Mutton Island is an uninhabited island in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, off the coast of

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 ...

, about from the mainland. The nearest village is Quilty, which is roughly from the island. It is used mainly for grazing sheep, and is host to several abandoned houses and two forts. There is no public ferry service to the island, on which there is no

jetty A jetty is a structure that projects from land out into water. A jetty may serve as a breakwater, as a walkway, or both; or, in pairs, as a means of constricting a channel. The term derives from the French word ', "thrown", signifying some ...

or boat slipway. It contains no roofed buildings, but there is a limited supply of fresh water.

History

The fortifications on the island were likely constructed by Thomas Burgh around 1702. The island was populated as late as the 1920s and is believed to have been part of the mainland until the year 804.Clare places - Mutton Island
/ref> File:Mutton-island.jpg

References

Islands of County Clare Uninhabited islands of Ireland {{Clare-geo-stub