Carrowmore, County Cavan is 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 ...
in the Parish of
Tomregan
Tomregan ( ga, Tuaim Dreagain, ) is a civil parish in the ancient barony of Tullyhaw. The parish straddles the international border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The largest population centre in the parish is Ballyconn ...
, Barony of
Tullyhaw
Tullyhaw ( ga, Teallach Eathach) (which means 'The Territory of Eochaidh', an ancestor of the McGoverns, who lived ) is a Barony in County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland. The area has been in constant occupation since pre-4000 BC. Locate ...
,
County Cavan
County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is base ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
.
Etymology
The townland name is an anglicisation of the Gaelic placename ''Ceathrú Mhór'' which means 'The Great Quarter'. It derives its name from the large size of the townland which in medieval times comprised a quarter of the ballybethagh of Calvagh, as it originally consisted of the present-day townlands of Carrowmore,
Mullanacre Lower,
Mullanacre Upper
Mullanacre Upper is a townland in the Parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland.
Etymology
The townland name is an anglicisation of the Gaelic placename "Mullagh an Acre" which means ‘The Acre of the Summit’. In the 17th ...
and
Moher
Moher is a townland in the Parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland.
Etymology
The townland name is an anglicisation of the Gaelic placename "Mothar" which means 'A cluster of trees'. In the 17th century it formed part of C ...
, a total of 2,066 statute acres. The oldest surviving mention of the name is on the 1609
Ulster Plantation
The Plantation of Ulster ( gle, Plandáil Uladh; Ulster-Scots: ''Plantin o Ulstèr'') was the organised colonisation (''plantation'') of Ulstera province of Irelandby people from Great Britain during the reign of King James I. Most of the sett ...
Baronial map of Tullyhaw, where it is spelled ''Arrowmore''. A 1610 grant spells the name as ''Kearowmore''. A 1612 pardon spells it as ''Cearowmore''. A 1630 Inquisition spells it as ''Carraghmore''. The 1652 Commonwealth Survey spells the name as ''Karowmoreoghtragh''. The 1659
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 s ...
map spells it as ''Carrowmore''. The 1663 Hearth Money Rolls spell it as ''Caramore'' and ''Upper Caramont''. A 1666 grant spells it as ''Carranemore alias Kearrowmore''.
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 ...
's 1685 map spells it as ''Carrowmore''. The 1790 Cavan Carvaghs list spells the name as ''Carrumore, Itragh and Otragh'' (i.e. Íochtar meaning Lower and Uachtar meaning Upper). Ambrose Leet's 1814 Directory spells the name as ''Carromore''.
Geography
It is bounded on the north by
Legavreagra
Legavreagra (Irish derived place name, ''Lag na bhFreagra'', meaning 'The Hollow of the Echoes') is a townland in the civil parish of Kinawley, barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland.
Geography
Legavreagra is bounded on the west by Aghakinn ...
and
Aghnacally
Aghnacally (Irish derived place name, either ''Achadh na Caillí'', meaning 'The Field of the Hag’ or ''Ucht na Caillí'', meaning 'The Hill of the Hag’ or ''Ucht na Choillidh'', meaning 'The Hill of the Wood’) is a townland in the civil ...
townlands and the international border with
Fermanagh
Historically, Fermanagh ( ga, Fir Manach), as opposed to the modern County Fermanagh, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Fermanagh. ''Fir Manach'' originally referred to a distinct kin group of a ...
and Northern Ireland, on the east by
Snugborough
Snugborough is a townland in the Parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland.
Etymology
The townland originally formed two divisions, the older Irish names of which were ''Kealloge'' and ''Knockan''. ''Kealloge'' was an Angli ...
and
Derryginny
Derryginny is a townland in the Parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland.
Etymology
The townland name is an anglicisation of the Gaelic placename "Doire Goinimhe" which means the 'Oakwood of the Sand', which possibly der ...
townlands, on the south by
Lecharrownahone
Lecharrownahone () is a townland in the civil parish of Templeport, County Cavan, Ireland. It lies in the Roman Catholic parish of Templeport and barony of Tullyhaw.
Geography
Lecharrownahone is bounded on the north by Carrowmore, County Cava ...
townland and on the west by
Mullanacre Upper
Mullanacre Upper is a townland in the Parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland.
Etymology
The townland name is an anglicisation of the Gaelic placename "Mullagh an Acre" which means ‘The Acre of the Summit’. In the 17th ...
,
Mullanacre Lower &
Drumane
Drumane () is a townland in the civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Templeport, County Cavan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies in the Roman Catholic parish of Templeport and barony of Tullyhaw.
Geography
Drumane is bounded on the ...
townlands. Its chief geographical features are Loughan MacMartin mountain lake (In the Fermanagh Inquisitions of 1605 it is spelled ''Loghanmcmartin'' and in the 1761 Cavan Poll Book it is spelled ''Tullymcmartin''), the
Crooked River (Ireland)
The Crooked River rises in Loughan Macmartin at the top of Slieve Rushen Mountain, in the townland of Carrowmore, Parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland. It then flows in a southerly direction and discharges into the Shan ...
, some mountain streams, quarries, gravel pits, forestry plantations and
Slieve Rushen
Slieve Rushen is a mountain which straddles the border between County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland and County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. It is also called Slieve Russell or Ligavegra (Also Legavagra, Ligavagra). It has an elevation of 4 ...
mountain, on whose southern slope it lies, reaching an altitude of above sea-level. It forms part of the Slieve Rushen Bog Natural Heritage Area. The townland is traversed by the
N87 road (Ireland)
The N87 road is a national secondary road in the north of County Cavan, Ireland.
Route
The route leaves the N3 at Belturbet and passes through the towns of Ballyconnell and Swanlinbar in north County Cavan before crossing the border with Co ...
, the Bawnboy Road, the Laher Road, Carrowmore Lane and other minor lanes. The townland covers 981 statute acres, including of water. The sub-divisions of the townland are- Finthilough (Fionn Talamh = The White Land) and Stripe Hall.
History
In the Plantation of Ulster by grant dated 23 June 1610, along with other lands, King James VI and I granted four polls in ''Kearowmore'' to Hugh Culme, esquire, as part of the Manor of Calva. Culme then surrendered his interest in Carrowmore to Walter Talbot of Ballyconnell. On 9 February 1612, King James issued pardons to ''Mulmory McParlan and Ever McParlan of Cearowmore'' for fighting against the king's forces. Walter Talbot died on 26 June 1625 at Ballyconnell and his son James Talbot succeeded to the Carrowmore lands aged just 10 years. An Inquisition held in Cavan Town on 20 September 1630 stated that Walter Talbot's lands included four polls in ''Carraghmore''. James Talbot married Helen Calvert, the daughter of George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore of Maryland, US, in 1635 and had a son Colonel George Talbot who owned an estate in Cecil County, Maryland which he named Ballyconnell in honour of his native town in Cavan. George Talbot was appointed Surveyor-General of Maryland in 1683. In the aftermath of the Irish Rebellion of 1641, James Talbot's estate in Ballyconnell was confiscated in the Cromwellian Act for the Settlement of Ireland 1652 because he was a Catholic and he was granted an estate in 1655 at Castle Rubey, County Roscommon instead. He died in 1687.
By 1652 the Irish rebels in the Ballyconnell area had been defeated and the area was put under the control of the Cromwellian captain Thomas Gwyllym. He was a native of Glenavy, County Antrim where his father, Rev. Meredith Gwyllym, was vicar of the parishes of Glenavy, Camlin, Tullyrusk, Ballinderry & Magheragall from 1622 until sometime after 1634. Gwyllym's name first appears in the area as the owner in the 1652 Commonwealth Survey, which lists the townland as belonging to ''Captain Gwilliams'' and the tenants as ''Henry McGill and others''. Gwyllym was also a Cavan Commissioner in the 1660 Hearth Money Ordinances and in the 1664 Hearth Money Rolls he has five hearths in Ballyconnell. In the Hearth Money Rolls compiled on 29 September 1663, there were seven Hearth Tax payers in ''Caramore- John O’Flynn, Tirle Magwire, Phillip Brady, Edmond Relly, Hugh Relly, Donoghy O Finegan and William Borke'', all with one hearth and there were five occupiers of ''UpperCaramont- Cormucke O Dany, Tirle O Catany, Shane McKernan, Shane McLanery and Phillip O Relly'' all of whom had one hearth. After the restoration of King Charles II to the throne in 1660, James Talbot tried to have the Ballyconnell estate restored to him but a final grant was made to Thomas Gwyllym in August 1666, which included three parcels of land in ''Carranemore alias Kearrowmore'', comprising 580 acres-32 perches; 192 acres-3 roods-28 perches and 338 acres-2 roods which was unprofitable land. Thomas Gwyllym died in 1681 and his son Colonel Meredith Gwyllym inherited the Ballyconnell estate, including Carrowmore. Colonel Meredith Gwyllym died in 1711 and the Ballyconnell estate passed to his eldest son, Meredith Gwyllym.
A deed dated 2 May 1724 by the aforesaid Meredith Gwyllym includes the townland as ''Carranemore alias Kearowmore''.
The Gwyllym estate was sold for £8,000 in 1724 to Colonel
Alexander Montgomery (1686–1729) of Convoy House,
County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
, M.P. for Donegal Borough 1725 to 1727 & for Donegal County 1727 to 1729.
A lease dated 14 May 1728 by the aforesaid Alexander Montgomery included ''Carranemore alias Kearowmore''.
Montgomery died in 1729 and left the Ballyconnell estate to his nephew George Leslie, who then assumed the name of
George Leslie Montgomery. George Leslie Montgomery was M.P. for
Strabane
Strabane ( ; ) is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
Strabane had a population of 13,172 at the 2011 Census. It lies on the east bank of the River Foyle. It is roughly midway from Omagh, Derry and Letterkenny. The River Foyle marks ...
,
County Tyrone
County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional Counties of Ireland, counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an admini ...
from 1765 to 1768 and for County Cavan from 1770 to 1787, when he died and left the Ballyconnell estate to his son George Montgomery, whose estate was administered by the
Court of Chancery
The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid a slow pace of change and possible harshness (or "inequity") of the Common law#History, common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over ...
as he was a
lunatic
Lunatic is an antiquated term referring to a person who is seen as mentally ill, dangerous, foolish, or crazy—conditions once attributed to "lunacy". The word derives from ''lunaticus'' meaning "of the moon" or "moonstruck".
History
The ter ...
. George Montgomery died in 1841 and his estate went to his Enery cousins of
Bawnboy
Bawnboy () is a small village and townland in a valley at the foot of Slieve Rushen, between Ballyconnell and Swanlinbar, in County Cavan, Ireland.
A synod of the Roman Catholic Provincial Council of Armagh was held in Owengallees, Baunbuidhe ...
. In 1856 they sold the estate to take advantage of its increased value owing to the opening of the
Woodford Canal through the town in the same year. The estate, including Carrowmore, was split up among different purchasers and maps & details of previous leases of the sold parts are still available.
In the Cavan Poll Book of 1761, there were two people registered to vote in Carrowmore in the
Irish general election, 1761
The 1761 Irish general election1 was the first general election to the Irish House of Commons in over thirty years, with the previous general election having taken place in 1727. Despite few constituencies hosting electoral contests, the election ...
: Patrick Hewitt and Robert Holyday. They were each entitled to cast two votes. The four election candidates were
Charles Coote, 1st Earl of Bellomont
Charles Coote, 1st Earl of Bellomont KB PC(I) (6 April 1738 – 20 October 1800), was an Irish peer. He held a senior political position as one of the joint Postmasters General of Ireland. Charles was briefly styled as The 5th Baron Coote bet ...
and Lord Newtownbutler (later
Brinsley Butler, 2nd Earl of Lanesborough
Brinsley Butler, 2nd Earl of Lanesborough, PC (Ire) (4 March 1728 – 24 January 1779), styled The Honourable until 1756 and Lord Newtown-Butler from 1756 to 1768, was an Irish politician and peer.
He was the son of Humphrey Butler, 1st Ea ...
), both of whom were then elected
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for
Cavan County
County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is based on the historic Gaelic territory of East Breffny (''Bréifne' ...
. The losing candidates were
George Montgomery (MP)
George Leslie Montgomery (c. 1727 – March 1787) was an Irish politician.
Montgomery sat as Member of Parliament (MP) for Strabane from 1765 to 1768. He purchased the seat from John McCausland of Strabane for £2,000 after the death of th ...
of
Ballyconnell and
Barry Maxwell, 1st Earl of Farnham
Barry Maxwell, 1st Earl of Farnham PC (Ire) (1723 – 7 October 1800), styled The Honourable Barry Maxwell from 1756 to 1779, was an Irish peer and politician.
Background
He was the son of John Maxwell, 1st Baron Farnham and Judith Barry.
Po ...
. Absence from the poll book either meant a resident did not vote or, more likely, was not a freeholder entitled to vote, which would mean most of the inhabitants of Carrowmore.
The Tithe Applotment Books for 1827 list the following tithepayers in the townland- McGauran, McTeague, Smyth, Brady, Donahey, Hewit, Greg, Netterville, Anderson, Holiday, Christy, Moore, Baxter, Gallagher, Patterson, McGuire, McKernan, Veitch, Kelly, Clerk, Malone, Biggars.
The Ordnance Survey Name Books for 1836 give the following description of the townland- ''Ceathramhadh mhór, 'great quarter'. Property of Montgomery. Rent 16 shillings to £1 per arable acre. The mountain land is free of rent. Plenty of limestone. Lowland is gravelly soil. Produces oats, flax and potatoes. A new and old road passes through it to Swanlinbar. About 3/4 is mountain and pasture, with 30 acres of bog.''
In January 1839 on the
Night of the Big Wind
The Night of the Big Wind ( ga, Oíche na Gaoithe Móire) was a powerful European windstorm that swept across what was then the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, beginning on the afternoon of 6 January 1839, causing severe damage to pr ...
a ghost story occurred in Carrowmore. In the
Dúchas
Dúchas, sometimes Dúchas: The Heritage Service, was an executive agency of the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands of the Government of Ireland responsible for Heritage management, including:
* natural heritage (including ...
Folklore Collection, a story by Mr Thomas O'Reilly, Church Street, Ballyconnell in 1938 gives more details.
The Carrowmore Valuation Office Field books are available for 1840.
A deed dated 1 April 1854 now in the Cavan Archives Service (ref P017/0063) is described as-
''Lease made between William Hamilton Enery, Ballyconnell House, County Cavan, esquire, and Owen Magauran, Carramore, County Cavan, in respect of part of the lands of Mullanacre Upper (Mullinacree Upper), parish of Tomregan, barony of Tullyhaw, County Cavan. Bounded on the north by the large mountain, on the south by the river separating it from Moher, on the east by the river separating it from Carramore and on the west by the road leading to the mountain. Contains 20 acres late Irish plantation measure. Lease to run for the natural lives of Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa, Princess Royal of England, and Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, or term of 31 years, whichever is longer. Annual rent of £3 sterling. Magauran covenants to do suit and service at the Manor of Gwyllym Brooke and perform all lawful customs associated with the Manor.''
Griffith's Valuation
Griffith's Valuation was a boundary and land valuation survey of Ireland completed in 1868.
Griffith's background
Richard John Griffith started to value land in Scotland, where he spent two years in 1806-1807 valuing terrain through the examinati ...
of 1857 lists the landlords of the townland as the Annesley Estate, Harper, Benson, Reilly and McNally & the tenants as McTeague, Reilly, Maguire, Freehill, McGovern, Brady, Donohoe, Benson, Shannon, Kelly, Flynn, Veitch, Emo, Gregg, Biggins, Halliday, McKnight, McNally, Gwynne, Henderson, Netterville, Graham, Bannan and Cairnes.
In the
Dúchas
Dúchas, sometimes Dúchas: The Heritage Service, was an executive agency of the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands of the Government of Ireland responsible for Heritage management, including:
* natural heritage (including ...
Folklore Collection there is a description of Carrowmore in 1938 by Bernard Freehill.
Census
A rare surviving page from the 1851 Census of Ireland lists the household of Peter Magauran of Carrowmore.
In the
1901 census of Ireland, there are twenty-four families listed in the townland.
In the
1911 census of Ireland, there are twenty-one families listed in the townland.
Antiquities
# Parra Chreestha Holy Well (Párc Chríost = Christ's Field or Párc Risteáird = Richard's Field), also called 'Poll na Cluatne' or 'Poll na Cluster' on the border with Derryginny townland. The local tradition is that it was originally situated in Derryginny but a woman washed clothes in it so it moved overnight to Carrowmore. Mass was celebrated there in Penal times.
# Carrowmore Hedge School. In 1835 the headmistress was Fanny Haliday, who taught reading, writing, arithmetic and needlework. There were 42 pupils, 12 boys and 30 girls. The school was supported by the London Hibernian Society and supported by £2 subscriptions and payments of 1s to 1/6d per quarter.
References
External links
The IreAtlas Townland Data Base
{{coord missing, County Cavan
Townlands of County Cavan