Eamonn Hughes obituary

Other lives: Construction worker on infrastructure projects in Yorkshire

My grandfather Eamonn Hughes, who has died aged 87, was proud of the contribution he made as an Irishman to building modern Britain by working in the postwar construction industry.

He started out in the late 1950s as a labourer in the Leeds area, progressing to supervise civil engineering projects with the Yorkshire firm Ogdens of Otley. There he played his part in many big enterprises, including the building of the south stand at Leeds United’s Elland Road ground in 1974.

Later he moved into Ogdens’ coal reclamation operation, where he was responsible for various sites across Yorkshire, the Midlands and Scotland, before taking early retirement in 2002.

Born in London, Eamonn was the son of Bridget (nee Nolan) and Denis Hughes, Irish farmers from County Longford who were visiting England at the time of his birth. He was raised in Ireland in a bilingual household, speaking Irish and English, and attended Scoil Mhic Dhara in the Gaeltacht area of Galway, where his uncle served as headteacher.

His first job, in 1954, was as a car-breaker in Drumlish. After further work in a garage, on road maintenance for Longford council, as a labourer for the Irish Peat Board (Bord na Móna) and then at a meat factory, in 1958 he moved to the UK.

There he met Angela McGrath, from Tipperary, on his first day in the country – at the Angel hotel in Wetherby, West Yorkshire, where his sister Mary was working.

He and Angela married four years later and settled in Leeds, raising five children – Michael, Keiron, Patricia, Dermot and Marie – as Angela became a nurse and Eammon worked for a variety of civil engineering contractors on large projects in the area, including the Leeds inner ring road.

He took his early retirement to look after Angela, who died the following year. Her death was a near-intolerable loss for him, but he bore it with stoic dignity, visiting her grave each week.

Eamonn lived an unflashy life devoted to family. In particular he dedicated himself to solving practical problems for his family; painting walls, fixing fences and laying patios well into his late 80s. I spent several weeks over the years helping him with his projects, and what stayed with me was his patient determination to do the job properly, even when no one was watching.

His hallmark seriousness belied an irreverent humour that surfaced in a twinkling smile or knowing raised eyebrow. He was quiet, steady and rooted in service to others.

Eamonn is survived by his children and 11 grandchildren, a great-grandchild and his siblings Joe, Vincent, Theresa, and Gerry.