Curran’s Shoe Repairs, which was located just off Baggot Street, opened in 1937 by Michael Curran, developed a rich history, having resoled the shoes of every Taoiseach from Eamon de Valera to Enda Kenny.

Sadly the combination of the Covid-19 pandemic, rising costs and a lack of footfall the much loved shop was forced to close its doors. Following an appeal for help by owner John Miley to RTE’s Liveline, the Cronin Movers Machinery Moving Team got in touch and offered to assist with the removal of the machinery from the shop basement Baggotrath Place and transport to its new home at Moynalty Steam Threshing Museum, Co. Meath

WHAT WAS INVOLVED

Curran’s Shoe Repairs, was an iconic landmark just off Baggot Street in Dublin and was reknowned for serving the great and good of Dublin for 85 years. It passed down the generations from founder Michael Curran to Hugh Miley in the 1960s, and finally handed over to Hugh’s son John Miley.When the business reached a point where is was sadly no longer viable John Miley appealed to listeners to RTE’s Liveline for help to clear the shop of shoe repair equipment that was almost 100 years old and still working.The Cronin Movers Machinery Moving Team contacted RTE and offered to assist with the removal of the machinery from the shop basement in Baggotrath Place and transport to its new home at Moynalty Steam Threshing Museum in Co. Meath.

The project required the same level of planning and rigging that any of our machinery moving projects would require, with the team leader reporting directly to John Miley.Phase 1 of the project involved the removal of three 85 year old machines weighing two tonnes each) from the shop basement just off Baggot St. The crew carefully removed the machinery from the shop using specialist lifting and moving equipment, placing and securing it the machinery onto our machinery movers truck. The machinery was transported to Cronin’s secure storage facility, Dublin 15 to prepare it for its final journey to the Moynalty Steam Threshing Museum, Co. Meath.Phase 2 of the project was the delivery and offloading of the machinery at the Moynalty Museum. The crew arrived at the museum and the machinery was offloaded, skated and placed in its final position at the museum.

THE OUTCOME

The good news is the machinery will not be lost to history having arrived safely at its new home in the Moynalty Steam Threshing Museum, where it will take pride of place for all to see and hear about the wonderful story behind this fabulous machinery.