Charles Bianconi Born September 24, 1786 Tregolo in Costa Masnaga (near Como), Italy Died September 22, 1875 (aged 88) “Longfield House”, Boherlahan, Co. Tipperary, Ireland Spouse(s) Eliza Hayes. Born Carlo Bianconi, Costa Masnaga (Italy) on September 24, 1786, he moved from an area poised to fall to Napoleon and travelled to Ireland in 1802, via England, just four years after the 1798 rebellion. At the time, British fear of continental invasion resulted in an acute sense of insecurity and additional restrictions on the admission of foreigners. He eventually became famous for his innovations in transport and was twice mayor of Clonmel Co. Tipperary. He was the founder of public transportation in Ireland, at a time preceding railways. He established regular horse-drawn carriage services on various routes from about 1815 onwards. These were known as ‘Bianconi Coaches’. There were also a series of inns, the Bianconi Inns, some of which still exist e.g. in Piltown, Co. Kilkenny and Killorglin. These services continued into the 1850s and later, by which time there were a number of railway services in the country. The Bianconi coaches continued to be well-patronised, by offering connections from various termini, one of the first and few examples of an integrated transport system in Ireland. Bianconi died on September 22, 1875 at “Longfield House”, Boherlahan, Co. Tipperary.
Having donated land to the parish of Boherlahan for the construction of a parish church, Bianconi wished to be buried on the Church grounds. He, and his family, are buried in a side chapel, separate from the parish church in Boherlahan, approximately 5 miles from Cashel, Co. Tipperary.
