Castlegregory (, meaning "Griaire's Castle") is a village in

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. It is situated on the north side of the Dingle Peninsula, halfway between Tralee and Dingle. As of the 2016 Census, Castlegregory had a population of 250. Castlegregory was named after a castle built by Gregory Hoare in the 16th century. It is the principal village in Lettragh, the name given to the northern side of the Dingle Peninsula.

Geography

The village is located at the foot of a sandy peninsula called the Maharees separating

Brandon Bay Cé Bhréannain or Bréanainn (anglicized as Brandon) is a Gaeltacht village on the northern coast of the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. It lies directly north of Dingle, at the foot of Mount Brandon and on the shores of Brandon Bay ...

to the west from Tralee Bay on the east. Off the peninsula are a number of small islands, called the Seven Hoggs, or the Maharee Islands. A small fishing harbour is located at

Fahamore Fahamore () is a townland and small hamlet/village on the Maharees peninsula in County Kerry. It consists of about 50 houses and one pub, Spillane's. Fahamore was historically much more populated than it is now as evidenced by two old schoolhou ...

on Scraggane Bay, about 5 km outside the village at the tip of the Maharees peninsula. The village is surrounded by the mountains of the Dingle peninsula and overlooked directly by

Beenoskee Beenoskee or Benoskee () is a 826 m (2,710 ft) mountain on the Dingle Peninsula in Kerry, Ireland. Geography Beenoskee is part of the Dingle Mountains, and is the highest of the "Central Dingle" group and the 28th highest in Ireland. I ...

and Stradbally Mountains. To the west is

Mount Brandon Mount Brandon or Brandon (), at , is one of the ten highest peaks in Ireland, being the 8th–highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin list, and the 9th–highest on the Vandeleur-Lynam list. Brandon is the highest Irish mountain outside the Ma ...

. Castlegregory is also the name of a Roman Catholic parish that includes parts of the northeast area of the Dingle Peninsula and is served by two churches. The village is a tourist destination and it is near to a number of beaches located on the Maharees peninsula. Castlegregory Golf and Fishing Club, a nine-hole links golf course, is located to the west of the village on the shores of Lough Gill.

History

On the largest of the

Magharee Islands The Magharee Islands ( gle, Na Machairí), also known as "The Seven Hogs", are a group of uninhabited islands located off Rough Point at the northern tip of the Magharee Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. The islands, which are part of the pa ...

, Illauntannig ( Irish ''Oileán tSeanaigh'') are the ruins of a 7th-century monastic site founded by St Senach. On this site there are two oratories, three beehive (or Clochan) huts, and three examples of a

leacht A leacht (plural: leachta) is a small square or rectangular stone structure often found in Early Irish Christian places of worship. They are typically made from rough, un mortared stones, and are most often found in monasteries on island off the w ...

(or altar).

Local events

Castlegregory Pattern Day was traditionally celebrated on 15 August, when the tradition is to eat locally-made mutton pies. In recent years it has been expanded into a three-day summer festival. Wren's Day on 26 December is also celebrated. The traditional straw dresses have given way to pyjamas, curtains, Halloween masks, and Christmas decorations, but there is still traditional Irish music to be heard.

Sport

Castlegregory GAA Club was first known as Castlegregory Allen, named after William Allen, one of the Manchester Martyrs. The club took part in the first Kerry County Championship played in 1889. For over 40 years football was played on a pitch with a 21 feet gradient from top to bottom, however, a new ground was opened on 17 May 2003.

Transport

Castlegregory was the terminus of a branch line of the Tralee and Dingle Light Railway. The railway station opened on 1 April 1891, and closed for passenger traffic on 17 April 1939. It connected to the main Tralee - Dingle route at Castlegregory Junction (near Camp). While this main route closure stopped passenger traffic, it was to remain open for a once-daily goods train until 1947, after which nothing but a monthly Tralee - Dingle cattle train operated until the main line's final closure in 1953.

References