Kilmihil () is a village in the Barony of Clonderlaw, west

County Clare County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,81 ...

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 ...

. It is also a

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 authorit ...

and an

ecclesiastical parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe. The area was officially classified as part of the West Clare

Gaeltacht ( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially reco ...

; an Irish-speaking community; until 1956. St Michael's Shrine Kilmihil Co Clare

History

It is believed that St. Michael's Church was founded by St. Senan around 530AD. He dedicated this church to St. Michael. For centuries it became a place of pilgrimage to St. Michael, especially in September, as his feast day is on September 29. In 1937, the Curate of the parish, Fr. Patrick O’Reilly, organised the improvement of the well, and the surrounding area. The well is now enclosed, and over this building is the Statue of St. Michael, enclosed in glass. Tradition credits the founding of a church here to St. Senan, in honour of Michael the Archangel. During the reign of Pope Gelasius I, (AD 492-496), an apparition of the Archangel was reported to have taken place on the summit of Mt. Garganus, in Apulia, in Italy. This apparition report, and the founding of the church in Kilmihil, both took place during St. Senan's lifetime (488 – 554 AD). After visiting Rome about 530 AD, he returned to Ireland, wishing to foster devotion to Michael. While travelling from Scattery Island to Doolough, he stopped in Kilmihil, where he founded the church.

Amenities

The village has two grocery stores, a pharmacy, four pubs, a post office, and butcher's shop. Other amenities are the credit union, library, garage, doctors health Centre, creche, retirement village, church, and a community centre.. There is a primary school and a secondary school (St. Michaels Community College) in the village and a further primary school in the townland of Cahermurphy.

Sport

Kilmihil GAA club won the

Clare Senior Football Championship The Clare Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic Athletic Association club competition organised by Clare GAA between the top twelve gaelic football clubs in County Clare, Ireland. The winners represent the county in the Munster Senior ...

in 1980, its sole victory in the championship's history. Kilmihil's soccer club is named St. Pat's. Olympians Thomas O'Donahue and Michael Ryan were born in Kilmihil. Kilmihil Athletic Club founded in 1942 is one of the oldest active athletics clubs in County Clare.. Clare senior football team manager Colm Collins is from Kilmihil.

Events

Kilmihil conducts an annual "Festival of Fun" every year over the August Bank Holiday weekend. It includes a parade, a vintage rally, a raft race on Knockalough Lake and various other activities.

Parishes

The Catholic parish of Kilmihil is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe. The parish church is St Michael's, Kilmihil. Kilmihil is one of the larger parishes in West Clare. It is well known for its Holy

Shrine A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon, or similar figure of respect, wherein they ...

to St Michael, which attracts pilgrims due to its ''holy'' water. The

is part of the historical barony of Clonderalaw. There are 22 townlands in the civil parish. The townlands are Ahaga, Ballydineen, Boulynameal, Carraige, Cahercanavan, Cahermurphy, Castlepark, Cloonakilla, Cragg, Glenmore, Greygrove, Kiltumper, Knockalough, Knockmore, Lack East, Lack West, Lacken, Lietrim, Lissenair, Sorrel Island, Shyan.

In popular culture

Kilmihil is mentioned in several books. ''O Come Ye Back to Ireland: Our First Year in County Clare'', a memoir in which Niall Williams and Christine Breen, describe an Irish/American couple's move from New York back to the cottage of their forebears. (and subsequent books ''When Summer's in the Meadow'' and ''The Luck of the Irish''). Kilmihil and environs are also the backdrop for the ''Born In'' trilogy by Nora Roberts.

References

{{Coord, 52, 43, 17.18, N, 9, 19, 14.3, W, scale:12500_type:city_region:IE, display=title Towns and villages in County Clare Civil parishes of County Clare Parishes of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe