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Patrick Henchy, also known as “Paddy”, was born on May 5, 1913 in Corofin, County Clare, Ireland. He was born into a family of seven children, from the parents Patrick Henchy and Margaret née O'Grady. Born into a devout catholic family, Henchy expressed his deep faith and opposed any form of violence throughout his early life.

For his primary education, Henchy first attended St Flannan’s College, Ennis, which is located in County Clare. After moving to Galway, Henchy attended St Mary's College, Galway, and later attended University of Galway where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts with a double first honors degree in Irish and History in 1935.

Later spending much of his time in Dublin, Henchy’s appreciation of the city grew as he explored more of the city and county, enjoying walks and knowledge of Wicklow hills, while also admiring the various turns of the seasons throughout the year. Henchy spent much of his time in Dublin county, living in Eglinton Park, Donnybrook, Dublin, where he met and established several close friendships that would later serve as career enhancing connections. Henchy was publicly close with those of Patrick Kavanagh, a poet and journalist, J. Barry Brown, an antiquarian book collector, and Edward MacLysaght, a Clare genealogist. All of these connections and friendships later became helpful when Henchy began collecting materials during his role at the National Library of Ireland. Several of these connections also led Henchy to participate in exclusive groups, including the Dublin of Georgian Architecture, The Dublin of Irish Language Movement, and the Dublin of Literature.

On October 15 1952, Henchy married Trinity College librarian and Spanish scholar, Monica Leahy, from the parents Maurice Leahy and Mary D. Leahy. The couple went on to have three children, Mary, Deirdre and Monica. The couple’s daughter, Monica, unexpectedly died in an accident at 25 years old.