In Reply to: Re: Freestone family who lived in #4 Knockapuntha Rural + RAF airlfield posted by N. Campbell on September 25, 2012 at 14:46:31:

According to a former boarder at Dorothy Jane Freestone's in Bray in 1954, she remembered that Michael Collins had had a meal at their home (the Yews, apparently) during a visit to Castlebar in 1922.

She also said that Michael Collins had come up to some inexperienced men having a go at making a trench. Since the trench was not even deep enough to shelter anyone from being shot, he walked ahead of his group and asked what they were doing and the men replied something like "we're building a trench to keep you lot out". To which he just grumbled as he simply stepped over the "trench".

She had also told that particularly the women at the meal had been impressed with his looks (she herself was 20 or 21 at the time).

Is it possible to place Michael Collins at the Yews in 1922 (probably 3-4-1922)? There may be newspapers, diaries or letters confirming or disproving this. Can you help?