Census of Ireland, 1901. Line 1 shows the entry for Captains J. P. Stewart - 78th Highlanders. Edward Pakenham Stewart was the club's President from 1903-1915.
Updated: 14 December 2021
Posted by: Peter Bennett
The Memorabilia Committee have been beavering away over the past few years documenting the history of the Club. It's all available on this website.
Photographs of past captains
We've been trying to locate photographs of some our earlier captains, and presidents. It’s difficult to locate photographs from the early 1900’s. Alistair Smith, a long standing member of the club and a member of the Memorabilia Committee, has been collecting golf memorabilia for years.
Niall Keyes and Ronnie Kane visit Alistair Smith
Part of Alistair Smith's Golf Memorabilia Collection
Part of Alistair Smith's Golf Memorabilia Collection
Alistair recently invited Niall Keyes, Peter Bennett and myself to visit his home and gave us access to some of the material in his collection. We succeeded, thanks to Alister, in locating some 20+ missing photographs of men’s captains. Alister’s collection is extraordinary. It must be one of the largest collections of its kind in Europe.
You’ll find the listing of Men’s Captains here.
We are trying to locate the missing images of our past presidents and captains. If you check the links you'll see what's missing. If you help that would be great.
Killiney Golf Club’s historical researcher par excellence
Gordon Horsfield - KGC historical researcher par excellence
Gordon has done an incredible job in building up biographical information on our earlier presidents. He has traced the etymology of the various symbols or items in the club’s crest. He recently deciphered the origin of the inverted crescent moon on our crest. It’s an amazing piece of research.
You'll find Gordon's research in the biographical note on Edward Pakenham Stewart, the club's first president. Here's Gordon's explanation. Extraordinary.
Gordon's analysis of the origin of the club's crest. The 78th Highlanders' emblem (left) and the Jack Pine (right), a species native to Nova Scotia. Both are on the club's crest. Edward Pakenham Stewart was a captain in the 78th regiment when it was stationed in Nova Scotia. The 78th was one of only two in the British Army with a Gaelic motto - Cuidich 'n Righ, which means "Help the King". The crescent moon was a mystery. Until recently.
Here is the explanation for the inverted crescent moon.
The smiling moon - An explanation
We are happy with the explanation for the elephant and the trees and we are a step closer to the reasoning behind the smiling moon.
This crescent moon shape appears early in its first quarter or late in its last quarter, only a small arc-shaped section is visible and illuminated by the Sun to create the crescent appearance. The orientation of the crescent moon depends on the time of day, the season, and the viewer’s location.
During evening twilight, from January through March, the `smile` and `cap` crescent shapes can only be seen in the northern temperate latitudes (from 25° to 50° north, encompassing Canada, Japan, the United States and others).
Our first President Captain Edward Packenham Stewart would have been one of very few members to have witnessed the moon’s smile orientation in the sky when he was stationed in Nova Scotia.
Gordon's piece on Edward Pakenham Stewart is well worth reading.
Over the year I've received snippets of information from many members and from UK, Australia and Canada. A tiny, and what may appear insignificant, piece of information can solve a puzzle, complete a picture or point us to a new source of information. Thank you for contributing.
I take this opportunity to wish you all a Happy Christmas.
Ronnie
Ronnie Kane - Chairman Memorabilia Committee.