Carrigans ()
is a village in The Laggan, a district in the east of
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 ...
, Ireland. The village is located on the
R236 regional road only a short distance from the
River Foyle
The River Foyle () is a river in west Ulster in the northwest of the island of Ireland, which flows from the confluence of the rivers Finn and Mourne at the towns of Lifford in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland, and Strabane in County Ty ...
.
History
Carrigans was at one time the centre of a major flax and linen producing area, possessing one of the largest flax mills in County Donegal, before the demise of the flax industry in the 1950s. Commercial salmon fishing was also a major employer in the past.
Killea (St. Fiach's) Parish Church (
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 ...
) is in the village of Carrigans.
Carrigans once had a railway station, the village being served by the
Great Northern Railway, which closed in 1965.
The
Bangalore torpedo
A Bangalore torpedo is an explosive charge placed within one or several connected tubes. It is used by combat engineers to clear obstacles that would otherwise require them to approach directly, possibly under fire. It is sometimes colloquially ...
, an explosive device used in many conflicts, was invented by Captain (later Colonel) McClintock, of Dunmore, Carrigans.
Carrigans was one of several Protestant villages in eastern Donegal that would have been transferred to Northern Ireland, had the recommendations of the
Irish Boundary Commission
The Irish Boundary Commission () met in 1924–25 to decide on the precise delineation of the border between the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland. The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty, which ended the Irish War of Independence, provided for such a c ...
been enacted in 1925.
Notable residents
* Dunmore House, on the edge of the village, was formerly the home of the McClintock dynasty, an
Ulster-Scots family. It is now owned by
Sir John McFarland, 3rd
Bt.
*
Sir Jim Starritt, a former Deputy Commissioner of the
Metropolitan Police
The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...
, was born in Carrigans.
* The writer
Dame Agatha Christie visited Carrigans on a few occasions, as a guest of the McClintocks of Dunmore, to whom she was related through marriage.
See also
*
List of populated places in Ireland
External links
Official site
References
{{County Donegal
Towns and villages in County Donegal