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The
parishes of Monaghan and a wee bit of their history
Co.
Monaghan forms by far the greater part of the south-eastern
half of the Diocese of Clogher and there are currently twenty
parishes within the county boundaries, although there were
at least three more than this a few decades ago. In a recent
stream-liningš process, a number of smaller parishes have
been amalgamated and this scenario is likely to continue
in the foreseeable future. Taking them in alphabetical order,
a little bit of their history would read as follows:-
Aughnamullen East:- Once united with Aughnamullen West,
this parish is now simply known as Aughnamullen. It was
for years one of the most organised industrial areas of
the county, with the mills at Creeve and Laragh being quite
famous. It still boasts of much industry, with the Lakeland
Dairies at Lough Egish being well-known nation-wide and
even further afield. One of its most famous sons was Gen.
Eoin O’Duffy, born at Cargaghdoo in 1892, he was for
many years secretary of the Ulster GAA Council and was also
very prominent with the Volunteers during the War of Independence,
when he proved himself a superb organiser and a constant
thorn in the side of British occupying forces. He later
became Garda Commissioner and was also very prominent in
Fine Gael. He led the Irish Brigade in Franco’s army
during the Spanish Civil War. The Siege of Bellatrain RIC
Barracks was one of the most important events during the
War of Independence.
Aughnamullen West:- Better known as Latton, it is the resting
place of one of Monaghan’s greatest footballers, Vincent
O’Duffy. Few realise it, but the popular ballad ‘The
Rocks of Bawn’, applies to this parish. Senator Billy
Fox, former TD, who was shot here during the ‘Troubles’
is remembered in the Senator Billy Fox Memorial Park. One
of its most famous sons was Dr. J.J Drumm, the inventor
of the ‘Drumm Battery Train’, which unfortunately
only enjoyed a short innings during the 1930s, but it was
the forerunner of the Dublin DART. All the schools in the
parish were amalgamated into one large central school at
Latton some years ago.
Clones:- Famed as St. Tiernach’s Monastic Foundation
of the sixth century, its Round Tower and Sarcophagus (St.
Tiernach’s Grave) are two of Co. Monaghan’s greatest
tourist attractions. Practically ‘ruined’ by the
setting up of the Border in the 1920s, it has mushroomed
into one of the county's most progressive towns. For years
it was the ‘Railway Crossroads’ of Ulster, which,
in turn, led to its being chosen as the epicentre of Ulster
GAA activity, it has also produced many famous people. The
parents of Thomas Lipton, founder of a world ‘tea-empire’,
were born here, while one of Ireland’s all-round sportsmen,
James Cecil Parke, was also born here. Boxers Barry McGuigan
and Kevin McBride are also Clones natives, while the name
McCabe is respected in the very highest of Irish Literary
circles. ‘Clones Lace’ is listed among Ireland’s
most coveted souvenir possessions.
Clontiberet:- One of the Largest parishes in the county,
it boasts of three GAA clubs - Clontiberet O’Neills,
Cremartin and Doohamlet. Its best known son was General
John O’Neill, corn 1834, he emigrated to the USA at
an early age and later rose to the rank of Col. in the Union
Army during the American civil War. Following the end of
hostilities he led the ambitious, if foolhardy, ‘Invasion
of Canada’ in 1866, and again in 1870 and 1871. His
victory over a British force at Ridgeway in May 1866 proved
an inspiration for the Fenian Movement in Ireland in 1867.
Gold mining was carried on here in the 19th century and
gold deposits are stated to be still in existence. The Annyalla
Volunteers was one of the most active insurgent groups during
the War of Independence, and the McEneaney Brothers monument
in the local grave-yard is a reminder of those troubled
days.
Currin-Killeevan-Aghabog:- Originally three separate parishes,
Currin and Killeevan were later united as one and, later
still, Aghabog was added to the triumvirate. Scotshouse
village is the main centre in Currin, a parish that gave
Co. Monaghan the Moore family, prominent teachers, historians,
writers and footballers. Newbliss is the epicentre of Killeevan
and the parents of Irish patriot, revolutionary and 1916
leader, James Connolly, came from this area. The ‘Black
Pig’s Dyke’ winds its way through this parish
and in recent years some archeological excavations have
been carried out. The great McMahon clan once had one of
their major strongholds here while, in more recent times,
Patrick Whelan led the local ‘1916’ Volunteer
Movement’ and also became very prominent in Monaghan
and Ulster GAA circles. The Tyrone Guthrie Centre at Annaghmakerrig
is now an artists’ centre.
Donagh:- Emyvale and Glasolough are the population centres
in Donagh parish which is also the epicentre of ‘McKenna
country’, with McKenna’s 12th Century High Cross
and Chieftains’ grave a major tourist attraction in
Donagh old grave-yard. The nearby Tully Fort and Crannog
was their headquarters from 12th to 17th century. Here also
stand the ruins of the fifth century Patrician Foundation.
The ‘Prince Edward Island connection’ is also
based in this parish as it was a former PP, Canon Patrick
Moynagh, who initiated the original ‘organised’
mass emigration from here in 1830. Here too stood ‘Keenan’s
Classical school’, where famed Ulster novelist William
Carleton received his classical education, 1812-1815. His
‘Fair of Emyvale’ is still also one of Carleton’s
most popular novels. The Leslies were the main landlords
in the area, with Shane Leslie generally regarded as one
of Ireland’s most prolific writers and best known nationalists
during the 20th century. St Macartan’s College, built
in 1841, is also in Donagh parish.
Donaghmoyne:- Another very extensive parish, stretching
as it does from Castleblayney to Carrickmacross, it features
“Mannan Castle’, one of the most important archaeological
sites in the country. It was once the centre of power for
the Kings of Oriel, while ‘Mannan’ was also occupied
for a period by the Normans. In more recent years it was
one of the last outposts of native Irish speakers in Co.
Monaghan, while one of its sons, Enri O’Muirgheasa,
born 1874, became a schools inspector and one of Ireland’s
best known historians, folklorists and writers of the 20th
century. Donaghmore also figured in WW2 when German bombers
dropped their bombs at Bocks Lower, causing both injury
and material damage. Early Donaghmoyne clubs were very prominent
in the establishment of the first GAA county board in Monaghan
in 1887, while both Donaghmoyne and Toome GAA clubs currently
rate very highly in present-day competitions.
Ematris:- Rockcorry is the main population centre of this
small parish, which lies on the main road from Monaghan
to Cootehill. ‘Buiochar’ is the Irish name for
the village, which, although he was born at Shantonagh Junction,
is regarded as the ‘native heath’ of John Gregg,
the inventor of shorthand Gregg, born in 1867 , emigrated
with his parents to Scotland and when he was eighteen he
later moved to England. He wrote several books on shorthand
and later travelled to America where his system was quickly
adopted, and later spread world-wide. He died in New York
in 1948. Schoolteacher Peter McKenna has written a magnificent
history of this parish.
Errigal Truagh:- This is the most northerly parish of Co.
Monaghan, stretching from Emyvale to the Blackwater at Moybridge.
The Slieve Beagh mountains, more popularly known as ‘Bragan
Mountains’, form the western boundary, separating it
from Tyrone. Bragan is also the largest town-land in Co.
Monaghan. Patron saint of the parish is St. Mellan (or St.
Maudin), the ruins of whose ancient church still stand at
Mullanacross, where many beautifully carved old headstones
of McKenna interest remain a major tourist attraction. Probably
its most famous son was Canon James Edward McKenna, born
at Figulliar in 1868, he wrote the magnificent ‘History
of the Parishes of Clogher’, a truly monumental work.
A superb production, it was published in two volumes, the
first of which appeared in 1920. Described as the ‘Pioneer
of Monaghan historians’, he died in 1931. The parents
of Archbishop John Hughes, the builder of St. Patricks’
Cathedral in New York, were natives of Errigal Truagh parish.
Inniskeen:- When one mentions Inniskeen, one immediately
says ‘Patrick Kavanagh’. The great writer and
novelist was born at Mucker in this parish in 1905. His
‘Stony grey soil of Monaghan’ has become a by-word
throughout Ireland and even further afield, and he is, without
question the greatest of all Monaghan writers and one of
Ireland’s best known poets. He died in 1967, but the
‘Kavanagh Centre’ in the old church in the village
remains to provide testimony to his life and his greatness.
St. Daig is the patron saint of Inniskeen and his monastery
there was raided on many occasions by the Vikings. The Round
Tower, erected c.850, still stands, however, as a reminder
of those great but terrible days. The inhabitants of Blackstaff
village were turned out on the roads as punishment for being
‘rebels’ during the Rising of 1798 and a monument
there recalls those even more terrible times. Part of Inniskeen
parish lies in Co. Louth.
Killanny:- Sometimes called ‘the wee parish’,
Killanny also runs into Co. Louth, with nineteen of its
fifty-one town-lands lying in Leinster territory. The O’Carrolls
were once the lords of this area and their bishop was actually
based at the abbey in Louth village, but the Normans reversed
the O’Carroll expansion. Killanny is also a ‘major
entrance’ to Co. Monaghan’, with N2 from Ardee
passing through here before weaving its way through the
‘little hills’, of Monaghan. St. Ultan on the
southern transept of St. Macartan’s Cathedral in Monaghan.
The name Essexford also recalls the historic meeting place
of the Earl of Essex and the Great Hugh o’Neill of
Ulster in the 16th century.
Kilmore and Drumsnat:- Threemilehouse is the main centre
of population of this parish, and there was once a monastery
here, founded by St. Molua at Drumsnat. Drumsnat (Drom Sneachta)
means the ‘Ridge of Snow’ and, according to tradition,
this hill was covered by a mid summer snowfalls and according
to tradition, this hill was covered in midsummer snowfall
in answer to the saint’s prayers for a site for a church.
The Church of Ireland cemetery also marks the last resting
place of Emily and Mary Wilde, the half-sisters of Oscar
Wilde, who died tragically following a fire at the nearby
Drumaconnor House in 1871 The great McMahon clan originate
here in the 11th century and one of their headquarters was
on a crannog in Lough Leek. One of Co. Monaghan’s best
known rapparees, Parra Glas O’Connolly, captured and
executed in 1711, was a native of this parish.
Macharire Rois:- Contains the town of Carrickmacross, the
capital of the barony of Farney. It has been the centre
of all South-Monaghan history from earliest times. First
founded by Essex in the 16th century, it once boasted a
strongly fortified castle, section of which is absorbed
into the present Convent of St. Louis building. Shirleys
and Baths were the major landlords here and their relationship
with the native Irish was anything but peaceful down through
the years from Plantation Times. The Shirley family, however,
produced one of the country’s most illustrious historians
in Evelyn Philip Shirley, whose 19th century ‘History
of the Co. of Monaghan’ is a masterpiece ‘Carrickmacross
Lace’ is internationally known and much sought after,
while the first GAA Co. Board was founded in the town in
1887. The centre of much local industry from early times,
it is still one of the most thriving and most forward-looking
towns in Ulster, and currently boasts a magnificent and
very busy ‘industrial estate’. Corduff is also
part of this parish.
Magheracloone:- The most southerly parish in the county,
it is the only part of Monaghan that borders on Co. Meath.
One of the earliest and strongest outposts of the Kingdom
of Oriel and of the McMahons, it was the scene of the famous
Battle of Bellahoe in 1539, when O’Neill suffered a
disastrous defeat. The Earls of Essex planted the parish
and the Shirleys then became the principal landlords. A
major skirmish was also fought here during the Land Wars
and was called the ‘Battle of Mageracloone’. The
area’s gypsum rock forms part of the internationally
known ‘Kingscourt Gypsum’ industry, while its
magnificent red soil is also used widely in the manufacture
of bricks, much favoured in the building industry. The beautiful
park of Dunaree is close by.
Monaghan and Rackwallace:- parish name for the county capital,
it houses the most famous buildings in the county. St. Macartan’s
Cathedral took thirty years to build, 1862 - 1892, while
the Courthouse stands on the site of the first county jail.
The ‘much in recent news’ county hospital was
built in the last ‘thirties, while St. Davnet’s
Hospital is one of the country’s best known hospitals
for the mentally ill, and the Convent of St. Louis is one
of the country's most famed girls’ colleges. Charles
Gavan Duffy is probably the town’s best known ‘son’,
a plaque on a house in Dublin Street marking his birth-place.
Thomas Devin Reilly, another of the great Young Ireland
figures, was also born here and a street in named after
him. A Franciscan Friary established by the McMahons in
1462, once stood here, but the first recorded fort was built
by the English in 1601. Recent excavations have unearthed
the foundations of the first town walls. A small lake known
as ‘Peter Lake’ is an unusual feature of this
county capital.
Muckno:- Major centre of population here is Castleblaney,
the town which was founded by the county’s first major
‘Planter Family’, the Blayneys, in the early 17th
century. Its early monastery had been plundered by the Vikings,
while the Normans also showed little mercy at a later stage.
The Hanrattys became the major force during the days of
‘clans and chieftains’, while the McMahons also
had a lengthy innings. The new town grew up around the shores
of the beautiful Lough Muckno, and Hope Castle, also originally
built by the Blayneys, is still a major attraction in the
town. The man after whom it is named also became famous
as the owner of the notorious ‘Hope Diamond’.
St. Mary’s Hospital is one of the best known nursing
homes in the entire country, while the local GAA club here
is the envy of all other Co. Monaghan clubs, having notched
up a litany of county championship titles that will never
be equalled by any other club in the county. Oram and Blackhill
are part of this parish.
Roslea:- More than half of this parish lies in Co. Fermanagh,
and Smithboro is the main population centre in the ‘smaller
half’ that lies in County Monaghan, although its ‘off-shoot’,
Magherarney, seems to be catching up on the ‘mother
village’, as far as housing and population are concerned,
in recent years. Always an industrious area, the turkey
processing business has made it well-known, both nationally
and internationally, in recent times. First founded by a
‘Planter’ landlord named Smith, he established
a monthly fair here that became very popular right up until
well into the 19th century. A crannog on nearby Lough Ooney
is one of the best preserved crannogs in the county.
Tullycorbet- Probably better known as Ballybay parish, it
takes its name from the Irish, which means ‘The Hill
of the Chariot’, the legend being that it was here
that St. Patrick’s chariot broke down when he was on
his way through Oriel. Following the demise of the McMahon
dynasty, these lands went to foreigners, one family of which
were the Leslies. Later the town was re-built by the Jacksons,
who were extremely liberal and forward-thinking, and established
the linen industry. The Market House in Ballybay remains
as a tribute to their industrialism. The Presbyterians became
very numerous in the parish, but there were divisions and
a large number of them emigrated to America in 1764. Ballybay
horse fair became one of the most famous horse fairs in
the entire country and, while still on horses, one of Ireland’s
best known ballads ‘jackson’s Grey Mare’
is based on a Ballybay story. A very comprehensive history
of Ballybay and the surrounding areas has recently been
published by Ballybay historian, Peadar Murnane.
Tydavnet:- The villages of Scotstown, Tydavnet, Ballindode,
Milltown and Knockatallon are the main populations centres
in this large parish, stretching from Slieve Beagh to the
county capital St. Dympna (or Davnet), the daughter of a
King of Oriel and patron saint of the mentally ill, is the
patron saint of the parish, and the story of her martyrdom
at the hands of her deranged father has resulted in the
twinning of Tydavnet with Gheel in Belgium. The ‘Bachall
Damhnait’ (Dympna’s Crozier) is a tenth century
staff shrine currently on display in the National Museum
in Dulblin, but for many years was kept in this parish,
its native home. St. Dympna’s Well at Culdavnet was,
and still is, a major place of pilgrimage. The parish suffered
greatly during the Land Wars when many families were cruelly
evicted by greedy and unsympathetic landlords. Hill-walking
has become a major tourist attraction in the Slieve Beagh
area and the very impressive new Tourist Centre at Knockatallon
is also a major centre for weddings and functions of various
kinds.
Tyholland:- Tyholland is the smallest parish in the county
and borders with Co. Armagh at Middletown. For a period
it was united with Donagh parish and later still with Monaghan
parish. Monaghan’s sole contribution to the Fenian
Rising of 1867 was in Tyholland, where James Blaney Rice
was the “Head Centre’ of the organisation in North
Monaghan. His grandfather had been in the United Irishmen
of 1798 and was involved in the Killyneill ambush of that
year. The legendary O’Donovan Rossa was an important
visitor to the Rice household and to the parish during the
Fenian period. The Rice family have contributed much to
the political life of the county, and a large Celtic Cross
at Tyholland Parish Church is a commemoration of the work
done by that family for their native parish and for Ireland.
Taken from Monaghan's Match
December 2004
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