Kenmare () is a small town in the south of

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the

anglicised Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influen ...

form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. It is also a

townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic origi ...

and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

Location

Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare Bay (where it reaches the farthest inland), sometimes called the Kenmare River, where the Roughty River (''An Ruachtach'') flows into the sea, and at the junction of the

Iveragh Peninsula The Iveragh Peninsula () is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula. Carrauntoohil, its highest mountain, is als ...

and the

Beara Peninsula Beara ( ga, Béarra) or the Beara Peninsula is a peninsula on the south-west coast of Ireland, bounded between the Kenmare "river" (actually a bay) to the north side and Bantry Bay to the south. It contains two mountain ranges running down it ...

. It is also located near the

MacGillycuddy's Reeks , photo=MacGuillycuddy's Reeks.jpg , photo_caption= , country=Ireland , country1= , location = County Kerry , region = Munster , region_type = Provinces of Ireland , parent= , border= , length_km=19 , length_orientation=East–West ...

Mangerton Mountain Mangerton or Mangerton Mountain (), at , is the 19th-highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin list, and the 26th–highest mountain according to the Vandeleur-Lynam list. Mangerton is the tallest mountain in the Mangerton Mountain Group, also c ...

and

Caha Mountains The Caha Mountains (''An Cheacha'' in Irish) are a range of low sandstone mountains situated on the Beara peninsula in south-west County Cork, in Ireland. The highest peak is Hungry Hill, tall. Other notable peaks include Knocknagree, Sugarloaf ...

and is a popular

hillwalking Walking is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the United Kingdom, and within England and Wales there is a comprehensive network of rights of way that permits access to the countryside. Furthermore, access to much uncultiv ...

destination. Nearby towns and villages are

Tuosist Tuosist () is a civil parish in the far south of County Kerry, Ireland. It shares the Béara Peninsula with the neighbouring parishes of County Cork, and the Caha Mountains form the county border. The nearest town is Kenmare. The parish i ...

Ardgroom Ardgroom () is a village on the Beara peninsula in County Cork, Ireland. Its name refers to two gravelly hills deposited by a glacier, Dromárd and Drombeg. It lies to the north north west of Glenbeg Lough, overlooking the Kenmare River estuary. ...

Glengarriff Glengarriff () is a village of approximately 140 people on the N71 national secondary road in the Beara Peninsula of County Cork, Ireland. Known internationally as a tourism venue, it has a number of natural attractions. It sits at the norther ...

Kilgarvan Kilgarvan () is a small village in County Kerry, Ireland. It is situated on the banks of the Roughty River which flows into Kenmare Bay. By car, the village is a ten-minute trip from Kenmare, and thirty minutes from Killarney. History Kilgarva ...

Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Castl ...

Templenoe Templenoe () is a civil parish in County Kerry, Ireland. It is situated four miles from Kenmare, on the N70 road to Sneem, which forms part of the Ring of Kerry. Templenoe is the location of the Ring of Kerry golf club. There is a Gaelic Athle ...

and

Sneem Sneem () is a village situated on the Iveragh Peninsula (part of the Ring of Kerry), in County Kerry, in the southwest of Ireland. It lies on the estuary of the River Sneem. National route N70 runs through the town. While the 2016 census recor ...

. Kenmare is in the

Kerry Kerry or Kerri may refer to: * Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name) Places * Kerry, Queensland, Australia * County Kerry, Ireland ** Kerry Airport, an international airport in County ...

constituency of

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...

History

Evidence of ancient settlement in the Kenmare area includes one of the largest

stone circle A stone circle is a ring of standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially in Britain, Ireland, and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being built from 3000 BC. The be ...

s in the south-west of Ireland. Close to the town, this stone circle shows occupation in the area going back to at least the Bronze Age (2,200–500 B.C), when it was constructed. The circle has 15 stones around the circumference with a boulder dolmen in the centre.

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

are said to have raided the area around the town which at that time was called ''Ceann Mhara'', which means "head of the sea" in Irish. The entire area was granted to the English economist and scientist

Sir William Petty Sir William Petty FRS (26 May 1623 – 16 December 1687) was an English economist, physician, scientist and philosopher. He first became prominent serving Oliver Cromwell and the Commonwealth in Ireland. He developed efficient methods to su ...

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

as part payment for completing the mapping of Ireland, the

Down Survey The Down Survey was a cadastral survey of Ireland, carried out by English scientist, William Petty, in 1655 and 1656. The survey was apparently called the "Down Survey" by Petty, either because the results were set down in maps or because the su ...

in 1656. He laid out the modern town circa 1670. Before him, a previous surveyor of Ireland,

Sir Valentine Browne Sir Valentine Browne (died 1589), of Croft, Lincolnshire, was auditor, treasurer and victualler of Berwick-upon-Tweed. He acquired large estates in Ireland during the Plantation of Munster, in particular the seignory of Molahiffe. He lived at R ...

(1510-1589), ancestor of the

Earl of Kenmare The title of Earl of Kenmare was created in the Peerage of Ireland in 1801. It became extinct upon the death of the 7th Earl in 1952. All of the Earls bore the subsidiary titles of Viscount Castlerosse (1801), Viscount Kenmare (1798), and Baron ...

, was granted some lands in

during the resulting plantation, the

Munster Plantation Plantations in 16th- and 17th-century Ireland involved the confiscation of Irish-owned land by the English Crown and the colonisation of this land with settlers from Great Britain. The Crown saw the plantations as a means of controlling, angl ...

. The three main streets that form a triangle in the centre of the town are called Main Street (originally William Street, after Sir William, 1st. Marquis of Lansdowne), Henry Street (originally Sound Road), after the son of William the 1st. Marquis and Shelbourne Street (Henry Petty became the first

Earl of Shelburne Earl of Shelburne is a title that has been created two times while the title of Baron Shelburne has been created three times. The Shelburne title was created for the first time in the Peerage of Ireland in 1688 when Elizabeth, Lady Petty, was m ...

). This name was also later applied to

Shelbourne Road Shelbourne Road is a road in Ballsbridge, in the southeast part of Dublin, Ireland. History In John Rocque's map of 1756, today's Shelbourne Road and Upper Grand Canal Street, from which it extends, appear together as Beggars' Bush Road. ''Wil ...

in Dublin. Kenmare mass Famine grave

The convent in the town, the Poor Clare Sisters, was founded in 1861 when five nuns including Sister Mary Frances Cusack (The Nun of Kenmare), who was also an author and publisher of many books, moved to Kenmare from their convent in

Newry Newry (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland, divided by the Clanrye river in counties Armagh and Down, from Belfast and from Dublin. It had a population of 26,967 in 2011. Newry was founded in 1144 alongside a Cistercian monastery, althoug ...

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

. Under the guidance of Mother Abbess O'Hagan in 1864 a

lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is divided into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...

-working industry was established and Kenmare lace became noted worldwide. The convent no longer exists and Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine secondary school occupies this site since 2001. A suspension bridge, which is claimed to be the first in Ireland, over the Kenmare River was opened in 1841 and served the community till 1932 when it was replaced by a new concrete bridge. During and after the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

(1922-1923), there were a number of incidents in Kenmare, including the killing of O'Connor brothers in September 1922 by the

Anti-Treaty IRA The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty ( ga , An Conradh Angla-Éireannach), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the ...

, and the brutal assault against the allegedly Unionist daughters of a local doctor by three

Dublin Guard The Dublin Guard was a unit of the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and then of the Irish National Army in the ensuing Civil War. Foundation In May 1921 the Active Service Unit of the Irish Republican Army's Dublin Brigad ...

officers led by

Paddy Daly Paddy Daly (1888–1957) sometimes referred to as Paddy O'Daly, served in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence''Michael Collins: A Life'' by James Mackay, p. 132 and subsequently held the rank of major-general in the I ...

in 1923 (which is sometimes referred to as the ' Kenmare incident'). Kenmare was briefly held by the Anti-Treaty IRA, during the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...

, before being successfully retaken by the

Irish Army The Irish Army, known simply as the Army ( ga, an tArm), is the land component of the Defence Forces of Ireland.The Defence Forces are made up of the Permanent Defence Forces – the standing branches – and the Reserve Defence Forces. The Ar ...

in December 1922. The town library is one of the Carnegie Libraries funded by

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

. It opened in 1918, and the architect was R.M. Butler. The library building is now home to the Carnegie Arts Centre and theatre, hosting a local drama group and a number of travelling productions each year, as well as music and comedy nights. Holy Cross Catholic Church in Kenmare was consecrated in 1864. It was built under the guidance of Archdeacon Fr. John O'Sullivan - who is interred within the church. The church has stained glass windows by O'Connor London (1863), by Caseys Dublin (1864) and by Earley Dublin (1864). The organ is by Telford & Telford(1865). Buried in the church grounds is Monsignor Francis Cremin (died 2001), who was a periitus or theological expert at Vatican II. He was a native of Kenmare and had been Professor of Canon Law and Moral Theology at St Patrick's College, Maynooth from 1949 until 1980. He was a brother of Con Cremin, an Irish diplomat, who represented Ireland in France and Germany during World War II and subsequently in Portugal, the Holy See, the United Kingdom and at the United Nations. Main Street Kenmare Ireland between 1880 and 1914

Main Street Kenmare Ireland between 1880 and 1914

The

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...

church of St Patrick celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2008. The town has been a winner in the

Irish Tidy Towns Competition Tidy Towns (Irish: ''Bailte Slachtmhara'') is an annual competition, first held in 1958, organised by the Department of Rural and Community Development in order to honour the tidiest and most attractive cities, towns and villages in the Republic ...

in 2013, 2000 and was a runner-up in 2003 and 2008.

Tourism

Kenmare lies on two noted Irish tourist routes, the

Ring of Kerry The Ring of Kerry ( ga, Mórchuaird Chiarraí) is a circular tourist route in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. Clockwise from Killarney it follows the N71 to Kenmare, then the N70 around the Iveragh Peninsula to Killorglin – passing ...

and the

Ring of Beara Beara ( ga, Béarra) or the Beara Peninsula is a peninsula on the south-west coast of Ireland, bounded between the Kenmare "river" (actually a bay) to the north side and Bantry Bay to the south. It contains two mountain ranges running down its ...

, approximately from

. As a result, it is a popular tourist destination and many of the businesses in the area cater to tourists. The town is noted for its food and pubs. Since the late 1990s the tourism industry has driven local construction work, with land being sold at high prices to developers wishing to build estates of

holiday homes A holiday cottage, holiday home, vacation home, or vacation property is accommodation used for holiday vacations, corporate travel, and temporary housing often for less than 30 days. Such properties are typically small homes, such as cottage ...

. This has led to an increase in the town's population, particularly during the peak tourist season, and prompted fears among some residents that the town is becoming overdeveloped and losing much of its identity.

Notable people

Inter-county

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

ers Mickey 'Ned' O'Sullivan,

Stephen O'Brien Sir Stephen Rothwell O'Brien, (born 1 April 1957) is a British politician and diplomat who was the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. O'Brien assumed office on 29 May 2015, succeed ...

and Paul O'Connor are from the Kenmare area, while

Pat Spillane Patrick Gerard Spillane (born 1 December 1955), better known as Pat Spillane, is an Irish former Gaelic football pundit and player. His National Football League (Ireland), league and All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, championship career ...

is from nearby

. Kenmare is also the home of Irish Olympic slalom skier

Thos Foley Thos Foley (born 9 November 1979) from Kenmare in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, is a man's slalom skiing, slalom skier. He currently lives and trains in the village of Verbier in Switzerland. Career He Ireland at the 2006 Winter ...

. Kenmare was home to composer

Ernest John Moeran } Ernest John Smeed Moeran (31 December 1894 – 1 December 1950) was an English composer of part-Irish extraction, whose work was strongly influenced by English and Irish folk music of which he was an assiduous collector. His output includes or ...

for a number of years up to his death and a local bar was named after him - but has since been renamed. Diplomat

Con Cremin Cornelius Christopher Cremin (6 December 1908 – 20 April 1987) was an Irish diplomat who was born in Kenmare, County Kerry. One of four children, Cremin was born to a family that operated a drapery business. His brother, Francis Cremin, bec ...

was also from Kenmare, as is senator Mark Daly. Writer Anna McPartlin grew up in Kenmare, and her 2007 novel ''Apart from the Crowd'' was set in the town. Francis Brennan is the owner of the five-star Park Hotel in Kenmare. He and his brother John, owner of the nearby Dromquinna Manor Hotel in Templenoe, are known for their TV series "At Your Service".

Fair days

Due to its location at the centre of a large agricultural area, Kenmare served as the local

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

. Until the establishment of an auction

mart Mart may refer to: * Mart, or marketplace, a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods * Mart (broadcaster), a local broadcasting station in Amsterdam * Mart (given name) * Mart (Syr ...

in the early 1990s, the approximately monthly '' fair days'' were a time when farmers would ''stand'' their animals in the streets for sale to visiting stock dealers. The only fair which continues to be held is that of 15 August, which coincides with the Catholic

Holy Day of Obligation In the Catholic Church, holy days of obligation are days on which the faithful are expected to attend Mass, and engage in rest from work and recreation (id est, they are to refrain from engaging in work or activities that hinder the worship owed t ...

marking the

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution ''Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows: We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by Go ...

. The day attracts crowds of locals and visitors and is the busiest day of the year in Kenmare.

Transport

There are daily bus-services in summer to

and in the off-season, the bus runs Monday-Friday. There is also a daily service to/from

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

in the summer months on the N71 via

Bantry Bantry () is a town in the civil parish of Kilmocomoge in the barony of Bantry on the southwest coast of County Cork, Ireland. It lies in West Cork at the head of Bantry Bay, a deep-water gulf extending for to the west. The Beara Peninsula is ...

Skibbereen Skibbereen (; ) is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is located in West Cork West Cork ( ga, Iarthar Chorcaí) is a tourist region and municipal district in County Cork, Ireland. As a municipal district, West Cork falls within the administr ...

Clonakilty Clonakilty (; ), sometimes shortened to Clon, is a town in County Cork, Ireland. The town is located at the head of the tidal Clonakilty Bay. The rural hinterland is used mainly for dairy farming. The town's population as of 2016 was 4,592. Th ...

and Bandon. In mid-2023, a new service from Killarney to Skibbereen via Kenmare was announced, replacing the previous Killarney to Kenmare and Kenmare to Skibbereen services with additional journeys and extended hours. The N71 also connects Kenmare to Killarney on a mountainous and scenic part of the Ring of Kerry route via

Moll's Gap Moll's Gap or Céim an Daimh (meaning, Gap of the Ox), is a mountain pass on the N71 road from Kenmare to Killarney in Kerry, Ireland. Moll's Gap is on the Ring of Kerry route, and offers views of the MacGillycuddy's Reeks mountains, and is a ...

and

Ladies View Ladies View is a scenic viewpoint on the Ring of Kerry tourist route about from Killarney along the N71 road to Kenmare, in the Killarney National Park in Ireland. The ''Irish Times'' ranked Ladies View as one of the most photographed places ...

. Alternatively one can reach Killarney via the slightly longer but more comfortable route through

. Kenmare also lies on the N71

national secondary road A national secondary road ( ga, Bóthar Náisiúnta den Dara Grád) is a category of road in Ireland. These roads form an important part of the national route network but are secondary to the main arterial routes which are classified as national ...

south-

route to

. In November 2014, the Eastern Relief Road was opened, allowing drivers from the R569 Kilgarvan Road to bypass the town centre when accessing the supermarkets and schools. Kenmare railway station opened, in October 1893, as the terminus of a branch from the

Great Southern and Western Railway The Great Southern and Western Railway (GS&WR) was an Irish gauge () railway company in Ireland from 1844 until 1924. The GS&WR grew by building lines and making a series of takeovers, until in the late 19th and early 20th centuries it was the ...

's Mallow–Tralee line at Headford Junction. The station closed, along with the branch, in early 1960 and the last passenger train ran on 1 February 1960. The track was lifted shortly afterwards.

Services

The town has a primary and secondary school, a public library, community hospital, as well as Catholic, Church of Ireland and Methodist churches.

Sports

The GAA club, Kenmare Shamrocks, competes in

Kerry GAA The Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), or Kerry GAA, is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland. It is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kerry, and for the Kerry county teams. The Kerry branch of the G ...

competitions.

George Mayberry George Mahoney Mayberry (24 July 1883 – 21 November 1961) was an Irish track and field athlete who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. He was born in Kenmare and died in Frant Frant ...

from Kenmare participated in the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were ori ...

. Kenmare Kestrels Basketball Club was founded in 2006 and competes in the Kerry Area Basketball League. The local soccer team Inter Kenmare F.C. competes in the

Kerry District League The Kerry District League (known as the Denny Kerry District League for sponsorship reasons) is an association football league featuring amateur and junior clubs from County Kerry. The KDL is a winter league run by Adrian Casey. Its top divisio ...

at U17, Youth & Senior Men's/Women's level and in the Kerry Schoolboys/girls League for all underage teams.

In popular culture

In the fictional ''Harry Potter'' universe, Kenmare is home to the ''Kenmare Kestrels'', one of only thirteen Quidditch teams that play in the

Quidditch Quidditch is a fictional sport invented by author J.K. Rowling for her fantasy book series ''Harry Potter''. It first appeared in the novel ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' (1997). It is a dangerous but popular sport played by witc ...

League of Britain and Ireland. The team players wear emerald-green robes emblazoned with two yellow K's across the chest. The eponymous song ''"As I leave behind Neidín"'' was written by

Jimmy McCarthy James MacCarthy (born 1953) is an Irish singer-songwriter. Early life and career (1953–1979) MacCarthy was born in Macroom, County Cork, Ireland to Ted MacCarthy (died 1998) and Betty MacCarthy (died 2009). He has 11 siblings. The family ha ...

and recorded by

Mary Black Mary Black (born 23 May 1955) is an Irish folk singer. She is well known as an interpreter of both traditional folk and modern material which has made her a major recording artist in her native Ireland. Background Mary Black was born into a m ...

amongst others. The town was also referenced in the ''

Star Trek: Enterprise ''Star Trek: Enterprise'', titled simply ''Enterprise'' for its first two seasons, is an American science fiction television series created by Rick Berman and Brannon Braga. It originally aired from September 26, 2001, to May 13, 2005 on Uni ...

'' episode " Breaking the Ice". The crew aboard the spaceship answer questions received from school children who are said to be from Kenmare.

References

External links

*
Kenmare Lace
{{Authority control Towns and villages in County Kerry Townlands of County Kerry Civil parishes of County Kerry