LEWIS’ CORK 1837

 

 

The following are descriptions of Inchigeela, Kilmichael, Ballyvourney and Kilnamartyra Parishes From Lewis’ Topographical Directory 1837

 

 

KILMICHAEL, a parish, partly in the Western Divisions of the Barony of EAST CARBERY, chiefly in the barony of WEST MUSKERRY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 6 miles (S.S.W) from Macroom, on the road to Dunmanway; containing 6166 inhabitants. It comprises 20,835 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, and valued at £9463 per annum; of these, about half is good pasture, one-third arable, and the remainder bog and mountain. The substratum is slaty, containing indications of copper, particularly in the bed of the river Lee, which separates this parish from Kinneigh. Here is a constabulary police station. The principal seats are Cooldaniel, that of J. Barter, Esq.; Carrigbuoy, of E. Barrett, Esq.; and Greenville, of B. Swete, Esq., in whose demesne are some lakes with great numbers of swans and waterfowl; also an ancient rath, now planted, in which a bag of copper coins, and several apartments, communicating by narrow passages, have been discovered. The house was attacked in 1822 by the Whiteboys, who were repulsed, and several of them killed. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Cork, episcopally united, in 1797, to part of the rectory and vicarage of Macloneigh, and in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £692. 6. 2., and of the entire benefice to £942. 6. 2. There is no glebe-house; the glebe comprises 7a. 1r. 18p. The church is a small ancient building. In the R.C. divisions the parish is the head of a union or district, comprising also Macloneigh, Kilmurry, and Dunisky, and containing three chapels, two in Kilmichael, and one in Macloneigh. The parochial school, in which about 20 children are educated, is aided by a donation of £12. per ann. from the rector; and there are four private schools, in which about 140 children are educated.

 

LEWIS ‘ CORK

KILNAMARTRY or KILNAMARTIN, a parish, in the barony of WEST MUSKERRY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 4 miles (SW) from Macroom; containing 2604 inhabitants. It comprises 11,021 statute acres, as plotted under the tithe act, and valued at £ 4262 per annum, lying between the rivers Toome and Sullane. Agriculture is backward, and the land is generally cold and unproductive; not more than one -third is in cultivation, the remaining being rough rocky pasture, bog and marsh. Good building stone and inferior slate are raised in several places, and there are indications of copper ore. The principal seats are Raleagh, the residence of W. Minhear, Esq.; Cahirdahy, of H. Ashe, Esq.; and the glebe-house, of the Rev. J. C. Mongan. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Cloyne, and in the patronage of the Bishop. The tithes amount to £420. There is a large and handsome glebe-house, for the erection of which the late Board of First Fruits, in 1814, gave £100 and lent £900: the glebe comprises 29a. 0r. 28p. The church is a large edifice with a square tower: it was built in 1808 by a gift of £600 from the same Board, and the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have lately granted £235 for its repair. In the R.C. divisions it is the head of a union or district, also called Theronadromman, comprising the parishes of Kilnamartry and Ballyvourney, and part of Clondrohid, and containing a chapel at Caradagher, and one in Ballyvourney; the former is a large plain substantial building. The parochial school is supported by the rector, and there is no one connected with the R.C. chapel, in which together about 50 children are educated; and about 120 are taught in three private schools. The castle of Kilredagh stands on a lofty hill and commands the passes of both the rivers which bound this parish. It was very strongly built, and remained tolerably entire till 1833, when a considerable part fell.

 

 

 

LEWIS ‘ CORK

INCHEGEELAGH, or EVELEARY, a parish, partly in the Western Division of the barony of EAST CARBERY, but chiefly in the barony of WEST MUSKERRY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 6 miles (W.S.W)from Macroom, on the road to Bantry; containing 5783 inhabitants. This place derives its name, Eveleary, from the ancient family of the O’ Learys, who were lords of the adjacent territory, and had the castles of Drumcarragh, Carrigneneelagh, and Carrignacurra, which last was occupied by Connor O’ Leary till 1641, when, joining in the civil war of that period, the whole of his estates became forfeited. The parish, which is situated on the river Lee, comprises 41,953 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, and valued at £6267 per ann., of which about 200 are woodland, 130 common, 2500 arable, 12,000 pasture, 7000 bog, and the remainder waste. The surface is mountainous, rocky, and of wild aspect, but towards the east more level and in a state of profitable cultivation; the chief manure used by farmers of the eastern portion is lime brought from Anaghely, near Macroom, and by those of the western portion, a calcareous coral sand from Bantry bay. The principal seats are Boyle Grove, the residence of J. Boyle, Esq.; Lee Mount, of J. Barter, Esq.; Kilbarry, of J. Barry, Esq.; the glebe-house, of the Rev. Dr. Baldwin; and the Cottage, of the Rev. J. Holland. In the village is a constabulary police station, and fairs are held on May 31st, Aug. 31st, and Dec. 3rd, for horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs; these fairs were very numerously attended, but have grown almost into disuse. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Cork, the rectory partly impropriate in the Duke of Devonshire, and partly united to the vicarage, which is in the patronage of the Bishop. The tithes payable to the incumbent amount to £400; there is a glebe-house, and the glebe comprises 2423/4 acres. The church, for the repairs of which the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recently granted £168, is a very neat edifice, with a square tower, built by a loan of £250 from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1815. The R.C. parish is co-extensive with that of the Established Church, and contains two spacious and handsome chapels, one in the village of Inchegeelagh, built in 1820, and considerably enlarged in 1830, at a total expense of £300; the other at Ballingearig, built in 1809, and since enlarged by a new cross building at a total expense of £500. There is a day school under the superintendence of the rector, who contributes to its support; the house is rent-free. There are four National school-houses in the parish; three were erected by the R.C. clergyman and his parishioners, one at Kilbarry, one at Inchegeelagh and one at Ballingearig; the fourth was built at Coolmountain in 1836, in aid of which the Commissioners of Education granted £30. They also gave a gratuitous supply of books, as a first stock, to each of these schools, and continue to furnish them with books and school necessaries at half price; they also grant an annual sum of £40 towards the salaries of the teachers: the average attendance of children, both male and female, at these four schools, is 500. There is also a private school, in which are about 20 children, and a Sunday school. In this parish are the lakes of Googane-Barra and Lua, and the mountain pass of Keminea. Googane, which is situated in a romantic and sequestered spot in the lofty chain of mountains between the countries of Cork and Kerry, covers an area of 800 acres, and is surrounded by a majestic amphitheatre of mountains, from whose rugged declivities descend numerous streams, forming interesting cascades, by which it is constantly supplied; towards its northern extremity is an island, richly planted with thriving ash trees, on which are the picturesque ruins of an ancient church, supposed to have been erected by St. Finbarr, who made this beautiful and sequestered glen his place of retreat. Near it are some cells, erected about the year 1700 by Father O’ Mahony, who lived here for 30 years in solitude. The glen is still the frequently resort of devotees, and in the summer season is visited by numerous tourists. The river Lee has its source in this lake, and taking a north-eastern course to the bridge of Ballingearig, where it is joined by another mountain torrent, spreads a little below into a wide expanse, forming Lough Lua, which is 5 miles

in length, and about half a mile in breadth, and in many parts expanding into bays of great extent and beauty; it abounds with char and fish of many other kinds; the banks on both sides are precipitous and richly wooded. The new line of road from Cork to Bantry passes along the whole length of its western shore, and near Lough Googane is continued through the mountain pass of Keminea. This extraordinary chasm, which is sometimes improperly called the Pass of Cooleagh, is about a mile in length, and from the minute correspondence and similarity of the strata on each side, appears to have been rent in the mountain by some convulsion of nature; the rock on both sides rises in a direction nearly perpendicular to the height of 100 feet, and in the fissures the arbutus, holly, yew, ivy, and various evergreens have taken root and with several rare plants thrive with the greatest luxuriance. The surrounding rocks are of the schistus formation, varying in colour from pale ash to the brightest vermilion, and passing through all the varieties of transition, from the softest clay-slate to the most compact trap. There are some remains of the ancient castles.

 

LEWIS ‘ CORK

BALLYVOURNEY, a parish, in the barony of WEST MUSKERRY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 8 miles ( W. by N. ) from Macroom; containing 3681 inhabitants. St. Abban, who lived to a very advanced age and died in 650, founded a nunnery at this place, which he gave to St. Gobnata, who was descended from O’ Connor the Great, Monarch of Ireland. Smith, in his of Cork, notices the church of this establishment, but it has since fallen into decay. The parish, of which the name signifies, "the Town of the Beloved," is chiefly the property of Sir Nicholas C. Colthurst, Bart.; it is situated on the river Sullane, and on the road from Cork to Killarney, and comprises 26,525 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, and valued at £6073. 15 per annum. The surface is very uneven, in some parts rising into mountains of considerable elevation, the highest of which is Mullaghanish: about one-half is arable and pasture land, with 70 acres of woodland. Much of the land has been brought into a state of cultivation by means of a new line of road from Macroom, which passes through the vale of the Sullane, and is now a considerable thoroughfare; and great facilities of improvement have been afforded by other new lines of road which have been made through the parish; but there are still about 16,000 acres of rough pasture and moorland which might be drained and brought into a state of profitable cultivation. The river Sullane has its source in the parish, in the mountains bordering on the county of Kerry, and after intersecting it longitudinally pursues an eastern course through the parish of Clondrohid to the town of Macroom, to the east of which, at the distance of a mile, it discharges itself into the river Lee; there is also a lake called Lough Ivoig. Fairs are held on the 10th of May, July, Sept., and Nov.; and there is a constabulary police station. The living is a rectory and a vicarage, in the diocese of Cloyne; part of the rectory is comprehended in the union of Clenore and corps of the chancellorship of the cathedral of St. Colman, Cloyne, and part is united to the vicarage, forming the benefice of Ballyvourney, in the patronage of the Bishop. The tithes amount to £731.14.7., of which £231.14.7., is payable to the chancellor of Cloyne, and £500 to the incumbent. The church is a very neat edifice, in the early English style, erected in 1824 by aid of a gift of £600 from the late Board of First Fruits. The glebe-house was built at the same time, partly by gift and partly by a loan from the same Board. In the R.C. divisions the parish is one of the three that constitute the union or district of Kilnemartry; the chapel, a plain and spacious edifice, was built in 1830. There are three daily pay schools, in which are about 70 boys and 20 girls. The ruins of the conventual church are very extensive and interesting; in one of the walls is a head carved in stone, which is regarded with much veneration. Near these ruins is a holy well, much resorted to on the 11th February, the festival of St. Gobnata, the patroness, and also on Whit-Monday; and near the well is a large stone with a circular basin or font rudely excavated, the water from which is held sacred.