Aughoose (Irish: Na hEachú[1]) is on the Dún Chiortáin peninsula overlooking the lower reaches of Sruwaddacon Bay (Sruth Fada Conn), and has an area of 898 acres (3.63km2). There was a small chapel along the stream at Lenamore during the 18th century, a rare sight due to the contemporary Penal Laws. Until the 1950s, Aughoose had a dance hall. A lace school was organised by the Congested Districts Board; The schools were at their peak during the World Wars (when they made uniform buttons and other goods for armies serving abroad), later turning to knitted and crocheted goods. The local headquarters of the Lady Dudley Nursing Scheme was in Aughoose during the early 20th century, and the nurses cared for patients throughout the parish. In the early 1970s, the nursing scheme was absorbed into the Health Services. Aughoose is near Bellanaboy and its proposed above-ground Corrib Gas pipeline. Although the people of Aughoose are opposed to the project, a large portion of Lenamore has been sold to Shell.[citation needed]
Bellanaboy (Irish: Béal an Átha Buí[3]) covers an area of 1,050 acres (4.2km2), most of which is now enclosed around a fossil-fuel refinery under heavy security which has been built by Royal Dutch Shell on government, Coillte-controlled conifer plantation land. The townland is at the south-eastern point of the Sruwaddacon Bay estuary. The Aughoose River, also known as the Yellow River, flows through Bellanaboy on its way to Carrowmore Lake, which supplies Erris' drinking water. Along the riverbed is the soft yellow subsoil which gives the townland its name. Bellanaboy has been flooded a number of times, with fatalities.[4]
Carrowteige
Cill Ghallagáin (Kilgalligan), with Portacloy Beach on the bottom left
Carrowteige (Irish: Ceathrú Thaidhg[5]) is a 403-acre (1.63km2)Gaeltacht village near the end of the Dún Chaocháin peninsula. It has a Catholic church, a national school, and a shop. Comhar Dún Chaocháin Teo is based in the village, and marked cliff walks begin there.
Cill Ghallagháin
Cill Ghallagáin[6] (English: Kilgalligan) is on the northern tip of the Dun Chiortáin peninsula, and a small village bears its name. Wild and rugged, it overlooks Broadhaven Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Cill Ghallagáin is noted for its microtoponymy and its seventh-century graveyard on the north side of Sruwaddacon Bay.
Cornboy, also known as Curraunboy, is a coastal townland on the Dún Chaocháin peninsula, covering 2,755 acres (11.15km2). The village centre is inland, near Garter Hill. It had surrounded the old chapel on the hill overlooking Broadhaven Bay, but blowing sand moved residents inland from Cornboy Pier and its sand dunes.
An area known as Sandhills Settlement contains evidence of Iron Age human settlement, possibly cairns and middens, with large sand dunes and sandy beaches. The Gweedaney River rises at Portacloy and flows past the old chapel in the dunes into Sruwaddacon Bay; the modern church is farther inland. Cornboy shares Knockadaff mountain with Garter Hill. Knockadaff was an electoral district of the Belmulletpoor law union and an administrative division of Erris. A 9-kilometre (5.6mi) walking loop climbs Garter Hill through fields and the seashore.[7]
Cornhill
Cornhill (Irish: Gort an Chairn[8]) is a village on Dooncarton Hill, overlooking Sruwaddacon Bay. It has a number of fields for grazing, and the Dooncarton Hill radar tower (widely considered an eyesore) is in front of the village. Many have said that the radar tower is an eyesore and should be taken down but it is still standing. The linear village has about a dozen houses.
Faulagh
Unclassified megalithic tomb, known locally as the Grey Stone, on the northern slope of Faulagh mountain
Faulagh (Irish: Fálach[9]) is a village on the southern slope of the mountain of the same name which overlooks Carrowmore Lake. The 946-acre (3.83km2) village, on the north side of lake, is a remote, largely boggy area. Faulagh has a number of prehistoric megaliths and field systems.
Glenamoy
June 2010 encampment in Glengad, protesting against the Corrib gas project
Glenamoy (Irish: Gleann na Muaidhe[10]) is the general name for nine Kilcommon townlands: Bellagelly North and South, Baralty, Bunalty, Gortleatilla, Srahnaplaia, Pollboy, Lenarevagh and Barroosky. It covers about 16,700 acres (68km2), much of it inaccessible blanket bog interspersed with conifer forests and small lakes. Glenamoy is inland from the parish's coastal townlands. The Glenamoy and Owenmore rivers rise in the nearby mountains; the Owenmore flows into Blacksod Bay, and the Glenamoy into Broadhaven Bay. Lace schools were common in the area,[11] and 19th-century landlords hosted shooting parties for the gentry at several area hunting lodges.
Glengad, also known as Dooncarton (Irish: Gleann an Ghad[12]), is a large townland on the northwestern shore of Sruwaddacon Bay. Its name is derived from willows (gads) from the Cromwellian period when the native Irish were sent "to hell or to Connaught".[This quote needs a citation] The settlers who came to Glengad brought the craft of basket weaving, planting willows in wet ground; willows have grown in the townland's streams ever since. It is a linear village, with houses and farms along the main road. The land was divided by the Irish Land Commission during the early 20th century; each farm is a narrow strip running from the mountain to the sea, a remnant of the rundale system of land division seen in many areas of the parish. Glengad is the hub of much of the Corrib gas controversy.
Glinsk (Irish: Glinsce[13]) is a remote townland. Glinsk Mountain is covered with blanket bog and rises steeply to overlook Broadhaven Bay and the Stags of Broadhaven from cliffs along Benwee Head. The ruins of a 1798 English watchtower are on the mountain's southern slope. Covering an area of 2,054 acres (8.31km2), the townland is presently uninhabited; the road past it was first tarred in 2004.
Gortbrack
Gortbrack (Irish: An Gort Breac[14]), occupying a large section of the south side of the western peninsula, covers an area of 1,070 acres (4.3km2) in size. The Owenduff River flows through the townland, which is of archaeological interest due to its location along the southern coastal slopes and its numerous Neolithic megaliths.
Gortmelia
Inver
Gortmelia (Irish: Gort Meille[15]), on the west side of the Dún Chiortáin peninsula overlooking Inver Bay, covers an area of 1,237 acres (5.01km2). In the Tithe Composition Book of 1834, Gortmelia was divided into three parts: Gortmelia Mills, Gortmellia Gallagher and Rookstown. In the later rateable valuation books, the three areas are called Gortmellia Mills, Gortmellia Gallagher and Gortmellia Houston. The townland presently has four areas: Gortmellia, Parkbaun, Ballur and Ballyhonry.
Inver (Irish: An tInbhear[16]), covering an area of 663 acres (2.68km2), is on the western side of the Dún Chiortán peninsula overlooking Trá Kirtaan (Chiortáin's Beach). The Owenduff River flows through Knocknalower and Inver to Broadhaven Bay. In 1636, Michael Cormuck lived in Inver Castle near the shore. Although Cormuck claimed much of the land in Erris, the Protestant bishop had (according to the Stafford Inquisition of Mayo, which investigated early-17th-century land ownership in the county) the "right of the sea all around Erris".[17][18][19] The castle had crumbled by 1802, and little remains except its gateposts. Inver features in the story of the Táin Bó Flidhais; a mound is said to be the burial site of Flidhais' husband when he was stranded by Chiortain, for whom the peninsula is named.
On the Dún Chiortáin peninsula and also known as Poll a tSómais,[20] Pollatomais, Kilcommon, Pullathomas (the most common spelling) and Pollatomish, Pollathomas covers an area of 673 acres (2.72km2). The village straddles a small crossroads and overlooks Sruwaddacon Bay. When the Anglo-Normans came to Ireland, several slayings were recorded by the native tribespeople.[21] In 1585, during the Reformation, Pollathomas became the property of the Protestant Bishop of Killala and Michael Cormuck (who lived in Inver Castle) was the lessee. Several religious settlers, including the Augustinians, were driven out of the area during the 17th-century Penal Laws period. In 1770, Pollathomas and Glengad were leased from the Protestant Bishop by the O'Donels of Termon. Due to its increased population, Pollathomas had several famines during the early 19th century before the 1845-47 Great Famine. During that famine, residents ate seaweed and seagull eggs;[22] landlord James O'Donel was attacked at a local lodge, and trained crows to protect his property.[23]
Portacloy
Beach at PortacloyHayfield sign in RossportRossport pier
Portacloy (Irish: Port an Chlóidh[24] on the north of the Dún Chaocháin peninsula, covers an area of 922 acres (3.73km2) on the western boundary of Porturlin. The townland is on a horseshoe-shaped bay with two piers and several cliff walks. With the nearest shop in Carrowteige, it has the remnants of a promontory fort and an English watchtower here. In 1909, a pier and breakwater were built to facilitate a fish-curing station built several years earlier to process mackerel. During the 1960s, a second small pier was built.
Porturlin (Irish: Port Durlainne[25]), on the east coast of the Dún Chaocháin peninsula, covers an area of 2,120 acres (8.6km2). During the Great Famine, Richard Webb (who was bringing relief from the Society of Friends) called it the finest fishing grounds in Mayo but added: "The only access by land is over a high and boggy mountain, so wet and swampy that it is difficult to reach it even in summer. There is probably not in Ireland a cluster of human habitations so completely secluded from easy access...".[26] When William Bald improved the Erris area in 1835, he recommended building piers in Porturlin and Portacloy to aid local fishermen. During the 1840s, roads were built in the area. In 1886, the Roads and Harbour Commission built a 210-foot (64m)landing at a cost of £204. The Congested Districts Board for Ireland erected a curing station for herring and mackerel in 1894. By 1952 the old pier had fallen into disrepair, and it was replaced in 1965 by the Mayo County Council. In June 2009, fisherman Pat O'Donnell reported that his boat was sunk by armed men allegedly connected to the Corrib gas project.[27]
Rossport (Irish: Ros Dumhach[28]), covering an area of 1,446 acres (5.85km2), has a national school and the Gaelic-speaking Colaiste Chomain secondary school. The construction of a bridge connecting Rossport and the Dún Chiortáin peninsula has been proposed. The tides of Sruwaddacon Bay are hazardous, as described in a song lyric:
The Rossport Ferry and its rapid current The second strongest that our State possesses[citation needed]
Srahataggle (Irish: Sraith an tSeagail[29]), covering an area of 4,167 acres (16.86km2), is a remote village; in 2004, a road connecting it to Belderrig was tarred for the first time. The Western People reported during the early 1950s, "Remote as these habitations may appear to many, there is no lack of worldly knowledge and cultural attainments and many of their sons and daughters have risen to important posts in countries beyond the seas".[full citation needed]
Related Research Articles
Ceathrú Thaidhg is a Gaeltacht village and townland on the Dún Chaocháin peninsula in northwestern County Mayo, Ireland. It is within Kilcommon parish in the barony of Erris. Carrowteige is a relatively small townland with an acreage of just 403 acres (1.63 km2).
Erris is a barony in northwestern County Mayo in Ireland consisting of over 230,452 acres (932.61 km2), much of which is mountainous blanket bog. It has extensive sea coasts along its west and north boundaries. The main towns are Belmullet and Bangor Erris. The name Erris derives from the Irish 'Iar Ros' meaning 'western promontory'. The full name is the Iorrais Domnann, after the Fir Bolg tribe, the Fir Domnann. To its north is the wild Atlantic Ocean and the bays of Broadhaven and Sruth Fada Conn and to its west is Blacksod Bay. Its main promontories are the Doohoma Peninsula, Mullet Peninsula, Erris Head, the Dún Chiortáin and Dún Chaocháin peninsulas and Benwee Head.
Rossport is a Gaeltacht village and townland in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. It is within the barony of Erris and parish of Kilcommon. It lies close to the mouth of Broadhaven Bay on the headland where the confluence of three rivers meet flowing into Sruth Fada Conn Bay. Its area is 1,446 acres (5.85 km2).
Cill Ghallagáin is a small Gaeltacht coastal townland and village in the northwest corner of Kilcommon Parish, County Mayo, Republic of Ireland, an area of 345 hectares in size. Off the northern coast of this townland lies Kid Island, an island of 13 hectares rising on steep cliffs to a height of 95 metres (311 ft) above sea level. The island is used for grazing sheep in the summer months. Kilcommon Parish consists of two peninsulas – Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin, to the west.
Glenamoy is a village in the civil parish of Kilcommon, Erris in the northern part of County Mayo in Ireland. The R314 road passes through Glenamoy.
Shell to Sea is an Irish organisation based in the parish of Kilcommon in Erris, County Mayo.
Glencastle is a small village, electoral division and townland in the northwest of County Mayo, Ireland. The townland of Glencastle has an area of approximately 2,337 acres (9.46 km2).
The Corrib gas controversy was a social protest campaign against the Corrib gas project in north-western County Mayo, Ireland. The project involves the processing of gas onshore through Broadhaven and Sruth Fada Conn bays in Kilcommon. Originally spearheaded by local advocacy groups Shell to Sea and Pobal Chill Chomáin, the protests later grew to national prominence due to the heavy-handed approach taken by the Garda Síochána and private security firms towards the protestors. The project was jointly managed by Shell E&P Ireland and Statoil Exploration Limited, and supported by the Irish government.
Glengad is a Gaeltacht village in the parish of Kilcommon in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. It is also known as Dooncarton, a name which comes from an Iron Age tribal chieftain called Ciortan, a character who appears in the Ulster Cycle legend of the Táin Bó Flidhais.
Kilcommon is a civil parish in Erris, north County Mayo, consisting of two large peninsulas; Dún Chaocháin and Dún Chiortáin. It consists of 37 townlands, some of which are so remote that they have no inhabitants. Habitation is concentrated mainly along both sides of Sruwaddacon Bay which flows into Broadhaven Bay, in villages including Glengad, Pollathomas, Rossport, Inver and Carrowteige, and in the Glenamoy area further inland.
Broadhaven Bay is a natural bay of the Atlantic Ocean on the northwestern coast of County Mayo, Ireland. The opening of the bay faces northward, stretching 8.6 km between Erris Head in the west and Kid Island/Oileán Mionnán in the east.
Sruwaddacon Bay is a tidal estuary which runs through the middle of the Gaeltacht Kilcommon parish in Erris, County Mayo, Ireland. It is of historical importance in Irish legend, an important marine habitat, an E.U. Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and an EU Special Protected Area. Its translated name in English, "Stream of the Long Hound", reflects its general shape. It enters the Atlantic Ocean through Broadhaven Bay, another Special Area of Conservation.
Carrowmore Lake is situated in the parishes of Belmullet, Kiltane and Kilcommon Erris, County Mayo between the villages of Bangor Erris and Barnatra at the southern end of Broadhaven Bay. The freshwater lake is over 4 miles (6 km) long and almost 3 miles (5 km) wide at its widest point. Glencullen's two townlands line its eastern shore and Rathmorgan and the Knocknascollop mountains rise up along its western shores. Carrowmore is not a deep lake and it provides the drinking water for the whole of the Erris area. It is fed by the Carrowmore River and drains into the Owenmore River on its way to Blacksod Bay. The lake is designated as a S.P.A. in E.U. law and also as 000476 Complex S.A.C..
Táin Bó Flidhais, also known as the Mayo Táin, is a tale from the Ulster Cycle of early Irish literature. It is one of a group of works known as Táin Bó, or "cattle raid" stories, the best known of which is Táin Bó Cúailnge. Táin Bó Flidhais survives in two forms, a short version from the Old Irish period and a longer version found in the 15th century Glenmasan manuscript, which is held in the Advocates Library in Edinburgh. It is believed to be a copy of an earlier manuscript from the 12th century. The early version of Táin Bó Flidhais predates the Táin Bó Cúailnge. It is named for the heroine of the tale, Flidais.
Portacloy is a Gaeltacht village and townland in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. In the barony of Erris and parish of Kilcommon, it is on the north of the Dún Chaocháin peninsula. The townland is on a horseshoe-shaped bay with two piers and several cliff walks. Portacloy townland has an area of approximately 995.3 acres (4.0277 km2) and, as of 2011, had a population of 28.
The Glenamoy River is a river in north County Mayo, in the northwest of Ireland. It contains sea trout and salmon.
Pullathomas is a Gaeltacht village and townland in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. In the barony of Erris and parish of Kilcommon, it lies close to the mouth of Broadhaven Bay next to Sruwaddacon Bay. Pullathomas townland has an area of approximately 685.6 acres (2.8 km2) and, as of 2011, had a population of 100 people.
Porturlin is a Gaeltacht village and townland on the northwest coast of County Mayo, Ireland. It is situated in the barony of Erris and parish of Kilcommon. Porturlin townland has an area of approximately 2261.5 acres (9.1 km2) and, as of 2011, had a population of 59 people.
Inver is a Gaeltacht village and townland in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. It is situated in the barony of Erris and civil parish of Kilcommon, bordering Broadhaven Bay. Inver townland has an area of approximately 671.6 acres acres and, as of 2011, had a population of 114 people.
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