Toormakeady or Tourmakeady (, the official name) is a

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 recog ...

in south

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

in the west of

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 located between the shores of

Lough Mask Lough Mask () is a limestone lake of about in Counties Mayo and Galway, Ireland, north of Lough Corrib. Lough Mask is the middle of the three lakes, which empty into the Corrib River, through Galway, into Galway Bay. Lough Carra flows into ...

and the

Partry Mountains The Partry Mountains ( ga, Sliabh Phartraí) is a mountain range in County Mayo on the west coast of Ireland. Geography The highest peak in the Partry Mountains is Maumtrasna which rises to (682m / 2,238ft). The mountain range overlooks Lough M ...

, and covers 66.51 square miles. As at the time of the 2011 census, Toormakeady had a total population of 1,007, having dropped from 1,150 in 1991. Toormakeady is also the name of the principal village in the area. Those parts of Ballinchalla Electoral District in Toormakeady and the whole of the Owenbrin Electoral District in Toormakeady together comprise nearly half of the land area of Toormakeady and were previously parts of County Galway. In 1898 they were transferred to County Mayo. From the time of the Great Famine of the mid-1840s onwards, the Toormakeady area has experienced a high level of emigration. Many descendants of emigrants return every year to find their roots. The genealogical records for this area have been computerised at the South Mayo Family Research Centre in nearby

Ballinrobe Ballinrobe () is a town in County Mayo in Ireland. It is located on the River Robe, which empties into Lough Mask two kilometres to the west. As of the 2016 census, the population was 2,786. History Foundation and development Ballinrobe is con ...

to make the task of tracing roots easier. On 3 May 1921, during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief tha ...

south Mayo

flying column A flying column is a small, independent, military land unit capable of rapid mobility and usually composed of all arms. It is often an ''ad hoc'' unit, formed during the course of operations. The term is usually, though not necessarily, appli ...

of around 30 men together with a small number of men from east Mayo mounted an ambush at Toormakeady. The events of this day have been written about in Donal Buckley's book ''The Battle of Tourmakeady''. The English actor Robert Shaw, best known for his work in '' From Russia with Love'', ''

Jaws Jaws or Jaw may refer to: Anatomy * Jaw, an opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth ** Mandible, the lower jaw Arts, entertainment, and media * Jaws (James Bond), a character in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' and ''Moonraker'' * ...

'' and ''

The Sting ''The Sting'' is a 1973 American caper film set in September 1936, involving a complicated plot by two professional grifters (Paul Newman and Robert Redford) to con a mob boss ( Robert Shaw).''Variety'' film review; December 12, 1973, page ...

'', lived in Drimbawn House, Toormakeady until his death in 1978. Television producer

Máire Ní Thuathail Máire Ní Thuathail (29 July 1959 – 19 September 2016) was an Irish television producer, best known for her lead role in producing the long-running Irish-language soap opera Ros na Rún. She was previously a school teacher. Biography Ní Th ...

was born in Toormakeady in 1959.

References

External links

Toormakeady website Toormakeady Community websiteAudio podcast
excerpt from Michael John Casey's Heritage Tour of Toormakeady. {{Authority control Gaeltacht places in County Mayo Towns and villages in County Mayo Gaeltacht towns and villages Waterfalls of the Republic of Ireland

See also

References

External links