest and encouraged people to have a little think and do a little bit of research on them,” she said.

The hope is that the ongoing research will eventually allow a fuller history of the Quaker community to be added to the story of Castledermot.

The sampler is due to be transferred to Ballitore Quaker Museum, where Kildare County Council has agreed it will eventually go on display. However, the handover date has not yet been confirmed.

Before it can be exhibited, the delicate textile must be assessed by a conservator, who will carry out any necessary work and advise on the most appropriate way to mount it for display.

In the meantime, the successful Castledermot event has given local people an opportunity to reconnect with a remarkable piece of their history, and has opened the door to further discoveries about the Quaker community that once existed in South Kildare.