On the 2nd November 2018 we held our Lucinda Sly Walking Tour around Carlow County Museum and Carlow Town; the tour was run as part of Scarefest, a week long Halloween celebration around Carlow. The tour tells the tragic tale of Lucinda Sly, who was hanged for murdering her husband in 1835, along with her alleged accomplice John Dempsey.
The weather didn’t deter our group, which took in highlights including:
- Shamrock Square, where Lucinda would have sold her wares.
- Deighton Hall, which acted as the courthouse in 1835.
- Carlow Gaol, now Carlow Shopping Centre, where Lucinda spent her final days before her sentence was carried out.
- The Governors House, where the governor oversaw the workings of the entire gaol.
- Carlow County Museum, which has the original gallows from Carlow Gaol on display.
Many thanks to Tom and Richard from the Security Team in Carlow Shopping Center who facilitated our tour with a behind-the-scenes look at the condemned cells in the old Gaol, and outlined the history of the gaol to our tour group.
The tour is based on events depicted in the book “Lucinda Sly, A Woman Hanged” by Maidhc Danín O’ Sé.
