Laois gent's miraculous escape from injury whilst saving Abbeyleix cross

An incredible new twist to the tale of a long lost Laois stone cross, has been revealed.

The Portlaoise man who saved the 150 year old cross from destruction, 34 years ago in Abbeyleix, suffered a dangerous fall in the process, miraculously escaping injury.

The cross was collected on January 16 by Noel Burke, chair of the new Abbeyleix Historical Society, and the tale was told to him by Paddy's family.

"Friday afternoon I was contacted by the son of the man who saved the cross from destruction over 30 years ago. He invited me to his home to collect it — and then shared the unbelievable story of how his father rescued it in the first place.

"His father was Paddy Langton of Rathnamanagh, Portlaoise, Co Laois an employee of the construction company tasked with demolishing the Brigidine Convent School in the early 1990s. When Paddy realised the 4‑foot‑tall cross on the rooftop was about to be lost forever, he made a split‑second decision that would change everything.

"Paddy climbed up onto the roof, tied a short rope around his own waist, and then around the base of the cross. His plan was simple but brave: as soon as the Hymac machine began tearing at the roof beneath it, he would pull the cross inward so it wouldn’t fall out and over the edge and shatter on the ground below.

"What happened next is the stuff of legend. When the machine pulled at the foundation, the heavy cross began to sway. Paddy hauled on the rope with all his strength to guide it inward, and it worked. The cross fell safely into the building, but its weight was so great that it crashed straight through the roof and down into the floor below, dragging Paddy with it.

"He fell through the collapsing timbers alongside the cross, landing hard beside it. Despite the shock, the fall, and the chaos around him, Paddy somehow escaped without any broken bones, a miracle in itself.

"Shaken but determined, he got himself patched up, gathered help, lifted the massive cross into his Renault 4 van, and brought it home for safekeeping. And there it remained, protected quietly for more than three decades.

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"On Friday January 16 his son placed that same cross into my hands. Thanks to Paddy’s courage, quick thinking, and sheer instinct to preserve a piece of Abbeyleix history, the Ornate Brigidine Convent Cross has survived, and is now on its way back to the community it once watched over. Paddy Langton, Rathnamanagh, Portlaoise, Co. Laois — the man who saved the Abbeyleix Brigidine Convent Cross. Paddy died in November last 2025, aged 91 years. May he rest in peace," Noel Burke said.

The cross is planned to be placed on view in the Heritage House in Abbeyleix, along with more new artefacts. 

The new Abbeyleix Heritage Society is in the process of being formed, with new members welcomed.

"Our history is still out there, waiting to be found, and it belongs to all of us," Noel Burke says.