Half a century after the first electricity pole was erected in a field at Kilsallaghan, Co Dublin in 1946, three of the original crew got together for a celebratory re-enactment. Our photo shows PJ Dowling (92) taking notes as Tom Cowley (75) and Paddy O’Reilly (72) struggle against the combined forces of gravity and a recalcitrant-looking pole. The perky angle at which the shovel is perched in the topsoil, as opposed to the narrower angle at which the men are holding the pole, serves to emphasise that raising a utility pole is no easy task. These and other ‘Irish Times’ images can be purchased from: irishtimes.com/photosales. A book, ‘The Times We Lived In’, with more than 100 photographs and commentary by Arminta Wallace, published by Irish Times Books, is available from irishtimes.com and from bookshops, priced at €19.99

Source: The Irish Times May 26, 2018 03:56 UTC