The Latoon fairy bush, or Latoon fairy tree, is a whitethorn tree situated beside the M18 motorway in Latoon, County Clare, Ireland[1][2] that was the subject of a preservation campaign led by Irish folklorist Eddie Lenihan in 1999 to save it from being cut down when the motorway was being built.[3] According to Lenihan, the tree is an "important meeting place for supernatural forces of the region".[4]
The campaign purportedly held up the construction of the motorway for 10 years.[5] Lenihan warned that its destruction could have resulted in "death and great misfortune for motorists travelling on the proposed new road".[4] The tree was eventually spared in May 1999, and still grows in situ as of 2024.[6][3]
Location
The tree is situated on a gently sloping strip of median land between the M18 motorway and a northbound slip road leading onto the motorway, situated in the townland of Latoon South.[7] The section of the M18 motorway beside which the tree grows is colloquially known as either the Newmarket-on-Fergus bypass,[2] or the Ennis bypass, as the two bypasses join into one another in the region of the fairy bush.[4]
Fairy sites
Numerous sites exist with folkloric "fairy" significance in the Irish landscape. According to The New York Times, there are "perhaps 150 fairy-sacred locations in Ireland", some of which are bushes and some called 'fairy forts' (correctly known as ringforts) consisting of the "remains of stone or wooden forts which housed an extended family in early medieval times".[8] Tradition dictates that they should never be moved or harmed, as Lenihan recounts:
"If you move or destroy a fairy fort or Celtic ringfort, you'll be in trouble and you're creating trouble. Never shift a fairy bush. It belongs where it is and nowhere else".[2]
Lenihan, one of Ireland's best known folklorists and story-tellers (seanchaí),[6][3] describes a 'fairy bush' as being "a favourite meeting place for supernatural folk, dating back to the mist of pre-Celtic history".[9] According to the 2013 publication Heritage Trees of Ireland, Ireland hosts more sacred trees than any other country in Europe.[10]
History
The Latoon fairy bush was known to Lenihan prior to the planned construction of the road, owing to a local farmer who had once pointed it out to him, as he had previously seen "white fairy blood" on the grass around the base of the tree.[9] On another occasion, a farmer had told him how he once saw "lumps of green stuff with the consistency of liver"[11] around the tree, indicating "that there had been fairy battles around the bush the night before." Lenihan recognised the tree as a fairy bush, and concluded that it must have been "significant for them (as) a meeting point for Munster fairies to battle with Connaught fairies".[2]
According to a 2019 article on TheJournal.ie, Lenihan, then a 49-year-old secondary school teacher (in 1999),[9] was subsequently "passing the bush one evening on the way home from teaching in Limerick when he saw machinery and road workers beside it".[2] "I knew nothing about the road being built, and asked them what would happen to the bush," he said. After being informed that the bush would be destroyed, Lenihan decided that he had to fight for its preservation, and wrote to the Clare Champion and Clare FM radio station warning of the possible consequences that its removal would bring.[2]
Lenihan subsequently wrote a letter which was published in The Irish Times and picked up by a New York Times correspondent.[2][9] The piece in the New York Times, dated 16 June 1999, noted that the engineer in charge of the bypass had been warned of the possible effects that could transpire if the 15-foot-high bush were to be moved or destroyed and had confirmed that he would "think it over".[9]
The author of the New York Times article got in touch with the Folklore department at University College Dublin who agreed with Lenihan's sentiment that "while the people of modern Ireland scoff publicly at fairy stories, ashamed to admit their beliefs and superstitions to strangers, there is still strong vestigial belief in the fairies".[9] Bairbre Ní Fhloinn, an archivist and fairy story collector at the same department added:
"It's a passive belief, and it includes a lot of young, well-educated people. There is a reluctance to interfere in things which have an association with the fairies or with the other world. We would all rather be safe than sorry".[9]
Including the piece in the New York Times, the story was also picked up by the BBC, CNN, French and Swedish news channels. As Lenihan contends "By that stage, they couldn’t demolish the bush."[2]
In an Irish Times article dated 29 May 1999, it was noted that "during the last couple of months", Clare County Council had been carrying out archaeological works on the lands surrounding the bush as part of preparatory works for the bypass. The bush, however, had remained untouched, in deference to Lenihan's campaign.[3] The previous day, the county engineer Tom Carey had confirmed to the Irish Times that "after surveying the fairy thorn bush in the detailed plans and drawings prepared, the council has found that it would now be able to incorporate the "sceach" (fairy bush) into the proposed bypass".[3] A protective fence was subsequently constructed around the fairy tree.[12]
Lenihan was recorded as being "very glad" with the result, but was disappointed at being unable to stop the council from clearing trees at a ringfort as part of the same bypass plans.[3] A number of accidents subsequently befell the workers who cut down the trees.[13]
Typical view of countryside from the M18. Note: Latoon fairy bush is not pictured
In March 2014, Irish author Manchán Magan wrote a newspaper column[4] on the subject of fairies in which he contacted the National Roads Authority with a request for information regarding the organisation's policy on disturbing these sites, which had come into question during the construction of the N3 motorway near the ancient ceremonial site of the Hill of Tara from 2007 to 2010.[14][15]
In the article, Magan also referred to the "fairy controversy" that had occurred with the Latoon fairy bush in 1999, in which "the €90 million road scheme" had to be rerouted to bypass the tree.[4] Magan noted that Lenihan had tried to bring the issue to court at the time, and when contacted for a statement, Jeanne McDonagh, spokeswoman for the Bar Council of Ireland, clarified that "With a membership of more than 2,300 barristers, the Bar Council had difficulty getting consensus as to the existence of fairies".[4]
Four days after the publication of Magan's article, Tom Carey, former county engineer for County Clare from 1996 to 2008, wrote in to the letters page of The Irish Times to confirm that the motorway had categorically not been "rerouted to avoid the "sgeach" or fairy bush".[6] During his tenure, Carey had overseen the construction of the M18 motorway, and confirmed to readers:
"...when the controversy arose, nobody knew the precise co-ordinates of the bush, except that it was fairly close to the carriageway under construction. When its precise co-ordinates were determined, it was found that the bush occupied a spot which lay between the main carriageway and the northbound slip road at the Latoon interchange, so we fenced it in and it did not interfere with construction works".[6]
Carey confirmed that "later attempts to vandalise (the tree) in 2002[16][5] by unknowns with a chainsaw did not succeed, thankfully, and it co-exists today with the motorway".[6] As of 2024, the bush still stands along the bypass, and owing to its previous worldwide coverage, and folkloric significance, has led to it becoming somewhat of a tourist attraction in the region.[2][17]
As of 2021, Magan still contended that the National Road Authority diverted the motorway around the bush on purpose, judging from the overpass where "you can see how the route kinks slightly to the east to avoid" the bush, which stands "proudly between the northbound lane of the motorway and the on-ramp on the western side."[8] Lenihan himself mentioned in a 2009 interview that the NRA "were forced to bend the road a little bit around the bush, which they did, which is fine. There was no need to demolish the bush at all. Just adjust the road a little bit and landscape the bush into the roadway".[11]
See also
A similar case in Annacloy, Northern Ireland in 1964 in which the existence of a "fairy thorn" delayed the construction of a road[18]
A fairy tree in Ardagh, County Longford that gained national attention in 1983 when it was featured on an episode of The Live Mike presented by Mike Murphy.[19] The owner of the land on which the tree grew, Jim Sweeney, was convinced that if the tree were to fall over, he would have "less than one week to live".[19]
A fairy tree in 1969 in Ballintra, County Donegal that was due to be cut down to facilitate road widening until local outcry forced the council to reroute the road[20]
A fairy tree was reputedly cut down during the construction of the DeLorean Motor Company factory in Dunmurry, Belfast, whose failure just two years later[21] was attributed by some to the cutting of the tree[18][22]
St Kieran's Bush, a 'rag tree' named after the fifth century Ciarán of Saigir in Clareen, County Offaly was saved from destruction as part of a road widening scheme after local people objected[23]
Fairy Bridge on the Isle of Man, a small bridge with the tradition that passers-by must greet the fairies as they cross it, or they will suffer bad luck
Related Research Articles
The M7 motorway is a motorway in Ireland. The motorway runs continuously from the outskirts of Naas in County Kildare to Rossbrien on the outskirts of Limerick city. The M7 forms part of the Dublin to Limerick N7 national primary road. The section of the motorway bypassing Naas, an 8 km stretch, was the first section of motorway to open in Ireland, in 1983. Following substantial works to extend the M7 to Limerick, by the end of 2010, the motorway replaced all of the old single-carriageway N7 route which is now designated as R445. At 166.5 km, the M7 is the longest motorway in Ireland.
Gort is a town of around 2,800 inhabitants in County Galway in the west of Ireland. Located near the border with County Clare, the town lies between the Burren and the Slieve Aughty and is served by the R458 and R460 regional roads, which connect to the M18 motorway.
National Development Plan is the title given by the Irish Government to a scheme of organised large-scale expenditure on (mainly) national infrastructure. The first five-year plan ran from 1988 to 1993, the second was a six-year plan from 1994 to 1999 and the third ran as a seven-year plan from 2000 to 2006. A fourth National Development Plan ran from 2007 to 2011. The main elements of the third plan were the development of a national motorway network between the major cities in Ireland. The upgrading of the rail network was a secondary scheme.
The N4 road is a national primary road in Ireland, running from Dublin to the northwest of Ireland and Sligo town. The M6 to Galway diverges from this route after Kinnegad, while the N5 to Westport diverges at Longford town. Most sections of the N4 that are motorway-standard are designated the M4 motorway.
Newmarket-on-Fergus, historically known as Corracatlin, is a town in County Clare, Ireland. It is 13 kilometres from Ennis, 8 kilometres from Shannon Airport, and 24 kilometres from Limerick.
Events from the year 1999 in Ireland.
The N6 road is a national primary road in Ireland from junction 11 on the M4 motorway at Kinnegad to Galway city. The N6 and N4 form a continuous motorway or dual carriageway from Dublin city centre to Galway City passing in an east–west direction through the midlands of Ireland. Most of the road is motorway standard with the exception of the Athlone bypass and stretches of urban road in Galway City, which are the only sections of the road that remain designated as N6 dual carriageway. There is one toll on the road outside Galway city. Major upgrades to the road were completed in December 2009 completing the first intercity motorway/dual carriageway in Ireland and the New Junctions of M6 are built and will be 164 km.
The N17 road is a national primary road in Ireland, and is part of the Atlantic Corridor route. It begins in County Galway and ends in County Sligo. On 27 September 2017 the southern, Tuam–Galway, section was upgraded to motorway status and designated M17.
The N18 road is a national primary road in Ireland, connecting the cities of Limerick and Galway. Ennis and Gort are two major towns on the route, and Shannon Airport is reached via the connecting N19. The west coast route continues on to Sligo as the N17. The section from Limerick to the N19 junction forms part of European route E20, and the entire route is part of the proposed Atlantic Corridor. The section of motorway from Shannon to Claregalway is designated the M18 motorway. The tolled Limerick Tunnel forms part of the route.
The N20 road is a national primary road in Ireland, connecting the cities of Cork and Limerick. Buttevant, Croom, Charleville, Mallow and Blarney are major towns along the route. A short section of the route is motorway standard and is designated as the M20 Motorway.
Edmund Lenihan, known as Eddie Lenihan, is an Irish author, storyteller, lecturer and broadcaster. He is one of the few practising seanchaithe remaining in Ireland. He has been called "one of the greatest of Irish story-tellers", "a national treasure" and an "absolute legend."
Fairy forts are the remains of stone circles, ringforts, hillforts, or other circular prehistoric dwellings in Ireland. From possibly the late Iron Age to early Christian times, people built circular structures with earth banks or ditches. These were sometimes topped with wooden palisades and wooden framed buildings. As the dwellings were not durable, only vague circular marks often remained in the landscape. The remains of these structures, in conjunction with the vegetation around them, are associated with local traditions and folklore, perhaps involving fairies or other supposed supernatural entities, who would "defend" the structures from destruction by builders or farmers.
No Béarla is a four-part documentary style programme broadcast on Irish language television channel TG4 and produced by Dearg Films RTÉ/TG4. It follows presenter Manchán Magan as he journeys throughout Ireland attempting to show that Irish is spoken only by a minority of the population.
The N66 road was a national secondary road in Ireland.
The Atlantic corridor or Atlantic motorway is a proposed road project in Ireland. The scheme, announced in 2005, was intended to link Waterford in the South-East to Letterkenny in the North-West via motorway or dual carriageway by 2015. However, in part due to the post-2008 Irish economic downturn, major sections of the roadway were delayed or cancelled.
The M8 motorway is an inter-urban motorway in Ireland, which forms part of the motorway from the capital Dublin to Cork city. The 149 km motorway commences in the townland of Aghaboe, County Laois and runs through the counties of Kilkenny, Tipperary and Limerick, terminating at the Dunkettle interchange in Cork City. First called for in the Road Needs Study (1998), it was later incorporated into the National Development Plan (2000–2006) and later still formed part of the Irish Government's Transport 21 plan for infrastructural development. The majority of the M8 (115 km) was built between 2006 and 2010. On 28 May 2010, the motorway was completed and had replaced almost all of the single-carriageway N8 except for a short section of urban road in Cork City.
Manchán Magan is an Irish writer, traveller, author, and television programme maker.
In Ireland, the highest category of road is a motorway, indicated by the prefix M followed by a one- or two-digit number. The motorway network consists entirely of motorway-grade dual carriageways and is largely focused upon Dublin. There are also several three-lane motorways, while Ireland's busiest road, the M50, incorporates four-lane, five-lane, and six-lane stretches.
The M18 motorway is an inter-urban motorway in Ireland, forming part of the Limerick, Ennis to Galway national primary road, which, in turn, forms part of the Atlantic Corridor called for as part of the Transport 21 project.
Crusheen is a small village in County Clare, Ireland, in the civil parish of Crusheen (Inchicronan).
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
