In 1798, during the Irish Rebellion, local patriot George Cochran was publicly executed by hanging for his involvement in the uprising. Following his death, his severed head was placed on a spike and displayed outside the original courthouse at Margaret Square—a grim warning to others. The head remained on display for forty-one days.

Cochran’s father, devastated by the brutal treatment of his son, begged the British authorities for permission to retrieve the head so it could be buried with dignity at St Patrick’s Church of Ireland. The request was granted—but with a cruel condition. He was ordered to carry his son’s head openly in his hands, and as he walked through the streets, he had to loudly proclaim:

“Traitor, traitor—this is my son, the head of a traitor.”

Local tradition holds that he followed the route up the Lindsay Hill steps to the churchyard, carrying out the humiliating task in full public view.

To this day, many claim that the father’s tormented spirit lingers on those very steps. On the anniversary of George Cochran’s death, some report hearing faint weeping or the repetition of that awful phrase—echoing through the still night as if history refuses to rest.