Edward Lee

een diagnosed with throat cancer. All his life he had smoked and he now
travelled to London to see a consultant, but he knew his time was short. In
a letter to Tennyson from Tyrrellspass on the 16 th June 1926 he said, ‘I feel
my general health is much improved since I came down, but I know the
trouble the doctors fear remains’. He spent more time in Tyrrellspass, no
doubt reliving and remembering his boyhood years and the beginnings of
his successful and eventful career. His religious faith was a great comfort
to him, as was his family, whom he loved dearly. When his beloved boys,
Robert Ernest and Joe died, the light went out of his life and although he
and Annie continued on, they must have, in quiet moments, wondered
what it had all been for, when, all those years ago in Tyrrellspass, a young
man with dreams had made them a reality.
An Honest Christian Man
Edward Lee was known to be a generous and fair employer. He
was proud of the fact that he was, ‘a self-made man’. He held
and acted with high principles all his life and believed in the
dignity of work. He had no problem with the idea of profit, but it should
never be made at the expense of the workers. To this end, he gave all his
employees a share of the profits. He passionately believed in the welfare
of his staff and was proud of the fact that he had worked to lessen the
working week. Although not politically motivated, he joined Bray UDC
to further his social agenda. His concern for the poor and for the proper
housing of families is well documented. He paid a heavy price for his
support of the war, but he never let his grief and sorrow embitter him. His
faith remained strong to the end. In a heartbreaking letter to Tennyson
on the 24 th November 1918, the ‘governor’, made hopeful reference to
all his lost children. ‘We only trust in God that when our time comes we
may meet our babes and our dear Joe and Ernest with all our loved ones
where there will be no more partings or death or sorrow - May we prove
ourselves worthy’.
Edward Lee died at his home Bellevue on the 14 th February 1927 at
the age of 73. On his death, Annie became chairman of the business until
she died in 1938. Edward Lee was buried at a strictly private funeral in
62 Edward Lee