[Subscribers List a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | i | j | k | l | m | n | o | p | q | r | s | t | u | v | w | y ]
GAILE.--See GEALE.
GALBALLY, a town and parish, in the barony of COSTLEA, county of LIMERICK, and province of MUNSTER, 8 miles (S. S. W.) from Tipperary, on the road to Mitchelstown; containing 5563 inhabitants, of which number, 560 are in the town. This place, in which are the ruins of several religious establishments, appears to have been formerly of considerable importance; an abbey for Franciscan friars was founded near the town in 1204, by Donagh Cairbre O'Brien, which flourished till the dissolution, when it was granted to John of Desmond. In 1601, the Lord-President Carew summoned the chiefs of every county in this province to meet him at this place, where he appointed Lord Barry general of the whole force of Munster. The abbey being included in the forfeiture of Sir John Fitzgerald's estates, the rectory, parsonage, and vicarage of Galbally, the parsonage and prebend of Killenellig with all the glebe, and tithes, except those belonging to the vicar, and other lands belonging to the abbey were, in 1611, granted to Thomas Cantwell, Esq. The ancient town was situated at the head of the glen of Aherlow, which being the only pass into Tipperary from the northern and eastern parts of Cork, and the western parts of Limerick, was frequently contested by the rival chieftains, but remained for more than 300 years in the possession of the O'Briens and Fitzgeralds. The present town is situated near the foot of the Galtee mountains, and contains 110 houses, of which some are well built of stone and roofed with slate, but the greater number are mean thatched cabins. Fairs for black cattle and pigs are held on May l2th and October 15th, and petty sessions every alternate Wednesday. A penny post and a constabulary police force have been established in the town. The parish is mountainous, and there are large portions of waste land, which is gradually being brought into profitable cultivation; the mountains to their very summit afford good pasturage for numerous herds of cattle, and there is a considerable quantity of bog. Limestone abounds, and there are quarries of good building stone and slate, and a thin stratum of coal. The scenery is boldly diversified, and there are several handsome seats, of which the principal are Massy Lodge, the elegant residence of Lord Massy; Riversdale; of Hugh Massy, Esq.; Castlereagh, of G. Bennett, Esq.; Janeville, of the Rev. R. Lloyd; the Cottage, of W. Lewis, Esq.: Annagurra, of T. T. Adams, Esq.; and Stagdale, of W. Massy, Esq., with a fine avenue of stately beech trees. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Emly, forming part of the union of Duntrileague, and of the corps of the prebend of Killenellig in the cathedral church of Emly. The tithes amount to £600; the glebe-house is a large handsome residence, and the glebe comprises 14 acres. There are some remains of the parish church, consisting of the side walls, 121 feet in length, of rude masonry and perforated with narrow and circular-headed windows. In the R. C. divisions the parish is the head of a union, comprising also the parish of Clonbeg: the chapel, in the village of Galbally, is a spacious building, erected in 1834, at an expense of £900; and there is also a chapel at Clonbeg. A large and handsome parochial school-room, capable of holding 600 children, was erected at an expense of £300, and is chiefly supported by the Massy family; and there are three private schools, in which are about 300 children, and a dispensary. There are some remains of the ancient Franciscan friary.
GALEY, a parish, in the barony of IRAGHTICONNOR, county of KERRY, and province of MUNSTER, 8 1/2 miles (S. W. by S.) from Tarbert, on the river Gale; containing 2920 inhabitants. It comprises 12,381 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, a large portion of which is in pasture: along the river the land is of excellent quality. There are large tracts of bog in the parish, amounting to nearly two-fifths of its entire surface: about one-fifth only is under tillage. The state of agriculture is improving; a considerable portion of the bog is now being drained, and other improvements are in progress by P. Mahony, Esq., who has recently purchased the Gunsborough estate (See GUNSBOROUGH). The parish is in the diocese of Ardfert and Aghadoe: the rectory is impropriate in A. Stoughton, Esq , and the vicarage forms part of the union of Aghavallin. The tithes, amounting to £203. 1. 6 1/2. are payable in equal portions to the impropriator and the vicar. In the R. C. divisions it is partly in the district of Listowel, but chiefly in that of Lisseltin. About 220 children are educated in two private schools.
GALGORM, a village, in the parish of AHOGHILL, barony of LOWER TOOME, county of ANTRIM, and province of ULSTER, 1 mile (W.) from Ballymena, on the river Maine; containing 37 houses and 226 inhabitants. The castle of Galgorm, built by the celebrated Dr. Colville, is a handsome square embattled structure, now the seat of the Earl of Mountcashel: the whole of the rooms are wainscoted with Irish oak.
GALLEN or GILLEN, a parish, in the barony of GARRYCASTLE, KING'S county, and province of LEINSTER, 6 miles (N. E.) from Banagher, on the road to Firbane; containing, with part of that town and the post-town of Cloghan (which are separately described), 5021 inhabitants. This parish formed part of the ancient possessions of the family of the McCoghlans, proprietors of the surrounding territory, who built a strong castle here, which was surrendered to Ireton in the parliamentary war; the last male representative of this family, Thomas Coghlan, Esq., M. P. for the borough of Banagher, died in 1790. A monastery was founded here in 490 by St. Canoe, or Mocanoc, which continued to flourish till 820, when it was burnt by Felim McCroimhain; and after its restoration was occupied by some monks from Wales, who founded in it a celebrated school, from which circumstance it is supposed to have derived its name. Though repeatedly plundered and destroyed by fire, it subsisted till the dissolution, when the site and lands were granted to Sir Gerald Moore. An abbey was also founded near Firbane by St. Diarmid, who died in 563, and was succeeded by St. Coemgan; it was plundered in 1041, and destroyed by fire in 1077, soon after which it appears to have been abandoned, as no notice of it occurs since 1082. The parish comprises 16,313 statute acres, of which about one-third is bog and waste; the remainder, with the exception of a small portion of woodland, is equally divided between pasture and tillage; the system of agriculture is improving, and limestone is found in abundance. The principal seats are Gallen, the residence of A. Armstrong, Esq., beautifully situated in a richly wooded demesne bordered by the river Brosna, and containing the picturesque remains of the ancient monastery; Strawberry Hill, of Major Molloy; Castle Iver, of W. B. Armstrong, Esq.; and Clonana Castle, of -- Molony, Esq. At Castle Iver are some mills for oatmeal, worked by steam. Fairs are held on May 15th, Aug. 15th, Oct. 29th, and Nov. 17th: the May and October fairs are the principal for horses, cattle, and pigs.
It is a vicarage, in the diocese of Meath, forming part of the union of Reynagh; the rectory is impropriate. The tithes amount to £415. 7. 8., and are equally divided between the impropriator and the vicar; the glebe comprises 222 statute acres, valued at £154 per annum. The church, a small neat edifice, situated at Cloghan, was built by a gift of £600 from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1813. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union of Banagher, or Reynagh, in the diocese of Ardagh; the chapel at Cloghan is a spacious plain building. About 130 children are taught in three public schools, of which the national school is endowed with a house and garden by the Hon. Frederick Ponsonby, and one at Shillestown with a house and half an acre of land by Mr. Judge. There are also seven private schools, in which are about 280 children. There are some remains of the ancient castle of Clonana.
GALLOON, a parish, partly in the baronies of KNOCKNINNY and CLONKELLY, but chiefly in that of COOLE, county of FERMANAGH, and province of ULSTER, 65 miles (S. S. E.) from Lisnaskea, on Lough Erne, and on the road from Cavan to Enniskillen; containing 10,506 inhabitants. The parish, according to the Ordnance survey, comprises (including islands) 25,287 statute acres, of which 432 1/2 are in the barony of Knockninny, 9341 1/4 in that of Clonkelly, and 15,513 1/4; in that of Coole; about two-thirds are good arable and pasture land, 1455 1/2 are in Upper-Lough Erne, 1072 in small lakes, and of the remainder a very large portion is bog, which is easily reclaimable. The system of agriculture is in a very unimproved stae; limestone is abundant, and freestone of good quality is procured for building and other purposes. The only seat of importance is Crom Castle, the residence of the Earl of Erne, about three miles from Newtown-Butler, a handsome mansion recently erected, in which is still preserved the armour worn by McCarthy Moore at the battle of Kilgarret. The lake affords considerable facility of water conveyance, and it is in contemplation to open the port of Ballyshannon by the river Erne; there is a large flour-mill at Roosky, in this parish. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Clogher, and the corps of the chancellorship of the cathedral of Clogher, in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £410, and the gross annual value of the benefice, including glebe, is £540. There is no glebe-house; the glebe comprises 128 Irish acres. The old church was burnt by an accidental fire in 1819, and the present spacious cruciform edifice was erected in 1821, by aid of a grant of £2000 from the late Board of First Fruits. In the R. C. divisions the parish is the head of a union or district comprising also four townlands of the parish of Drummully; there are two chapels, situated at Newtown-Butler and Donagh; the former erected in 1830, at an expense of £400, and latter in 1826, at an expense of £500. There are also places of worship for Wesleyan and Primitive Wesleyan Methodists; the latter is a fine new building, one-half of the expense of which was contributed by J. Butler Danvers, Esq. About 670 children are taught in five national and four other public schools; and there are six private schools, in which are about 540 children, and ten Sunday schools. There are several raths in the parish; and at Mulnagone is a chalybeate spa, strongly impregnated with sulphur, which has been found efficacious in chronic diseases. There are some ruins of old churches on the island of Galloon and also at Donagh. --See NEWTOWN-BUTLER.
GALLOW, a parish, in the barony of UPPER DEECE, county of MEATH, and province of LEINSTER, 3 miles (N. N. W.) from Kilcock, on the road to Trim; containing 640 inhabitants. About one-third of it is in tillage, and the remainder is good pasture. The principal seats are Gallow, the residence of W. Maher, Esq.; Clarkstown, of T. Potterton, Esq.; and Ferrans, of I. North, Esq. It is a rectory, in the diocese of Meath, forming part of the union of Raddonstown: the tithes amount to £129. 4. 7. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Laracor, or Summerhill. About 25 children are educated in a private school.
GALTRIM, or GAULTRIM, a parish, in the barony of LOWER DEECE, county of MEATH, and province of LEINSTER, 3 miles (S.) from Summerhill, on the road to Navan; containing 716 inhabitants. This parish comprises 3953 statute acres, of which about two-thirds are under tillage. At Cloneymeath is a quarry of good building stone. Here is a constabulary police station. Galtrim House, a handsome residence in a well planted demesne, is the seat of J. Fox, Esq., who is descended from Magnus Nial, Monarch of Ireland, and is the representative of the Lords of Kilcourcy, to whom Queen Elizabeth granted large possessions. This district was anciently a palatinate: the parish was granted by the Irish parliament, in 1543, to the priory of St. Peter's near Trim. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Meath, and in the patronage of Thomas Hussey, Esq.; the rectory is impropriate in Joseph Ashe and George Fisher, Esqrs. The tithes amount to £176. 12. 3., of which £21. 12. 3. is payable to the impropriators and the remainder to the vicar: the great tithes of the townlands of Walterstown and Branganstown, amounting to £35, are payable to the incumbent of Kentstown. The glebe-house, which has a glebe of nine acres, was built by aid of a loan of £300 and a gift of £400, in 1815, from the late Board of First Fruits. The church, which is a neat edifice with a tower, was erected in 1800. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Kilmore, or Monalvey, and has a neat plain chapel at Boycetown-bridge. About 70 children are educated in the parochial school, which is partly supported by the vicar and W. Disney, Esq.; and there is a small private school.
GALVOLY.--See BOLY.
GALWAY (County of), a maritime county of the province of CONNAUGHT, bounded on the east by the counties of Roscommon, King's county, and Tipperary, from the former of which it is separated by the Suck, and from the two latter by the Shannon; on the north, by those of Roscommon and Mayo; on the west, by the Atlantic Ocean; and on the south, by Galway bay and the county of Clare. It extends, from 52° 57' to 53o 42' (N. Lat.), and from 7° 53' to 10° 15' (W. Lon.); and comprises an area, according to the Ordnance survey, of 1,510,592 acres, of which 955,713 are cultivated land, 476,957 are unprofitable bog and mountain, and 77,922 are under water. The population, in 1821, exclusively of the town and liberties of Galway, which forms a county of itself, was 309,599; and in 1831, 381,564.
In the time of Ptolemy, this region was inhabited by the Auteri, who spread themselves also into the adjoining counties of Mayo and Roscommon. At a later, though still a very remote, date it was thus parcelled out among tribes or families; Clanconow, or Clonmacnoon, among the Burkes; Clanfirgail, among the O'Hallorans; Hymaine, among the O'Dalys and O'Kellys; Maghullen, now Moycullen, among the O'Flahertys; Silnamchia, now Longford; and Hy-Fiacria-Aidne, afterwards Clanricarde, possessed by the Burkes, Burghs, or De Bourgos. The Burkes or De Bourgos alone were of Anglo Norman descent, and settled here in consequence of a grant made by Henry III. to Richard de Bourgo, of the whole kingdom of Connaught. A border warfare consequently ensued, and De Bourgo succeeded in securing some of the southern parts of the present county of Galway, making Meelick Castle one of his principal strong-holds. Under this family the towns of Athenry and Galway considerably increased; and in 1333, William de Bourgo, Earl of Ulster, being assassinated, this part of his possessions was seized by a younger male branch of the family, who assumed the Irish title of Mac William Eighter, which was also adopted by his successors, until their acquisition of that of Earl of Clanricarde. Sir William, or Ulick, was the first Mac William Eighter, and from his son Richard was the name of Clanricarde first given to his territory and people. ' The limits of his dominion were extended or curtailed according to the strength of arms possessed by the Anglo-Norman chieftain, but they commonly comprehended the six present baronies of Athenry, Clare, Dunkellin, Kiltartan, Leitrim, and Loughrea. The chief subinfeudators of the De Bourgos were the Birminghams. Another English colony was in the mean time planted in the north-western extremity of the county, now forming the barony of Ross, in the reign of Edward I., by Thomas Joyes or Joyce, who married the daughter of an Irish chieftain: they became tributary to the O'Flaherties, adopting the Irish language and customs; and that part of Connaught is known to the present day by the name of the Joyces' country. The last chieftain of Clanricarde, who bore the title of Mac William Eighter, was Sir William de Burgh, created Earl of Clanricarde by patent of the first of Edward VI. Until the reign of Elizabeth, the county of Galway was regarded as part of the county of Connaught, which comprised all the province of the same name except the county of Roscommon. The present county, therefore, called after the name of its chief town, has no earlier antiquity as a distinct shire than the re-division of Connaught into shire ground by the Lord-Deputy, Sir Henry Sidney, in 1585. At this time, and until the middle of the 17th century, the septs and families possessing the western parts of the county were the O'Flaherties, O'Malleys, and Joyces; the north-eastern districts were held by the Mac David Burkes, and the Birminghams; in the eastern quarter were the O'Naghtens, O'Fallons, O'Kellys, O'Mullallys, O'Dalys, and a branch of the Birminghams; Clanricarde contained, besides the territories immediately held by the Earl, the lands of the O'Heynes, O'Maddens, and O'Shaughnessys; bordering on Lough Corrib were the O'Hallorans; and in the immediate neighbourhood of the town of Galway were the possessions of the Kirwans, Martins, Blakes, Skerrets, Lynches, Frenches, Brownes and Darcys, all mercantile families of that town. In the rebellion of 1641, this county took part with the confederate Catholics, notwithstanding the exertions of the Marquis of Clanricarde. At the termination of the war a great proportion of the landed property passed into the hands of new families, to whom it was confirmed after the Restoration; and the war of the Revolution served but to confirm the change. The whole western portion of the county, between Lough Corrib and the Atlantic Ocean, is frequently called Connemara, signifying, "the Bays of the Ocean;" the name, however, is strictly applicable to only one of the three subdivisions of this district; those of the other two are Iar-Connaught and Joyces' country. These, respectively, are almost conterminous with the three existing baronies of Ballynahinch, Moycullen, and Ross.
The county is partly in the diocese of Killaloe, and partly in those of Elphin, Kilmacduagh, and Clonfert, but chiefly in the archdiocese of Tuam, and contains the episcopal cities of each of the three last-named dioceses within its limits. For purposes of civil jurisdiction it is divided into the baronies of Arran, Athenry, Half Ballymoe, Ballynahinch, Clare, Clonmacnoon, Dunkellin, Dunmore, Kilconnell, Killian, Kiltartan, Leitrim, Longford, Loughrea, Moycullen, Ross, and Tyaquin. It contains, independently of the provincial capital, which forms a separate county, the corporate and market-towns of Tuam and Athenry; the market and post-towns of Loughrea, Eyrecourt, Gort, and Headford; the greater part of the market-town of Ballinasloe; the sea-port and post town of Clifden; and the post-towns of Ahascragh, Aughrim, Castleblakeney, Dunmore, Portumna, Oranmore, Craughwell, Oughterard, Kilconnell, Monivae, and Dangan. The largest among its numerous villages are Mount Bellew, Woodford, Kinvarra, and Mount-Shannon. Prior to the Union, it sent six representatives to the Irish parliament, two for the county at large, and two for each of the boroughs of Tuam and Athenry; since that period, its sole representatives, exclusive of those of the town of Galway, have been the two sent by the county to the Imperial Parliament; the members are elected at Galway. The constituency, in January 1836, was, freeholders, 364 of £50, 224 of £20, and 3053 of £10; clergymen, registering out of their respective incumbencies, 24 of £50, 5 of £20, and 3 of £10; rent-chargers, 5 of £50, and 9 of £20; making a total of 3687 registered electors. The county is included in the Connaught circuit: the assizes are held at Galway, and general sessions of the peace are held twice in the year at each of the towns of Loughrea, Tuam, Eyrecourt, and Gort. The county court-house and gaol are in Galway; and there are bridewells at Clifden, Eyrecourt, Loughrea, Tuam, Woodford, Ballinasloe, and Gort. The number of persons charged with criminal offences and committed, in 1835, was 651. The local government is vested in a lord-lieutenant, 21 deputy-lieutenants, and 157 magistrates, besides whom there are the usual county officers, including four coroners. There are 99 constabulary police stations, in which are a force consisting of 12 chief constables, 122 constables, 540 sub-constables, and 15 horses: the expense of its maintenance is defrayed partly by the county and partly by the government. There is also a peace preservation police of one magistrate, one chief constable, 13 constables, 42 sub-constables, and 4 horses. The county infirmary and fever hospital is at Galway, and there is a fever hospital at Ballinasloe, where also is the district lunatic asylum for Connaught; and there are dispensaries at Claran Bridge, Dunmore, Ballymoe, Portumna, Tuam, Loughrea, Ballinasloe, Kiltulla, Headford, Ahascragh, Clifden, Ballygar, Miltown, Killane, Monivea, Glanmodda, Oughterard, Gort, Killyan, and Eyrecourt, maintained by private subscriptions and Grand Jury presentments. The total amount of the Grand Jury presentments, for the year 1835, was £43,938. 8. 7 1/4., of which £1443. 0. 65. was for the public roads and bridges of the county at large; £11,197. 3. 1 1/4. for the public roads, being the baronial charge; £12,905. 7. 9. for public establishments, officers' salaries, buildings, &c., and £14,022. 7. 5 1/2. for the police. In the military arrangements the county is included in the western district, except Mount-Shannon, which is in the southwestern; and contains six barrack stations, three for cavalry at Loughrea, Gort, and Dunmore, two for infantry at Ballinasloe and Oughterard, and one for artillery at Mount-Shannon, affording in the whole accommodation for 21 officers and 415 men.
Lough Corrib divides the county into two unequal portions, which differ very considerably from each other in several important points; the eastern is, for the most part, fertile, and comparatively level; the western is rugged, mountainous, and barren. The former of these, with the exception of the Slievebaughta mountains, which separate it from Clare, is generally flat and uninteresting. A very fine vein of land, supposed by some to be a continuation of the Golden Vale of the south, proceeds from Gort by Loughrea to Aughrim and Ballinasloe; and in the northern part, about Dunmore, the country is exceedingly picturesque, being highly diversified with hill and dale, and mostly rich pasture or tillage. The land between Oranmore and Monivae exhibits a sterile surface, covered with short heath and fern, yet with a substratum of limestone gravel. Amongst the mountains of the western portion, those of Benabola, commonly called the Twelve Pins, are the most elevated: they lie midway between Lough Corrib and Aghris point, in a western direction, and between Birtirbuy and Killery bays, in a northern, covering a space of about six miles square, and consist of two ranges or groups connected by the elevated pass of Maam Ina. Knockenhiggeen, the highest, is 2400 feet high. The cliff on the south side of Glen Ina is particularly grand, being a naked perpendicular precipice of about 1200 feet, over which a considerable sheet of water falls. On the east of the same vale, a chain of hills proceeds along the boundary of the barony of Ross: the passes through which are known by the name of Maam, a term also used in the highlands of Scotland; they are called Maam-Turk in the north of Derbyshire. But the western district, although mountainous, is not an upland country like Wicklow. At least three-fourths of Connemara proper are less than 100 feet above the level of the sea. Great part of Iar-Connaught rises from the shore of Galway bay, by a gentle elevation to about 300 feet, at the upper edge of which there are some hills of about 700 feet, and beyond them a low limestone country, to the edge of Lough Corrib, which is but little elevated above the level of that lake. Joyces' country, on the other hand, is an elevated tract, with flat-topped mountains from 900 to 2000 feet high, and intersected by deep and narrow valleys. The entire western part of the county is justly regarded as one of the most uncultivated parts of Ireland, presenting in a general view a continuous tract of bog and mountain; the quantity of arable land not amounting to one-fiftieth of the whole; yet the greater portion of it is capable of being reclaimed, being every where covered with a surface of peat, with a declivity sufficient for drainage, and intersected by numerous layers of limestone rock, thus affording an inexhaustible supply of material for the best manure, and of that of fuel for its preparation. Of the lakes, of which there are upwards of 150 of every size, the largest and most interesting is Lough Corrib, covering a surface of upwards of 30,000 acres. It derives its origin from several streams in Joyces' country, and assuming the form and magnitude of a lake near Castlekirk island, spreads to a considerable breadth near Cong where it has a subterranean communication with Lough Mask, in the county of Mayo, from which it is about two miles distant: it narrows at the ferry of Knock, and again suddenly expands, until, about two miles from Galway, it assumes the character of a river, which it retains to the sea. It receives several large rivers, and at its outlet seems to be fully equal to the Shannon, at Athlone, but more rapid. The islands in it comprehend together about 1000 acres: they are Inchiquin, Inishrater, Inishnavoe, Island Shendela, Inishgall, and Inishdarus, inhabited; and Castlekirk, Ennisdavey, Ennisrobin, and St. Francis's, uninhabited. Its level is about fourteen feet above high water mark, and it rises about three feet in floods. This lake is navigable from its head down to Galway, and a plan for a water communication by means of lockage, between it and the sea, has been estimated at a cost of £13,000. Between the mountains of Maam and Galway bay, a line of lakes, 27 in number, extends in a westerly direction from Oughterard to Ballynahinch, a distance of 23 miles; the principal are Loughs Fuogh, Baffin, Derryclare, Uriel, Poulnagopple, and Ballynahinch, which latter empties itself into the bay of Birtirbuy. Loughrea, situated near the road from Dublin to Galway, and giving name to a barony and a large town, is remarkable as well for its extent as for its picturesque scenery. Lough Ross is in Joyces' country; it receives the waters of several rivers and numerous mountain streams, yet has no visible outlet; there are numerous small but very interesting lakes near Roundstone, scattered over various parts. Lough Mask is bounded on the whole of its western shores by the county of Galway; a high ridge of land, about three miles in breadth, separates it from Lough Corrib. A subterraneous communication between these lakes serves as a vent for the waters of the former, the whole of which, after passing through a series of extensive caverns, rises again in numerous magnificent springs near Cong; and, after turning several mills, hastens by a rapid course to mingle with the waters of Lough Corrib. Some tracts, called Turloughs, which are dry in summer, assume the appearance of lakes in winter, owing to their outlets being insufficient to discharge their accumulated water. The largest is that of Turloughmore, which covers a large tract near Tuam; the next in extent is near Rahasane; and there are several smaller. They maintain seven or eight sheep to the acre, for about four months in summer, but in wet seasons are scarcely of any value.
The coast from Killery bay to the county of Clare presents a bold line of cliffs indented by numerous fine bays and inlets, many of which are adequate to receive vessels of every description. After passing Renville point, at the north of Killery, the harbour of Ballynakill presents itself, capable of accommodating large ships, and protected by Truchelaun or Heath island. The bay of Claggan, about two miles in length, is more open than the preceding, though protected in some degree by the island of Innisbofin. From Claggan to Aghris cape, the most western point of the county, the shore is low, and near it are Crua, High, and Friar islands, exhibiting only a few monastic ruins. Streamstown is a long inlet, narrow and dangerous, and, therefore, frequented only by smugglers: at some distance from it is Omey island, and within it are the cultivated islands of Tarbert and Innisturk. Ardbear harbour branches into two inlets, the northern of which terminates at the rising town of Clifden; the southern enjoys the benefit of a salmon fishery. Mannin bay, though extensive, is but little frequented by large vessels; but a good kelp shore and a valuable herring fishery bring many boats to it occasionally. Between it and Roundstone bay is the peninsula of Bunowen, terminating at Slyne Head. From Slyne Head, where two lighthouses have been erected, the coast turns eastward to Roundstone bay, the entrance to which is sheltered by the islands of Innisnee and Innislacken. Near its mouth is the new village of Roundstone: this harbour could shelter the whole navy of England. The boggy peninsula of Rosrua intervenes between Roundstone and Birtirbuy bays, which latter, though deep and with good anchorage, is little frequented: in the offing is the island of Cruanakely, used as a deer-park. The islands of Masa, Mynish, and Finish, south of this peninsula, are inhabited by a population actively engaged in the kelp trade and the fisheries. In Elanmacdara are some curious monastic remains. Kilkerran bay has a most productive kelp shore, of nearly one hundred miles in extent, including those of its islands, although the direct distance across its mouth to the western point of Costello bay is but eight miles. A series of fords, passable on foot at low water, but navigable for boats during the height of the tide, connects the islands of Garomna, Littermore, Littermullen, Knappagh, and Furrinish, which lie on its eastern coast: between Garomna and the peninsula of Killeen is Greatman's bay, a safe harbour for vessels of moderate draught. Caslah or Costello bay, to the east of Killeen, is the most eastern of the harbours of Connemara. This district, therefore, exhibits some very extraordinary features: it contains upwards of twenty safe and capacious harbours, fit for vessels of any burden, about 25 navigable lakes in the interior, each a mile or more in. length, besides more than 100 smaller, and commands a coast line, including that of its islands, of not less than 400 miles. South of the county is Galway bay, having its entrance protected by the islands of Arran, described under their own head, and including the minor harbours of Oranmore, Renville or New harbour, one of the finest stations along the coast, having a natural pier with 14 feet of water at ebb tide, improved and deepened by an artificial structure. Further south are Kilcolgan Point, whence the first Marquess of Clanrickard took his final departure from Ireland during the troubles of 1641; Kinvara harbour, protected by Edey island; and the peninsula of Duras, with which is connected that of Aghnish, a detached portion of Clare, which county forms the southern boundary of this magnificent bay.
The climate, though subject to storms and rain, is peculiarly healthful; the prevalence of disease being more attributable to the habits of the humbler classes than to the influence of the atmosphere. Frost or snow seldom lies long on the western coast, and cattle of every kind remain out during the winter; but the summers are commonly wet. The soil of the eastern portion is in general suited to every kind of crop, and produces wheat of the best description, particularly to the south of Galway. Much of the land, however, being light and rocky, is better adapted for sheep-feeding. The northern parts near Tuam improve in quality, and still further north they are all rich pasture or excellent tillage ground. On the south shore of Lough Corrib, where cultivation has made the greatest progress, the arable land is interspersed with extensive tracts of naked limestone rock, of a most desolate aspect; and it appears to be only by incessant exertions that a few patches of soil have been won from the general waste. These spots are, nevertheless, of the greatest fertility, and the pasturage among the rocks is peculiarly fine. The other parts of Connemara are for the most part barren moors, consisting of bog of various depths, upon a bottom of primitive rock of difficult decomposition, and affording little soil; but several beds of limestone run through the country, and are distinguishable by the verdure in their vicinity. For improving the lands of this district there are convenient banks of shell and coral sand on all the coast, especially in the bays of Kilkerran, Birtirbuy, Bunown, and Mannin: that of Kilkerran, Birtirbuy, and Mannin is pure coralline.
Wheat is the crop at which the farmer mostly aims, and it is always sown after potatoes, except in moory soils, when oats form the succession. The want of manure for potatoes is supplied by hiring land and paring and burning the surface: the ground is skinned, or scrawed by a spade, sharp and broad at the end, with a considerable bend in the blade to prevent the necessity of stooping. Where sea weed is used, the potatoes are planted on it after it has dried; as, when used fresh, it injures the potatoe sets. A dry spring always ensures a plentiful crop of potatoes; a wet one, on the contrary, is the usual forerunner of scarcity. On the sea coast corallines are also used for manure, the succession being potatoes, wheat, oats, and, in sandy soils, barley, and then potatoes with a fresh manuring. In many places on the sea coast, very fine early potatoes are raised in several feet of pure sea sand, manured by sea weed, and after that fine barley, which is mostly consumed by the innumerable private stills of Connemara. The small farmers or cottiers till almost exclusively with the spade. Crops of every kind on the lands of cottiers are generally carefully weeded. The chief markets for grain are Galway, Loughrea, Tuam, Ballinasloe, Gort, Eyrecourt, Mount Bellew, and Clifden; they are well supplied. The numerous flour-mills lately established have tended much to increase and improve the cultivation of wheat. Among the green crops, the use of which is daily extending, that of fiorin is peculiarly encouraged, as being found, among the most productive and congenial to the soil. Pasturage is carried on to a great extent. Heathy sheep-walks occupy a tract of dreary country ten miles square, between Monivae and Galway. A considerable quantity of pasture is obtained from the turloughs, particularly the Turloughmore: there is also an extensive range of many miles between Athenry and Ardrahan, stretching down to the sea at Kinvarra, chiefly occupied by sheep: the baronies of Ballynahinch, Ross, and Moycullen, are all under pasture, with the exception of patches of tillage in the valleys. To many farms large tracts of moory bottom are attached, which, if judiciously drained, a process as yet but ill understood and little practised, would amply repay the outlay.
Agriculture as a system is in a backward state, except in the neighbourhood of Ballinasloe, Tuam, Hollymount, and Gort, where the rotation and green crop systems have been introduced. The barony of Kiltartan has also made rapid strides in this respect since 1833, at which time the first clover and vetches were sown; they are generally cut and carried away as green fodder. The deepest and best soils in the county are around Ballymoe and Tyaquin. In most of the eastern portion of the county the iron plough and light angular harrow are generally used; but the land is never ploughed sufficiently deep, the antiquated system of merely turning up the old soil being adhered to: in most parts grain of every kind is sown too late, hence it sustains great injury in wet seasons. Hay is rarely cut till the month of September, and even then very injudiciously managed; the greater quantity of hay is produced on low meadows, here called Callows, where it is put up in large cocks in the field and suffered to remain until November; hence it is always much injured with rain and liable to be washed away by the autumnal floods. Although the iron plough is very general, the old wooden plough is retained in many places. Threshing and winnowing machines are sometimes seen, but only with the gentry. One-horse carts with spoke wheels are so general that the old solid wooden-wheeled car is now seldom seen, and the slide car never. Waggons of a very superior construction, drawn by two horses abreast, are frequent in the neighbourhood of Galway. In Connemara, Iar-Connaught, and Joyces' Country, wheeled vehicles are almost unknown; everything, even to the manure and grain, being carried upon the backs of men or horses. Dairy farms are by no means general, but a good deal of butter is made, particularly at Barna, in the neighbourhood of Galway. Farms are of every size; those of large extent are mostly in the mountains, and used for pasturing young and store cattle; they are always held in bulk. Those in the valleys and on the sea coast are mostly small, but in the plain, or eastern portions of the county, the size of the farms varies from 20 to 200 acres. The principal manure is the surface of the turbary, called black bog or moreen, carried home in baskets, spread over the yard, and mixed with dung, clay, or gravel. Another manure is ashes, produced by burning the surface sod, as already noticed. Coralline, commonly called oyster bank sand, is used in Connemara, with the best effect: wet moory land has been converted by it into rich meadow, mostly of fiorin grass, which has continued to throw up a fine sward for forty years. Lime and limestone gravel, found in the escars is much used, particularly to the south of Galway. Seaweed of every kind is applied to the soil as manure, particularly for potatoes and vegetables: its effect is powerful but transient. Irrigation is little practised. The fences are walls, formerly of dry stones rudely piled up, but latterly more carefully built, from 3 to 6 feet high, and topped with sods; the clearing of the ground generally supplies the materials. Ditches are not common. The breed of black cattle has been greatly improved within the last few years. The favourite stock is a cross between the Durham and the old long-horned native cow: the cross between the old Leicester bull and the native thrives well in hilly and exposed situations. The old Irish cow is still seen. Sheep are also a very favourite stock: the new Leicester, first introduced by Mr. Taaffe, is peculiarly prized both for carcass and fleece. The cross between the new Leicester and the native sheep, though not so large as the preceding, is celebrated for the flavour of its mutton; its wool, though short, is good. The South-down sheep have degenerated, the fleece becoming short and coarse. The fairs of Ballinasloe, which are particularly noticed in the article on that place, regulate the prices of sheep and black cattle throughout Ireland. The character of the Galway horses, both as roadsters and hunters, has been long celebrated. Connemara was famed for its breed of small hardy horses, but they have latterly lost character in consequence of an injudicious cross with large stallions; the genuine breed is now extremely scarce. Pigs are numerous, and of every variety of breed. Goats are frequently met with, but not in flocks. The old red deer is sometimes seen in the mountains of Connemara and Joyces' Country, but the race is almost extinct.
The quantity of large full-grown timber found in the bogs proves that the county, though now nearly bare, was once well wooded: the hilly districts abound more in bog timber than the plain country. The trees most usually found are oak and fir, the latter of which is manufactured into ropes, which resist damp better than those of hemp. Yew of considerable size and finely grained is frequently found. Another proof that the soil is well adapted for the growth of timber may be drawn from the fact, that in almost every dry knoll or cliff the oak, beech, and hazel may be found shooting up in abundance, when not checked by the destructive browsing of goats. The plantations at present are mostly confined to skreens round gentlemen's demesnes. Although the county now exhibits such tracts of neglected waste, several attempts on a large scale to improve its natural advantages have been made. A farming society was formerly held at Loughrea; the Farming Society of Ireland held its great annual meeting at Ballinasloe till its dissolution; and the newly formed Agricultural Society of Ireland holds one of its periodical meetings in the same town. The general fuel of the county is turf, of which the stores contained in the bogs of the western districts are deemed inexhaustible, and great quantities are taken by boats to the county of Clare, as well as to the isles of Arran, and the inner shores of Galway bay. The only parts where any scarcity of this fuel is experienced are in the districts bordering on the shores of Galway bay, and in the line from the town of Galway to Athenry and Monivae: the use of sea coal is almost confined to the town of Galway.
In a geological point of view the county may be considered as divided into two great regions, the limestone and the granite: the high road from Galway to Oughterard nearly marks the division, which is also discernible to the eye of an intelligent observer by the decline of the verdant hue that enlivens the former. The country north and east of this boundary line is limestone; that to the south and west, with a few minor exceptions, is granite. The Slievebaughta mountains are silicious; the great group of Benabola chiefly quartz: Poulacopple mountain is hornblende. Between Ballynakill bay and Ardbear is a tract of mica slate and quartz interspersed with veins of primitive limestone. The same formation runs through the hills to Oughterard; it contains very beautiful serpentine and verd antique. The largest deposit of it is in the centre of the Benabola group, where it is nearly unattainable in consequence of the difficulty of conveyance; but the most valuable quarries are at Bawnanoran and Lissouter, near the head of Birtirbuy, whence the splendid chimney-piece presented to Geo. IV., and now in the Carlton Club House, was taken. A quarry at Letterlough contains a marble of a deep green porphyritic substance, unique in character and appearance. Lead ore has been found in many places, nodules of which of very pure quality are frequently met with in the mountain streams, and along the sea shore. Iron ore was extensively worked, while timber was plentiful for smelting it. At a quarry at Dunmore, millstones are made, said to be superior to those of France. A crystalline sand, of very superior quality for scythe boards, occurs at Lough Coutra, for which mowers come from twenty miles' distance. Manganese has been found in Slieve-an-oir, near the border of Clare. The limestone, except that of Connemara, contains fossil remains in various quantities, from that of Oughterard, disfigured by sections of large shells, to the beautiful marbles of Angliham, Menlo, Renville, and Merlin Park, near Galway, which are of a fine black, nearly pure, and highly prized in England and in Dublin. At Ballyleigh, near Gort, a fine black marble has long been used; some of superior quality is found near Athenry; and a very beautiful grey marble has been discovered at Woodbrook. Near Ardfry, and in Mr. D'Arcy's demesne, in Connemara, large beds of oyster shells may be seen many feet above high water mark.
Coarse linen was formerly manufactured to some extent: it was generally of the kind called bandle linen, but the fabric was not good. The principal markets for it were Loughrea and Tuam, where also a considerable quantity of linen yarn was sold. A diaper manufacture nourished for some time, but is also extinct. In Connemara some fine linen was manufactured, and a large quantity of coarse, the latter chiefly for domestic use. Canvas for bags is in good demand; a very coarse kind is bought at Tuam, for packing wool: large quantities also are sent to Cork, Waterford, and Limerick, for packing bacon for exportation. The woollen manufacture consists chiefly of flannels and friezes for home sale. A considerable quantity of white friezes and caddow blankets is manufactured and sold at Galway and Loughrea, and in the neighbourhood of the former of these towns flannels are woven to a large extent. Knit woollen stockings are made and sold in Connemara, to the amount of nearly £10,000 per annum: the wool is peculiarly fine, and they possess a much greater degree of softness and elasticity than any woven stocking, but from being made only of a single thread, they afford but little wear. The manufacture of kelp, commenced about the year 1700, was very general, and tolerably productive: when first exported it sold from 14s. to 16s. per ton, and gradually rose in price to £13 per ton: about 10,000 tons of it were annually made in Connemara, but the removal of the duty on salt has nearly destroyed the trade, and the weed is now sold as manure. Paper is manufactured in the town of Galway, and a good deal of it sent to the Dublin market. There is also in that town a considerable manufacture of black marble chimney-pieces, much prized as being wholly free from white marks. Tobacco pipes and coarse pottery are also made there, and at Creggs and Dunsandle. Coarse felt hats and straw bonnets are made at Loughrea, and some other places. The trade in grain employs 23 flour-mills, six oatmeal-mills, and two malt-mills in Galway town alone; and there are twelve other large flour-mills in different places. After supplying the home demand, the rest of the produce is sent to Dublin, to the amount of about 12,000 tons annually, from the Galway mills.
A valuable source of employment to this county is its fisheries, which, however, notwithstanding the abundance of fish on its coasts, have heretofore scarcely sufficed to supply the home demand, owing to the want of skill and systematic industry among the fishermen. The fishery for the basking shark, commonly called the sun-fish, commences in April, and continues for about six weeks: a single fish produces from four to twelve barrels, each of 30 gallons, of oil; but the boats engaged are few, and too small to venture into deep water, yet even under this defective system the fishery produces oil of the value of several thousand pounds annually. The cod and ling fishery commences in February, when these fish approach the shore from the great bank that lies seven or eight leagues from the land; the quantity of ling exceeds that of cod, in the proportion of five to one. The herring fishery commences at a later period than formerly, and is said to be less productive: the season now begins in February or March, and during its continuance all other fishing is nearly abandoned. When it commences at Galway, almost the entire of the male population of the neighbouring villages flock to the shore to assist, and have a certain share of the profits. Five thousand herrings are reckoned a middling night's capture for one boat: all that are taken are sold to supply the home demand, which is so far from being satisfied that many cargoes are brought from the north-west coast. Sometimes several men join in a boat and nets for this fishery, many of whom are tradesmen in different branches, who at this period abandon their usual occupations. The bay of Galway abounds with every kind of fish, including shell-fish, and the white fishery might consequently be made of considerable value. There are about 500 fishing-boats belonging to the bay, besides 200 or 250 belonging to the Claddagh village, near the town. Lobsters are generally in great abundance; on some parts of the coast they are put into holes in the rocks that are covered at half ebb, and fed to a large size with fish and other food. At the falls of Ballinahinch, between the lake of that name and the bay of Roundstone, is a very valuable salmon fishery, being the most profitable in Ireland, except those of Ballina and Coleraine: there is another at Galway, between Lough Corrib and the sea, and a third at the head of the Killery; and there is in Lough Corrib abundance of trout, especially the much-esteemed gillaroo trout. Oysters of superior quality abound on the coast of Connemara, and all round the bay of Galway, and are in season nearly the whole year. Pearls of great beauty, but not very large, have been taken from the pearl muscles in. several rivers, particularly near Oughterard.
The Suck is the principal river: it receives the Shiven at Muckenagh, and near Ballinasloe the Ahascragh from the west, and joins the Shannon at Shannon bridge: its course is in general very sluggish, and it does much damage every year by overflowing its banks. The canal from Ballinasloe to the Shannon, an extension of the Grand Canal from Dublin, is chiefly fed from this river. The Shannon borders only a small portion of the eastern side of the county, between the confluence of the Suck and Mount Shannon, separating it from the King's county and Tipperary. The Black river, or Shruel, empties itself into Lough Corrib, as does also the Moyne: both these rivers are subject to inundations; and the former sinks into the ground through an aperture called a swallow, at a short distance from the town of Shruel, but soon emerges through several large springs. The Carnamart passes through the southern part of the county, and empties itself into the eastern extremity of the bay of Galway. The Ballynahinch river has a short but rapid course from the Twelve Pins mountains to Birtirbuy bay. The roads are numerous, and generally in excellent repair; the materials for making them being everywhere abundant and good. The principal lines are the mail-coach roads from Dublin to Galway, and to Tuam, Castlebar, and Westport, which intersect the county from east to west. Several new lines have been lately made through the western part. One line, commencing at Oughterard, proceeds by the lakes to Ballinahinch and Clifden, with numerous lines branching from it into the centre of the mountains. Another line passes from Clifden by Streamstown, Ballynakil, Kilmore, and Killery, into the county of Mayo, with several branch lines leading chiefly to the coast. These lines, with their several branches, extend through a distance of 127 miles, and although they are carried through the midst of the mountainous district, they seldom deviate from the level.
There are seven ancient round towers in the county; at Kilmacduagh, Ballygaddy, Kilbannon, Meelick, Roscam Murrough, and Ardrahan. Raths are numerous: a very fine ruin of this kind is to be seen in Arranmore. Cromlechs are also found in several places; one in good preservation in the demesne of Marble hill, another near Dunsandle, and another of very curious construction at Monument hill, near Loughrea. The remains of ancient monastic buildings are very numerous, and are noticed in the accounts of the places where they are respectively situated: the most celebrated is that of the Cistercian monastery at Knockmoy, about six miles from Tuam. Ancient castles are also numerous; some of them are in ruins, and others still kept in repair, as places of residence. Between Gort and Kihnacduagh are the remains of a round castle, a style of architecture uncommon in such buildings.
The seats of the opulent gentry are very numerous and well built, and are noticed in the articles on their respective parishes. Those of the farmers are of very defective construction; the floors are generally below the level of the soil; the windows small and often stopped up, so that the light enters only through the door; the offices badly constructed and arranged. The dwellings of the peasantry are still worse, often of dry stones or of sods, and thatched: this description applies more forcibly to the western part of the county, though even there and in other parts there are many laudable exceptions. In Connemara proper and Joyces' Country the population is thinly scattered along the coast, and by the sides of the old rugged roads; in Iar-Connaught it is dense, and the holders of land in better circumstances than those of the preceding districts, who combine fishing with farming; yet throughout the whole of the three districts there is scarcely a comfortable house, and the habits and appearance of the families, who have means sufficient to improve their condition, are little better than that of those of the indigent. The food is invariably the potato, with fish in Connemara, where also cows are a frequent appendage to the small farmer's homestead, as is a cabbage garden to his cottage. The clothing is of home-made frieze for the men: flannel jackets and petticoats, generally of blue and dark red, were the prevailing dress of the women, but they are giving way to cottons. The men in winter generally wear shoes and stockings, also home made; the women frequently go barefooted. Beer is now much more in demand than formerly. Unlicensed whiskey is still made in great quantities in the mountainous districts. The lower classes exhibit the strongest proofs of industry, when working for themselves, as is shewn by their care in clearing the ground of stones, and in the reclamation of bog, when they are secured in a profitable tenure. The use of the English language is daily increasing in all parts. The Irish language, however, is said to be still spoken better here than in any other part of the island, both with respect to idiom and pronunciation. The crying at funerals, the attendance at wakes, and other old customs are still preserved. The county almost everywhere abounds with springs of the purest water; those of Eyrecourt and Kilconnel abbey are peculiarly celebrated. A spring near the rocky summit of Knocknae is never dry. The most remarkable of the mineral springs, which are numerous and mostly chalybeate, are at Oughterard, Kiltulla, and Kingston; the last is pronounced by Kirwan to be one of the best in Europe: another near Dunsandle is much frequented. At the village of Quose is a well which instantly kills poultry that drink of its water. A spa between Clonfert and Laurencetown has been used with great effect in liver complaints; that at Oughterard attracts many invalids thither. Those at Athenry, Rathglass, near Kilconnel, Woodbrook, Killimor, Abbert, and Hampstead, are all of high repute in their respective neighbourhoods. The county gives the title of Viscount to a branch of the Arundel family, resident in England. The title of Marquess of Clanricarde expired with the first Marquess, who died without male issue, but the earldom descended to another branch of the family of De Burgh, which enjoys it to the present day, and to which the Marquesate was restored by patent, in 1825.
 |
The town, which rapidly increased in commerce, so as to surpass the rival city of Limerick, was, in 1312, strengthened by the erection of the great gate, and additional works under the superintendence of Nicholas Lynch, surnamed the "Black Marshall." On the death of William de Burgo, the third carl, who was assassinated by his own servants, a great change took place. That nobleman leaving only a daughter, the heads of the two younger branches of the family, fearing the alienation of the estates by marriage, threw off their allegiance, and, adopting the. Irish customs, assumed the native titles of Mac William Eighter and Mac William Oughter; the former took possession of the town, with the territory towards the Shannon, and led the inhabitants into revolt; but on his returning to his allegiance, tranquillity was restored. In 1375, by grant of a charter of the staple, the merchants of Galway and Connaught were permitted for three years to pay the customs due to the Crown at Galway, which was thus placed on an equality with the cities of Cork, Dublin, and Waterford. In 1396, the town, which had hitherto exercised its corporate privileges only by prescription, obtained from Rich. II. a perpetual grant of the customs for the repair of the walls, and also a charter of incorporation, confering many privileges, which charter was confirmed in 1402, by Hen. IV. A licence for coining, which had been hitherto confined to Dublin and Trim, was, about this time, granted to Galway by statute, specifying the value and character of the coins to be struck. During the reigns of Hen. VI. and Edw. IV., the commerce of the port extended to many parts of Europe, particularly to France and Spain, whence large quantities of wine were imported. In 1484, a new charter was granted to the town, vesting its government in a mayor and bailiffs, and expressly ordaining that neither the Lord Mac William of Clanricarde, nor any of his family, should exercise any authority within its limits. In 1493 occurred the melancholy execution by the mayor, James Lynch Fitzstephen, of his own son, for murder, whom, to prevent an intended rescue, he caused to be hanged from a window of his house, under which are carved a skull and cross bones in memory of the tragical event.
During the reign of Hen. VIII., frequent disputes between the inhabitants and the men of Limerick arose from a feeling of rivalry, which were eventually terminated by treaty, and to their instigation did the former attribute the revival of a claim made on them by the Earl of Ormonde for prisage of wine, from which they had been previously exempt. The question, however, was decided in favour of Galway by the court of star chamber; the decision was of the highest importance to its merchants, who at that time supplied nearly the whole kingdom with wine, for which purpose they had vaults at Athboy, of which the remains are still to be seen. A royal ordinance was issued at the same time, by which the merchants of Galway were prohibited from forestalling the markets of Limerick; and in 1545 a new charter was granted, defining the limits of the port, which were made to extend from the isles of Arran to the town, and permitting the exportation of all goods and merchandise, except woollens and linens, with exemption from prisage and a confirmation of all former privileges. Edw. VI. granted a confirmatory charter, and the town continued to increase in prosperity; but the tyranny of Sir Edw. Fitton, the first President of Connaught, having excited an insurrection, it was harassed by the incursions of the neighbouring septs, and many of the principal inhabitants were induced to seek protection from Mac William Eighter. In 1579, the inhabitants received a charter from Elizabeth, with reversionary leases of the dissolved monasteries, the fisheries, the cocket, and lands of the value of 100 marks; but a few years after the Earl of Ormonde reasserted his claim to the prisage of wine, which was allowed by the court of chancery. About the year 1594, Hugh Roe O'Donell having destroyed Enniskillen and burnt Athenry, appeared before the town, and being refused a supply of provisions, set fire to the suburbs, but retreated without doing further injury. In 1600, Lord Mountjoy erected a strong fort on the hill where the Augustinian monastery stood, which completely commanded the town and the harbour; and soon after the accession of Jas. I., the town and lands within a distance of two miles round it were by charter constituted a distinct county, of which the Earl of Clanricarde was appointed governor, with powers equal to those he exercised as President of Connaught.
Soon after the commencement of the war in 1641, the inhabitants joined the parliamentarians, and the Earl of Clanricarde invested the town and speedily reduced it to submission; but his exertions to retain it for the king were frustrated by the violence of Capt. Willoughby, commander of the fort, which induced the people to open their gates to the enemy. In the course of the war, Rinuncini, the pope's nuncio, took refuge here and embarked for Rome. From the great numbers that fled to the town for shelter during this period of intestine war, the plague broke out in July, 1649, and raged with violence till the April following, during which time 3700 of the inhabitants fell victims to its ravages. The Marquess of Clanricarde, wishing to borrow £20,000 for the king's service, offered the revenues of Galway and Limerick to the Duke of Lorraine as security, but the negociation failed. On this occasion a large and very accurate map of the town was drawn and engraved, two copies of which are still extant. In 1652, the town was invested by the parliamentary forces under Sir C. Coote, when Preston, the Irish commander of the garrison, having quitted it and embarked for France, the inhabitants surrendered on condition of retaining their privileges, the liberation of all native prisoners without ransom, and the restoration of all captured property. On the proclamation of Richard Cromwell, as protector, in 1658, so great a tumult was excited that the corporation was threatened with the loss of its charter. In 1690, the town was put into a state of defence, and garrisoned for Jas. II. by three companies of foot and a troop of horse, and in the following year three companies more were added, and the Protestant inhabitants removed into the western suburbs.
After the battle of Aughrim, Gen. De Ginkell, with 14,000 of William's army, laid siege to it; after holding out for some time it surrendered on the 20th of July, 1691, on condition of a safe conduct for the garrison to Limerick, and a free pardon for the inhabitants, with preservation of their property and privileges. The works raised by both armies were levelled, the fort near the town was repaired, and a new one erected on Mutton Island, in the bay, for the protection of the harbour. Previously to the disturbances of 1798, 400 of the inhabitants formed themselves into eight companies of volunteers, for the preservation of the peace of the town; and on the landing of the French at Kilcummin bay, the merchants supplied Gen. Hutchinson with money, which enabled him to join Gen. Lake with the garrison and yeomanry of the town, who consequently shared in the defeat at Castlebar.
The town is most advantageously situated at the head of the spacious bay to which it gives name, and at the mouth of a river issuing from Lough Corrib, which, after a winding course from that lake through the town, falls into the bay. It consists of several streets, in general narrow, and it is in contemplation to appropriate, under parliamentary sanction, a portion of the municipal revenue for its improvement. A gas company has lately been formed to light the town, and the works are in progress. Early in the present century the greater portion of the town walls was levelled and built upon, and streets were continued into the suburbs to such an extent as to give to that part the name of the New Town. The total number of houses, in 1831, was 2683. The more ancient part is built on the plan of a Spanish town; many of the older houses are quadrangular, with an open court and an arched gateway towards the street. Two bridges connect the town with the western district of Iar-Connaught; one built in 1342, which is still in good repair; and the other higher up the stream, a handsome structure built in 1831, and connecting the county court-house and prison. From the latter is a highly interesting view, embracing up the river the fine Elizabethan structure of Menlough castle, on its right bank, and downwards the shipping in the harbour, with the suburbs and the lofty mountains of Clare. The Castle or Upper Citadel barracks, near William's gate, are a handsome range of building for 6 officers and 136 non-commissioned officers and privates, with an hospital for 60 patients; the Shambles barracks, near the river, which are also well built, are for 15 officers and 326 noncommissioned officers and privates, with stabling for six horses. There are two subscription news-rooms, belonging respectively to the Amicable and Commercial societies; and two newspapers are published in the town. Races for some years past have been held on a course about three miles distant. Several flour-mills have been erected on the banks of the river, which has a very rapid fall, and great quantities of flour are made here from the wheat grown in the. neighbourhood, which is of very fine quality. The manufacture of paper is extensively carried on; the works are impelled by water, and a steam-engine has been lately erected for greater efficiency. A portion of the fine black marble found in the vicinity is made into mantel-pieces, and a turning and polishing machine and a patent saw wheel are now being constructed, which will be set in motion by the treadmill in the county gaol: a large brewery and three distilleries are in full operation, and near the town is a bleach-mill. The linen manufacture was introduced, but never flourished here; and the linen-hall erected in the western suburbs has long since fallen into decay.
The commerce, for which the port was formerly so much distinguished, has very much declined; wine is no longer imported in large quantities, and the trade in provisions is much diminished. The principal exports are corn, flour, kelp, marble, wool, and provisions; and the imports, timber, wine, salt, coal, hemp, tallow, and Swedish and British iron. In the year ending Jan. 5th, 1835, 15 British ships of the aggregate burden of 2273 tons, and 3 foreign ships of 421 tons aggregate burden, entered inwards; and 6 British ships of 1044 tons and 2 foreign ships of 301 tons cleared outwards, in the foreign trade. From British ports, 119 ships, of an aggregate burden of 12,215 tons, entered inwards; and 126 of 14,492 tons cleared outwards; and from the Irish ports, 16 ships of 700 tons entered inwards; and 19 of 1039 tons cleared outwards. The number of vessels registered as belonging to the port is 7, of the aggregate burden of 272 tons. The gross amount of customs' duties for 1835 was £31,133. 2. 5., and for 1836, £31,769. 2. 5.; and of excise duties of the district, for the former year, £50,145 12. 5. The custom-house, a small plain building, was erected in 1807. The entrances to Galway bay are, through the north sound, between the most western of the Arran isles, which are situated in the centre of its mouth, and Gulin head to the north, on which is a watch tower; and through the south sound between Dunmacfelin and Innishere island. About a mile south of Galway is Mutton island, connected with the mainland by a ridge of sand, dry at low water; a light has been erected on it, and between it and the town is the ordinary roadstead, affording good anchorage ground, though exposed to a heavy swell during winds from the south and south-south-west. There are two feet of water on the bar: the best shelter for ships of war is along the southern shore; and at the head of the bay, to the east and south of the town, are several creeks and inlets, affording good shelter to small vessels from every wind. A navigable canal from Lough Corrib to the sea at this place was recommended by the late Mr. Nimmo: some new docks planned by him are in progress, towards the completion of which the Commissioners of Public Works have granted a loan of £17,000. The docks will comprise about 9 acres, and be of sufficient depth for vessels of 500 tons' burden, and the canal will cross the town in a direction nearly parallel with the river; the level of the lake being only 14 feet above that of the sea, two locks only will be requisite in the whole distance, which is about 30 miles. The quays will be entirely of hewn limestone and 75 feet in width; the lake also will be deepened and rendered navigable for boats. The whole work, when completed, will add much to the improvement of the trade, which is now under the direction of several of the principal merchants, who have formed themselves into a chamber of commerce: A branch of the Bank of Ireland has been opened here, in a house in Eyre-square. The salmon fishery, for which there is a weir on the river, between the two bridges, has been a source of great profit from an early period, and since 1800, has frequently produced more than £500 per annum. The fishery in the bay, which is more lucrative, is wholly under the direction of the fishermen of Claddagh, which see. This is the head station of the Galway district coast-guard, and the residence of the inspecting commander; it comprises the subordinate stations of Ballyvaughan, Kilcolgan, Barna, Casleh Bay, Isles of Arran, Fairhill, and Kilkerran, comprehending a force of 6 officers and 51 men. The markets are on Wednesday and Saturday, the former principally for corn, and the latter also for corn, provisions of every kind, and for pigs. Fairs are held May 31st, and Sept. 21st. The com market is held at the Little Green; that for butchers' meat and provisions in a well-arranged market-place, near William's-gate, erected in 1802.
By charter of the 29th of Chas. II., the corporation consists of a mayor, two sheriffs, an indefinite number of free burgesses, a recorder, town-clerk, mayor and two constables of the staple, sword-bearer, chamberlain, water-bailiff, and other officers. The mayor is elected annually from the free burgesses, and may appoint a deputy; the mayor, sheriffs (who are similarly elected), and free burgesses form the common council, by whom all the other officers of the corporation are elected and freemen admitted, the latter by favour only. The mayor and recorder are justices of the peace for the county of the town and also for the county at large, and there are three charter magistrates, to whom five have been recently added by an order of council. The borough appears to have first sent members to a parliament held at Tristledermot, now Castledermot, in 1377, and notices of the provost and bailiffs being summoned to subsequent parliaments till 1559 are on record. The right is recognised in the charters of Jas. I. and Chas. II., and the corporation continued to send two members to the Irish parliament till the Union, from which period they returned one member to the Imperial parliament, till, by the act of the 2nd of Wm. IV., cap. 88, the original number was restored. By that act the right of election, previously vested in freeholders of 40s. and upwards within the county of the town, and in all freemen, was extended to £10 householders, and to £20 leaseholders for 14 years, and £10 leaseholders for £20 years; the non-resident freemen, except within seven miles, were disfranchised, and the 40s. freeholders allowed to retain the franchise only for life. The number of electors registered to vote at the last general election was 2062, and the number that actually voted, 1795: the sheriffs are the returning officers. The mayor and recorder hold a court of record every Tuesday and Friday, for the recovery of debts to any amount, arising within the limits of the county of the town; the mesne process is by arrest of the person or attachment of the goods of the defendant, on an affidavit of the debt. They are also empowered to hold a criminal court, which they transfer to the general quarter sessions for the county. The assizes for the county are held here, and the quarter sessions in April and October; those for the county of the town are held in January, April, July, and October. The court-houses for the county and the borough are both handsome buildings; the former was erected in 1815, in the northern suburb, and contains two spacious court-rooms, and other requisite apartments; the front is embellished with a handsome portico of four fluted Doric columns supporting a pediment, in the tympanum of which are the royal arms. The county gaol is built in the form of a crescent, vaulted throughout, and without any timber; it contains six wards for male, and two for female criminals, with two for debtors, separated by walls converging towards the centre, in which is the governor's house; there is a tread wheel, and the prisoners are also employed in breaking stones; it will contain 300 prisoners, placing two in each cell; the whole is surrounded by a boundary wall, between which and the building is a wide gravel walk. In an open situation near it is the borough gaol, erected in 1810, but not adapted either for classification or for the maintenance of discipline; another on the improved system is in course of erection.
The county of the town comprehends an extensive rural district, comprising 23,000 statute acres. The surface is studded with lakes, and the scenery strikingly diversified; the soil is fertile and in several parts peculiarly favourable to the growth of wheat, of which large quantities are raised. The system of agriculture is improved, and there is abundance of limestone, which is quarried for building and for agricultural purposes. Black marble of a very fine quality is found at Men-lough, and also at Merlin Park; both veins have been worked, but the former more extensively, from the greater facility of water carriage at that place. At Men-lough is also an apparently inexhaustible vein of fine grey marble. There are strong indications of iron ore, but no attempt, has yet been made to explore it; granite is also found, and in some parts, contrary to the usual order, beneath the limestone formation. After sinking a depth of six feet through the limestone stratum, a white sand of granitic quality, without a pebble, and fine enough for plaistering, has lately been discovered; its depth has not been ascertained, but in some places it is coloured as if by water running from the iron ore. The name of the lake, called by the ancient inhabitants Mine-lough, and which has both a subterranean source and outlet, tends to confirm the opinion that the townland abounds with various minerals. About 40 persons are employed in the marble quarries, and about 1300 in preparing peat for fuel. The principal seats are Menlough Castle, the residence of Sir V. Blake, Bart., a venerable castellated mansion in the Elizabethan style, beautifully situated; Villa House, the residence of the Warden of Galway; Leneboy, of J. O' Hara, Esq., recorder; Nile Lodge, of J. O'Hara, Esq.; Sea View, of Mrs. Browne; Vicar's Croft, of the Rev. J. D'Arcy; St. Helen's, of Mrs. Hynes; Renmore Lodge, of P. M. Lynch, Esq.; Merlin Park, of C. Blake, Esq.; Merview, of W. Joyce, Esq.; Rahoon, of R. O'Connor, Esq.; and Barna, of N. Lynch, Esq. The Grand Jury presentments for the county of the town, in 1835, amounted to £5701. 8. 3., of which £1035. 14. 6. was for the repairs of roads, bridges, &c.; £3568. 10. 10. for public buildings and charities, officers' salaries, and miscellaneous expenses; £453. 19. 11. for police; and £643. 3. in repayment of a loan by Government.
This district originally formed part of the diocese of Enachdune, an ancient bishoprick, annexed in 1324 to the archiepiscopal see of Tuam. It consists of the parish of St. Nicholas, the greater part of that of Rahoon, and part of Oranmore. The parish of St. Nicholas comprises 3046 statute acres in cultivation, as applotted under the tithe act. The living is a rectory, united to the rectories of Rahoon, Oranmore, Clare-Galway, Moycullin, Kilcommin, Ballinacourty, and Shruel, together constituting the Wardenship of Galway, instituted by the Archbishop in 1484, when the church was made collegiate, and exercising an ecclesiastical jurisdiction distinct from that of the diocese, and exempt from that of the Archbishop, with the exception only of triennial visitation. The warden is annually elected (the same person has of late been successively re-elected), and three vicars appointed for life, by the corporation under their charter. The tithes amount to £130, wholly payable to the warden, who also receives three-fourths of the tithes of the other parishes of the union, amounting, with the rent of houses and two glebes, to £1268. 15. 10 1/2. The vicars receive each an annual stipend of £75, payable by the warden. The church, which, by letters patent granted by Edw. VI., was constituted the "Royal College of Galway," and in the reign of Elizabeth endowed with the dissolved monasteries of Annaghdown and Ballintubber, in the county of Mayo, is a spacious cruciform structure, in the decorated English style, with a tower rising from the centre. It was built in 1320, and is nearly in the centre of the town; the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recently granted £1385 towards its repair. In the R. C. divisions Galway is the head of a see, comprising 12 parochial unions or districts, and containing 14 chapels, served by 24 clergymen, of whom 12 are parish priests and 12 coadjutors or curates. It is one of the six sees suffragan to Tuam, and the parish of St. Nicholas is the benefice and residence of the R. C. bishop; the chapel is a spacious edifice. There are friaries and nunneries of the orders of St. Francis, St. Augustine, and St. Dominick, to each of which is attached a chapel; there is also a convent for nuns of the order of the Presentation, and a place of worship for Presbyterians. In the east suburbs stands one of the four classical schools founded in Ireland by the munificent bequest of Erasmus Smith; it is a handsome building, erected at an expense of £8000 by the trustees, who allow the master a salary of £100 per ann., with the privilege of taking boarders. The parochial schools are also aided by the trustees, who allow the master a salary of £40 and the mistress £27, 13. 10. per annum; a new school-room has been built on ground given by the trustees, towards defraying the expense of which the inhabitants subscribed £300 and £250 was granted by Government. A school is conducted by the ladies of the Presentation Convent, in which 80 of the girls are maintained and clothed; and there is a large national school on the site of the barrack in Lombard-street for which two good school-rooms have been built at an expense of £600, raised by subscriptions. There are also 16 private schools, in which are about 660 children. The house of industry and the dispensary, to the latter of which the English Relief Committee of 1832 gave £700, vested in the Archbishop of Tuam as trustee, and government £500, vested in four trustees chosen by the subscribers, are supported in the customary manner. A widows' and orphans' asylum was founded by the Rev. Mr. Fynn, P.P. of St. Nicholas, and is supported under his patronage by subscription. A Protestant poor-house, in which are 20 inmates, is supported by the parochial clergy and the interest of £500, bequeathed to the Warden in trust for the Protestant poor, by the late Mr. Kirwan, of London, a native of Galway. A Magdalen asylum is supported by two R. C. ladies, who devote their time and their fortune to its management. No vestiges can be traced of the Franciscan friary without the north gate, founded in 1296 by Sir W. De Burgo; of a Dominican friary near the west gate, previously a cell to the Premonstratensian abbey of Tuam; an Augustinian friary, founded in 1508 by Stephen Lynch and Margaret his wife; a Carmelite friary, a nunnery on an island in Lough Corrib, or an hospital of Knight Templars. There are numerous ruins of ancient castles in the neighbourhood. Among the more distinguished natives of Galway may be noticed Patrick D'Arcy, author of the celebrated "Argument on the Independence of Ireland," in 1641; John Lynch, author of "Cambrensis Eversus," "Alithinologia," and other tracts; Roderick O'Flaherty, author of the "Ogygia"; Sir G. L. Staunton, secretary to Lord Macartney, and writer of the account of that nobleman's embassy to Pekin; Walter Blake Kirwan, celebrated as a popular preacher in Dublin; and Richard Kirwan, an eminent chymist and mineralogist. James Hardiman, Esq., author of the History of Galway, has a villa near the town. Galway gives the title of Viscount to the family of Monckton.
GARE.--See BALLINGARRY, county of TIPPERARY.
GARFINAGH, or GARFINEY, a parish, in the barony of CORKAGUINEY, county of KERRY, and province of MUNSTER, 2 miles (N. E.) from Dingle, on the road to Tralee; containing 938 inhabitants. It comprises 4652 1/2 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, a large portion of which consists of mountain pasture; the arable portion is well manured with sea-weed and sand, brought from the strand at Bunbawn, and the state of agriculture is gradually improving. At Flemingstown is a small boulting-mill. Balintagart, the newly erected mansion of S. Murray Hickson, Esq., is finely situated on an eminence commanding an extensive view of Dingle bay and the surrounding mountains. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Ardfert and Aghadoe, and in the patronage of the Bishop: the rectory is impropriate in Lord Ventry. The tithes, amounting to £138. 9. 25., are payable in the proportion of two-thirds to the impropriator and one-third to the vicar: the glebe belongs to Lord Ventry. In the R. C. divisions the parish is included in the district of Dingle. At Balintagart is an ancient, burial-ground, now used for children only: it is surrounded by a circular fosse or ditch, and contains several gravestones with Ogham inscriptions. On clearing some ground in the vicinity, several small circular cells were discovered, constructed of stone work and communicating with each other: they are supposed to have formed an ancient reservoir, to which there was a descent of several steps. Near the ruins of the church is a very narrow bridge over the small river Garfinagh, on the old road from Dingle to Tralee; from its high arched form it has been termed the Rainbow bridge, and is evidently of great antiquity.
GAROMNA, an island, in the parish of KILLANIN, barony of MOYCULLEN, county of GALWAY, and province of CONNAUGHT, 20 miles (W.) from Galway, on the North side of Galway bay: the population is returned with the parish. This island forms the western side of Greatman's bay, and between it and the island of Arranmore is the North Sound, or entrance to the bay of Galway. It contains 1427 statute acres, of which about one-third consists of arable land and the remainder of mountain pasture and bog. The inhabitants depend for support chiefly on the fishery, which is here extremely precarious; and in 1831, when the famine desolated this part of the coast, they were driven to the utmost state of destitution until relieved by the London Committee. On the north-east side of the island is a small pier, originally erected by the late Fishery Board, but having been destroyed, it was subsequently rebuilt with funds from the charitable societies, and is now of great utility. The sounds between this island and the adjoining ones are dry or fordable at low water: about half a mile from the south side is Englishman's Rock, which is dry at 3/4 ebb. In the R. C. divisions it forms a parish or district of itself, and has two chapels, one of which is a small thatched building. In its immediate vicinity is Innisbaraher, an island containing 32 acres of arable land and 30 of bog and mountain pasture.
GARRANAMANA, a parish, in the barony of GOWRAN, county of KILKENNY, and province of LEINSTER; containing, with the merged parish of Mocktown or Rathbin, 158 inhabitants and 834 statute acres. It is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Ossory, forming part of the union of Burnchurch: the tithes amount to £38. 19. 11. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Freshford.
GARRANEKENEFICK, a parish, in the barony of IMOKILLY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER; 2 1/2 miles (W. by S.) from Cloyne, on the harbour of Cork; containing 1033 inhabitants. It is a rectory, in the diocese of Cloyne, appropriated from time immemorial to the bishop's mensal: the tithes amount to £79. 3. 4. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Aghada, or Saleen. About 80 children are educated in two private schools. Rathcourcey, built on an inlet of the harbour, is occasionally visited for sea-bathing. The village of Saleen contains about 30 neat white-washed cottages and a R. C. chapel.
GARRANGIBBON, a parish, in the barony of SLIEVARDAGH, county of TIPPERARY, and province of MUNSTER; containing 1468 inhabitants. It is a rectory, in the diocese of Lismore, entirely impropriate in Caesar Sutton, Esq., and the Marquess of Ormonde: the tithes amount to £180. About 130 children are educated in two private schools.
GARRISON, a village, partly in the parish of INNISMACSAINT, and partly in that of DEVENISH, barony of MAGHERABOY, county of FERMANAGH, and province of ULSTER, 7 miles (W.) from Churchhill, on the road from Ballyshannon to Manorhamilton; containing 69 inhabitants. Here are a chapel of ease to the parish church of Devenish, a R. C. chapel, and a school. It is a constabulary police station, and fairs are held on May 21st, July 19th, Oct. 21st. and Dec. 21st, besides which fairs have lately been established every alternate month.
GARRISTOWN, a parish, in the barony of BALROTHERY, county of DUBLIN, and province of LEINSTER, 4 miles (N. W.) from Ashbourne; containing 2081 inhabitants, of which number, 741 are in the village of Garristown, and 218 in that of Baldwinstown. It is a constabulary police station, and has a dispensary. There is a windmill on a hill near the village, from which is an extensive prospect, commanding a view over fourteen counties. Good building stone and turf are obtained in the parish; and fairs are held on May 5th, Aug. 15th, and Nov. 1st. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Dublin, and in the gift of Lord Trimleston, in whom the rectory is impropriate: the vicarial tithes were valued at £50, and there is a glebe of 25 acres. The church is a plain building: the glebe-house, which was built in 1791, is in ruins. In the R. C. divisions the parish is united to Ballymadun; there is a chapel in each parish: that of Garristown was erected in 1828, and galleries were added to the chapel of Ballymadun in 1833. There is a national school, in which about 100 boys are instructed, and there are also two private schools.
GARRYCLOYNE, a parish, partly in the barony of BARRETTS, but chiefly in that of EAST MUSKERRY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 5 miles (N. W.) from Cork, on the road to Kanturk; containing, with the village of Blarney (which is described under its own head), 2027 inhabitants. It comprises 3530 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, and valued at £1870 per annum. There are several extensive dairy farms, and the butter is held in high repute: the cattle are well stalled and fed with clover, turnips, and tares. Agriculture has much improved within the last few years, and the farms, particularly those belonging to the gentry, are well cultivated: the principal manure is lime. A large quantity of limestone is procured on the demesne of Blarney, the only place abounding with it from Cork to Mallow: good manure is also obtained from the cattle stalls. The establishment of a farming society, excellent roads, and other advantages have combined to improve the system of farming, hut in some instances the old method is still pursued. There is neither mountain nor bog in the parish. The line of the intended canal from Cork to Limerick passes through it; and there are boulting-mills capable of producing 6000 barrels of flour annually. In the parish are several gentlemen's seats: Blarney Castle is described in the account of that village, to the north of which is Putland's Glen, the residence of George Jeffreys, Esq., by whom it was planted, and who holds a lease of it from Mr. Putland, whose ancestor was a member of the Hollow Sword Blade Company, and a large portion of this parish was allotted to him; it originally formed part of the Clan-earthy estate, which being confiscated in 1692, was purchased from the Government by the company. To the north of the parish is the manor-house and castle of Garrycloyne, the property of John Travers, Esq., whose ancestor obtained a grant of it in 1604: the castle is a lofty square tower, built in 1535 by the Clancarthys; the house is spacious and well built on rising ground looking over a fine lawn of more than 100 acres, surrounded by fine plantations. Abbeyville is the seat of the Rev. W. Stopford. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Cloyne, united at a very early period to the rectory and vicarage of Grenaugh, and in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £512, and of the whole benefice to £1562; there is a glebe of 21 acres. The glebe-house was erected in 1807, by aid of a gift of £100 and a loan of £800 from the late Board of First Fruits. The church is a handsome building of the Doric order, situated on rising ground commanding a view of the village and plains. In the R. C. divisions the parish is united with Whitechurch: the chapel, a neat Gothic structure, towards the erection of which Mr. Putland contributed £200, is situated at the northern extremity of Putland's Glen. The male and female parochial schools are in the village of Blarney, and are supported entirely by the rector, who provides a house rent-free for the master and mistress; he also supports a Sunday school. Adjoining the R. C. chapel is a national school, a large building recently erected.
GARRYNOE, or GARRYVOE, a parish, in the Eastern Division of the barony of EAST CARBERY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 5 3/4 miles (S. W. by W.) from Bandon; the population is returned with the parish of Desertserges, into which Garrynoe is considered to have merged. It is situated on the river Bandon, and comprises 8027 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, and valued at £3365 per annum. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Cork, and in the patronage of Lord Kinsale: the tithes amount to £315.
GARRYVOE, or GARRYBOVE, a parish, in the barony of IMOKILLY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 4 miles (S. E. by S.) from Castlemartyr; containing 813 inhabitants. It comprises 1657 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, about three-fourths of which are under tillage, the remainder being pasture and furze brakes. The soil is generally poor, but is well manured with sea-weed and sand; the substratum is clay-slate. Being situated on the shore of the Atlantic, many of the inhabitants are engaged in fishing. The principal seat is Garryvoe Lodge, the residence of J. O'Neil, Esq. It is a vicarage, in the diocese of Cloyne, and forms part of the union of Kilcredan; the rectory is impropriate in A. Maun, Esq., M.D. The tithes amount to £232. 10. 10., of which £155. 0. 6 1/2. is payable to the impropriator, and £77. 10. 3 1/2. to the vicar. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Ladiesbridge, or Ballymacoda. The parochial schools are supported by Capt. Hoare, Mrs. Fitzgerald, and the vicar; and there is a private school. The old church is in ruins, and near it is a small square tower, called Garryvoe Castle.
GARTAN, a parish, in the barony of KILMACRENAN, county of DONEGAL, and province of ULSTER, 6 miles (N. W.) from Letterkenny, on the road to Dunfanaghy; containing 2109 inhabitants. St. Columb founded a monastery here in 521, of which the ruins still remain. The parish comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 44,124 statute acres, including 1590 under water; there is a considerable extent of heathy mountain and bog. A silver and lead mine was worked here in 1835, in the townland of Warrenstown, but has been discontinued. Gartan is the residence of Capt. Chambers. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Raphoe, and in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £150. The glebe-house was erected in 1828 by a gift of £400 and a loan of £380 from the late Board of First Fruits: the glebe comprises 25 acres. The church, which is a small plain building, was erected in 1819. In the R. C. divisions the parish is the head of a union or district, comprising also part of Kilmacrenan, in each of which is a chapel. The parochial school, in which about 50 children are educated, is aided by an endowment from Col. Robertson's fund, and subscriptions from the rector; there is also a Sunday school.
GARVAGH, a market and post-town, in the parish of ERRIGAL, barony of COLERAINE, county of LONDONDERRY, and province of ULSTER, 8 miles (S.) from Coleraine, and 110 1/2 (N. by W.) from Dublin, on the road from Armagh to Coleraine: the population is returned with the parish. It appears to have been a place of some importance soon after the plantation of Ulster. In 1641, Col. Rowley raised a regiment of foot and marched into the town for its protection. After keeping possession of it for some time, he was attacked by a party of forces commanded by Sir Phelim O'Nial, who, making themselves masters of the place, put the Colonel and many of the inhabitants to death, burnt the town, and plundered the country to the very gates of Coleraine. The town consists of one long spacious street intersected at right angles by two smaller streets; many of the houses are large and handsomely built, and the whole has an appearance of great respectability. Adjoining it is Garvagh House, the seat of Lord Garvagh, a spacious mansion with a well-planted demesne and an extensive park; and there are several other gentlemen's seats, which are noticed in the article on the parish. The trade of the place is considerable, and with the town owes its prosperity to the Canning family. The market is on Friday and is well supplied; and on the third Friday in every month a fair is held for the sale of brown linen, horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs, each of which is numerously attended. Petty sessions are held in a court-house on the last Monday of every month. Adjoining the town is the parish church, a small neat edifice; and there is a meeting-house for Presbyterians in connection with the Synod of Ulster, of the second class, built in 1746, rebuilt in 1790, and enlarged in 1830; another in connection with the Seceding Synod, and a third for Separatists from that synod.
GARVAGHY, a parish, partly in the barony of LOWER, but chiefly in that of UPPER, IVEAGH, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 4 miles (S. E.) from Dromore, on the western branch of the river Lagan, and on the road from Banbridge to Downpatrick; containing 5036 inhabitants. This parish comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 10,256 3/4 statute acres, which with the exception of about 50 acres of bog and 26 of water, are wholly under tillage; the system of agriculture is greatly improved, and the lands are well fenced and generally in a high state of cultivation. There are some quarries of stone of good quality, which is extensively worked for building, repairing the roads, and other purposes. The principal seats are Carniew, the residence of R. D. Macredy, Esq.; the Cottage, of W. Cosby, Esq.; Ballyely, of R. Maginnis, Esq.; Lion Hill, of H. Waugh, Esq.; the glebe-house, of the Rev. H. S. Hamilton, Esq.; and Waringsford, the property of J. Heron, Esq. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Dromore, and in the patronage of the Bishop; the rectory is partly appropriate to the see, and partly constitutes the corps of the prebend of Dromeragh in the cathedral of Dromore. The tithes amount to £514, of which £185 is payable to the bishop, £129 to the prebendary, and £200 to the vicar. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recommended the re-annexation of the rectorial tithes to the vicarage on the next avoidance of the prebend. The glebe-house, a handsome residence, was built by aid of a gift of £400, and a loan of £400, from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1820; the glebe comprises 74 acres. The church, a small edifice in the Grecian style, built in 1699, was thoroughly repaired in 1780, when the chancel was taken down. In the R. C. divisions the parish forms part of the union or district of Dromore; the chapel at Ballineybeg is a small edifice, erected in 1822. There are places of worship for Presbyterians in connection with the Seceding Synod (of the first class), and Antiburghers. The parochial school is on the glebe, near the church; at Carniew is a school, with a residence for the master attached, to which the Rev. C. Hamilton, in 1814, gave an acre of land; there are also a national and five other public schools. About 250 children are taught in four private schools, and there are six Sunday schools. At Ballineybeg, and also at Knockgorman, are some remains of cromlechs.
GAULSKILL, a parish, in the barony of IDA, county of KILKENNY, and province of LEINSTER, 4 miles (N. by W.) from Waterford, on the road to Thomastown; containing 322 inhabitants. It is also called Kiltokegan and Kilskegan, and comprises 1225 acres, including a lake of 100 acres. The ancient castle appears, from a monument in the church, to have formerly belonged to the De Burgo family. It is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Ossory, forming part of the union of Dunkitt: the tithes amount to £75; near the church is a small glebe. The church was built in 1792, by aid of a gift of £500 from the late Board of First Fruits, and the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recently granted £176 for its repair. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Kilmacow.
GEALE, or GAILE, a parieh, in the barony of MIDDLETHIRD, county of TIPPERARY, and province of MUNSTER, 4 miles (S. by W.) from Thurles, on the road to Cashel; containing 707 inhabitants. . It comprises 2494 statute acres, valued at £1757 per annum, which is all arable and pasture with the exception of about 30 acres of rock on Killough Hill, which, being surrounded by a flat country, is a very conspicuous object. Near it is Killough Castle, the occasional residence of the Hon. Mrs. Plunkett; and the south-west side of the hill, which is planted, forms part of the demesne of Gaile, the residence of S. Phillips, Esq. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Cashel, and in the patronage of the Archbishop: the tithes amount to £185. There is no church, glebe-house, or glebe; the Protestant parishioners attend divine service at the church of Holy Cross, about three miles distant. On the demesne of Gaile are some remains of the old church.
GEASHILL, a post-town and parish, partly in the barony of UPPER PHILIPSTOWN, but chiefly in that of GEASHILL, KING'S county, and province of LEINSTER, 4 miles (S.) from Philipstown, and 51 (S. by W.) from Dublin, on the road from Portarlington to Tullamore; containing 13,253 inhabitants, of which number, 467 are in the town. The castle, of which there are some remains, anciently belonging to the O'Dempseys, from whom, with the surrounding territory, it passed to the Fitzgeralds, and in 1620, by marriage, to Sir Robert Digby, whose lady surviving him was besieged in it for several months, but was relieved in 1642. The town contains 87 houses arranged in a triangular form, most of which are thatched. It is a constabulary police station, has a dispensary, a patent for a market which is not held, and fairs on May 1st, Oct. 6th, and Dec. 26th, which last is one of the largest pig fairs in the kingdom; fairs are also held at Killeigh. The parish comprises 34,630 statute acres, and is the property of the Earl Digby; the soil is a deep clay, with a substratum of limestone gravel: there is a large extent of bog and some building stone, and the Earl Digby has large nurseries of forest trees; agriculture is but little improved. Sir W. Cusack Smith, Bart., has a seat at Newtown. It is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Kildare, forming the corps of the prebend of Geashill in the cathedral of Kildare, and in the patronage of Earl Digby: the tithes amount to £1292. 6. l 3/4. The glebe-house is a quarter of a mile from the church, and there are two glebes, comprising 82 acres. The parochial church is a plain neat edifice, rebuilt in 1814 by aid of a loan of £1500 from the late Board of First Fruits, and for the repairs of which the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have lately granted £182. At Killeigh and Cloneyhork are chapels of ease; the former, to which the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recently granted £196 for repairs, is built on the site of the old monastery, part of which is incorporated with the present building. In the R. C. divisions the parish is partly in the union or district of Ballykeane, and partly in that of Portarlington, and has chapels at Killeigh and Ballinagar, belonging to the former union, and at Kilmalogue for the latter. There are two places of worship for Wesleyan Methodists. The parochial school is aided by an annual donation of £15 from Earl Digby; the school-house was built at the expense of the late R. E. Digby, Esq.; and there are a national and six other public schools; altogether affording instruction to about 670 children; and 15 private schools, in which are about 660 children: there are also 11 Sunday schools. Vestiges of the castle yet exist, and near Ballinagar are the ruins of a church. Geashill gives the inferior title of Baron to Earl Digby.--See BALLINAGAR and KILLEIGH.
GEEVAGH.--See KILMACTRANY.
GENEVA, NEW.--See CROOK.
GERNONSTOWN, a parish, in the barony of ARDEE, county of LOUTH, and province of LEINSTER, on the river Glyde and on the road from Drogheda to Dundalk; the population, including that of the post-town of Castle-Bellingham, is returned with the parish of Kilsaran. This parish, which for all civil purposes is considered a part of Kilsaran, comprises, according to the Ordnance survey, 1302 statute acres, of which 17 are in the river Glyde; the soil is principally clay, with some loam and gravel; the system of agriculture is greatly improved, and the land generally in a good state of cultivation. It is a rectory, in the diocese of Armagh, and part of the union of Kilsaran; the tithes amount to £146. 15. 4. The church of the union is in this parish, and is situated close to the town of Castle-Bellingham. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Kilsaran.
GERNONSTOWN, a parish, in the barony of UPPER SLANE, county of MEATH, and province of LEINSTER, 2 1/4 miles (W.) from Slane, on the road from Slane to Kingscourt; containing 925 inhabitants. This parish comprises 2394 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act; the land is of good quality and is nearly equally divided between tillage and pasture. The principal seats are Tankardstown, the residence of Mrs. Hopkins, situated in an extensive demesne surrounded by thriving plantations: and Rochestown, of J. Blakeney, Esq. The mail coach road from Dublin to Londonderry skirts the parish on the east. It is a rectory, in the diocese of Meath, and part of the union of Stack-allen: the tithes amount to £230. 15. 4., and the glebe comprises 20 acres of profitable land. In the R. C. divisions it forms part of the union or district of Slane; the chapel at Rushwee is a small plain building. A R. C. school is about to be placed under the New Board of Education, and about 50 children are taught in a private school.
GIANTS' CAUSEWAY.--See BILLY.
GILBERTSTOWN, or BENDENSTOWN, a parish, in the barony of FORTH, county of CARLOW, and province of LEINSTER, 3 miles (S. W.) from Tullow, on the road to Leighlin; containing 567 inhabitants. Building stone is found, and there is some bog. Prior to 1830 the parish formed part of the union of Aghade. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Leighlin, and in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £250. 0. 8. In the R. C. divisions it is the head of a union or district, also called Ballon and Ratoe, comprising the parishes of Gilbertstown, Ballon, Kellistown, Templepetre, Aghade, and parts of Fennagh and Urglin, in which union are two chapels, situated at Ballon and Ratoe. About 180 children are educated in a national school.
GILFORD, a post-town, in the parish of TULLYLISH, barony of LOWER IVEAGH, county of DOWN, and province of ULSTER, 11 miles (N.) from Newry, and 65 1/2 (N.) from Dublin, on the river Bann, and the road from Loughbrickland to Tanderagee and Portadown; containing 529 inhabitants. In 1772, a body of insurgents, calling themselves "Hearts of Oak," committed frequent outrages in this neighbourhood, and on the 6th of March attacked Gilford Castle, the residence of Sir R. Johnston, Bart., and in the assault the Rev. S. Morell, Presbyterian minister, was shot while attempting to reason with the assailants from a window of the castle; it is now the residence of Sir W. Johnston, Bart. The town is situated on both sides of the river, over which is a handsome stone bridge of two arches, and in the vicinity are a large spinning establishment, some extensive bleach-greens, flour-mills, and chemical works. The canal from Lough Neagh to Newry passes within a mile of the town, and on its banks at that place is a wharf with some good warehouses. Fairs are held on the 21st of June and November; they are toll free and well attended. There is a constabulary police station, and petty sessions are held on alternate Wednesdays. There is a chalybeate spring, the water of which has the same properties as those of Pyrmont. Several gentlemen's seats in the neighbourhood are noticed in the account of Tullylish, which see.
GILTOWN, a parish, in the barony of SOUTH NAAS, county of KILDARE, and province of LEINSTER, 2 miles (S. E. by S.) from Kilcullen; containing 981 inhabitants. This parish is situated on a small mountain stream, and comprises 4335 statute acres, of which about 120 are woodland, 70 roads, and the remainder good arable and pasture land, the former noted for the growth of wheat; the system of agriculture is improved. Fuel is very scarce, turf being drawn from a distance of 7 or 8 miles. Giltown House is the residence of the Rev. J. Borrowes. It is a curacy, in the diocese of Dublin, forming part of the perpetual curacy of Kilcullen; the rectory is impropriate in Cramer Roberts, Esq. The tithes amount to £69. 4. 7 1/2., there is neither church, glebe-house, nor glebe. About 18 children are taught in a private school. There are some ruins of the old church, and in the demesne of Giltown is a Danish rath.
GIRLEY, a parish, in the barony of UPPER KELLS, county of MEATH, and province of LEINSTER, 2 1/2 miles (N.) from Athboy, on the road from Mullingar to Navan; containing 1480 inhabitants. This parish comprises 4637 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act: about two-thirds are grass land of excellent quality, and the remainder under good cultivation, with the exception of a considerable tract of bog extending into the neighbouring parish of Burry; there are some thriving plantations. The principal seats are Drewstown, the residence of F. McVeigh, Esq., a handsome house in a highly improved demesne; Johnsbrook, of J. Tandy, Esq., pleasantly situated in grounds tastefully embellished; and Triermore, of T. Rotheram, Esq. It is a vicarage, in the diocese of Meath, forming part of the union of Athboy; the rectory is impropriate in Dominick O'Reilly, Esq. The tithes amount to £207. 1. 7., one-half payable to the impropriator and the other to the vicar; there is no glebe-house; the glebe comprises 1 1/2 acre. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Kells; the chapel at Fordstown is a handsome modern building, erected in 1800. About 60 children are taught in a private school, of which the school-house is occupied rent-free. There are some remains of the ancient parish church.
GLANBANE, a parish, in the barony of CLANWILLIAM, county of TIPPERARY, and province of MUNSTER, 7 miles (W. N. W.) from Tipperary. It consists of only a single farm, and is a rectory, in the diocese of Emly, forming part of the union of Ballyscadane and of the corps of the deanery of Emly: the tithes amount to £47. 11. 6.
GLANBARAHANE.--See CASTLEHAVEN.
GLANBEHY.--See GLENBEGH.
GLANDELAGH.--See GLENDALOUGH.
GLANDORE, a small but rising village, in the parish of KILFAUGHNABEG, Western Division of the barony of EAST CARBERY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 3 miles (S. W.) from Rosscarbery; containing about 200 inhabitants. This seems to have been a place of some importance at an early period, as appears from the erection of the castles of Glandore and Kilfinnan; for many years it continued in a very impoverished state, but it has again become a place of considerable note through the spirited exertions of its present proprietor, J. Redmond Barry, Esq., who has within the last few years expended upwards of £10,000 in various improvements. It is situated on the eastern side of Glandore harbour, which affords secure anchorage to vessels of large size; and is navigable to Leap, a village on the Cork and Skibbereen mail road. The scenery at the entrance of the harbour is extremely picturesque, and is remarkable as having formed the subject, of a Latin poem, called "Carberiae Rupes," written by Dean Swift, who spent some time in the neighbourhood. A pier has been recently constructed near the village, which affords protection to about 20 fishing yawls of three tons each; fish of every kind is abundant in the bay. Many elegant houses and a comfortable hotel have been erected, and from the beauty of its situation and the salubrity of the climate, the village has become a favourite place of residence, and much frequented during the bathing season; baths have been erected and every accommodation afforded for the convenience of visiters. The principal residences are Glandore Castle, the seat of P. Morris, Esq.; Glandore House, of J. Redmond Barry, Esq.; Glandore Cottage, of H. Townsend, Esq.; Glandore Lodge, of R. Adams, Esq.; Stone Hall, of Major T. Allen; Westview House, of Major Edw. Allen; Chateau Maria, of F. Allen, Esq.; Kilfrieman Castle, of T. Raneland, Esq.; Prospect House, of John Morris, Esq.; Glenville, of Capt. E. Hart; Union Cottage, of Mrs. Donovan; and Cliff Cottage, of the Rev. Mr. Walker. A temporary church and the R. C. chapel for the parish of Kilfaughnabeg are in the village. A school-house capable of containing 600 children, has been lately erected by Mr. Barry, with the aid of the National Board of Education; the boys receive instruction in agriculture and trades from competent teachers, and a model farm and carpenters' workshop are connected with it. The management of the girls' school reflects the highest credit on Miss Adams, the acting patroness, who most benevolently devotes her time to its superintendence: an infants' school has also been established.
GLANEALY, a parish, partly in the barony of ARKLOW, but chiefly in that of NEWCASTLE, county of WICKLOW, and province of LEINSTER, 4 miles (W. S. W.) from Wicklow, on the road from Ashford to Rathdrum; containing 1531 inhabitants, of which number, 193 are in the village. It comprises 4855 statute acres, including some waste land and bog. The scenery is pleasingly diversified and enriched with timber of luxuriant growth, and there are several handsome villas; the principal are Hollywood, the residence of A. S. Broomfield, Esq., Ballyfrea, of J. Dickson, Esq.; Glencarrig, of H. J Segrave, Esq.; Favorita, of the Rev. Leek McDonnell; and the glebe-house, of the Rev. C. Armstrong. It is a rectory, in the diocese of Dublin, forming part of the union of Wicklow; the tithes amount to £283. 10. 5., and there is a glebe of 3 acres and a glebe-house. The church, which is in the later English style, was erected in 1783, by aid of a grant from the late Board of First Fruits, and the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recently granted £111 for its repairs. In the R. C. divisions also it is in the union of Wicklow; there is a small chapel in the village. Besides the parochial school, ahout 60 children are instructed in a national school, and there are two private schools.
GLANINAGH, a parish, in the barony of BURREN, county of CLARE, and province of MUNSTER, 7 1/2 miles (W.) from Burren, on the southern shore of Galway bay; containing 545 inhabitants, of which number, 220 are in the village. It comprises about 4200 statute acres, which chiefly consist of rocky mountain pasture; the portion in tillage is manured with sea-weed, an abundance of which is procured in the bay. It comprehends the lofty headland called Blackhead, in lat. 53° 9' 20" and lon. 9° 13', along the north-eastern shore of which is deep water and shelter for large vessels. Several boats belonging to this parish are engaged in the fishery of Galway bay. A new line of road, about four miles in length, is now in progress along the coast round Blackhead, which will nearly complete the line of communication round the coast of the county. It is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Kilfenora, forming part of the union and corps of the treasurership of the cathedral of Kilfenora: the tithes amount to £32. 10. In the R. C. divisions it is part of the union or district of Glyn, or Glenarraha. The ruins of the church still exist in the burial-ground.
GLANKEEN, a parish, in the barony of KILNEMANAGH, county of TIPPERARY, and province of MUNSTER, on the road from Thurles to Nenagh; containing, with the post-town of Burris-o'-leagh 6585 inhabitants. It comprises 14,215 statute acres, of which 230 are re-claimable mountain. Limestone is quarried for manure, and coal is supposed to exist in the mountains. Summer Hill, the residence of J. H. Harden, Esq., and Callohill Castle are in the parish. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Cashel, and in the patronage of the Archbishop; the rectory forms the corps of the prebend of Glankeen in the cathedral of Cashel, and in the gift of the Crown. The tithes amount to £600, of which £400 is paid to the archbishop, as prebendary of Glankeen, and £200 to the vicar. There is a glebe-house, with a glebe of 11 acres. The church is a plain building, erected about 1776, and the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have lately granted £147 for its repairs. The R. C. parish is co-extensive with that of the Established Church, and is called Burris-o'-leagh; the chapel is at that place, and there is another at Heigh. The parochial school, to which the late Lady Caroline Damer gave 1 1/2 acre of land, is aided by the rector; and there are three national schools; they afford instruction to about 350 children. About 280 children are taught in seven private schools. Large horns of an elk have been dug up here. There are the ruins of an ancient church, partly covered with ivy, and containing a monument to the family of Burke; and at Kilcuilawn, situated in the mountains, the celebrated relic called Barnaan-Cuilawn was found in a hollow tree many years since. It is composed of iron and brass inlaid with gold and silver, having some resemblance in shape to a mitre, and is supposed to have been the top of a censer belonging to St. Cuilen, who founded a church here in the 10th century; it is now in the possession of Mr. Cooke, of Parsonstown, and forms the subject of an article in the Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy. In 1821 the remains of an ancient mill were discovered near the church.--See BURRIS-O'-LEAGH.
GLANMIRE, a village, in the parish of RATHCOONEY, North Liberties of the county and city of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 4 miles (E.) from Cork, on the road to Dublin; containing, in 1821, 558 inhabitants; at the last census the population was returned with the parish. The village is situated on both sides of the river Glanmire, which, after meandering through a beautiful glen, empties itself under a drawbridge of cast iron into the river Lee. The vicinity is enlivened with many plantations, hanging woods, and the number of gentlemen's seats and villas with which it is adorned. The principal residences are Lota House, that of W. H. Greene, Esq.; Lotabeg, of D. Callaghan, Esq.; Lotamore, of the Hon. C. L. Bernard; Dunkittle, of A. Morris, Esq.; Sun Lodge, of W. Oliver, Esq.; Lota Lodge, of J. S. Barry, Esq.; Fort William, of Mrs. Baker; Glentown, of Mrs. McCall; Glanville, of E. Newsome, Esq.; Woodville, of N. M. Cummins, Esq.; Lota Park, lately purchased by J. J. Murphy, Esq.; Jane Mount, of W. Hickie, jun., Esq.; Lake Lodge, of John Martin, Esq.; Castle Jane House, of R. Martin, Esq.; Castle Jane, of H. Lawton, Esq.; Mina Villa, of J. Hardy, Esq.; Glanmire House, of Ed. Morrogh, Esq.: North Esk, of J. Carnegie, Esq.; Park Farm, of H. Morrogh, Esq,; Spring Hill, of G. Waters, Esq.; Glen View, of R. Young, Esq.; and Sallybrook, of J. Hodnett, Esq. In the village are extensive flour-mills, belonging to Mr. Shaw, and in the vicinity are those of Messrs. Thorley and Son, for finishing calico and linen, upwards of 1000 pieces being the weekly average; these gentlemen have also an establishment for bleaching and dyeing, and employ upwards of 200 persons; about the same number are engaged in the Glanmire woollen factory, higher up the river, by Messrs. Lyons and Hanly. The river is navigable for lighters up to the village at high water, which bring up coal, culm, sea-sand for manure, and other articles for the supply of the neighbourhood. The parochial church, a plain neat building with a tower and spire, is in the village, and was erected in 1784, on a site given by R. Rogers, Esq.; and at a short distance is the R. C. chapel for the union of Glanmire. Here are also male and female schools, supported by the rector; and a female school was built and is supported by Mr. Hickie. A dispensary is open for the relief of the poor, and a clothing society has been established.
GLANMIRE, NEW.--See CAHERLOG.
GLANWORTH, a parish, partly in the barony of CONDONS, and CLOKGIBBONS, but chiefly in that of FERMOY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 5 1/2 miles (S. by W.) from Mitchelstown, on the new road to Cork; containing 4455 inhabitants, of which number, 1098 are in the village. This place, which is situated on the river Funcheon, and also on the road from Fermoy to Limerick, was anciently called Glanore, or "the golden glen," from its great fertility. During the parliamentary war it was the scene of several conflicts, and was among the last garrisons in the south of Ireland that held out for the king; till the castle being besieged by Ireton ultimately surrendered. The village is said to have been formerly a corporate and market-town, but no existing records afford any evidence of the fact, though probably its inhabitants may have obtained extensive privileges from the founder of the castle, and continued to enjoy them under several of the succeeding lords. In 1831 it contained 215 houses, mostly thatched; it is pleasantly situated on the south-western bank of the river, over which is an ancient narrow stone bridge of twelve arches; and as seen in the approach from the Fermoy road, with the thriving plantations around the glebe-house half concealing the spire of the church, presents a beautifully picturesque scene, of which the most interesting features are thrown into bold relief by the chain of mountains in its rear, on the confines of the county of Limerick. Near the bridge are two large flour-mills, the property of Messrs. Murphy and Killeher, producing on an average 10,000 barrels of fine flour annually. The Funcheon is remarkable for the abundance and excellence of its trout; it also affords some salmon. A constabulary police force is stationed in the village, and fairs are held on Jan. 15th, March 16th, May 13th, Aug. 10th, Sept. 24th, and Nov. 30th, for live stock, but chiefly for pigs. The parish comprises 11,232 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, and valued at £9878. 11. 7. per annum; the land is in general good, and chiefly under tillage; the system of agriculture is gradually improving, and there is abundance of limestone, which is quarried principally for agricultural purposes. The seats are Ballyclough, the residence of Gen. Barry, a handsome mansion, in the Elizabethan style, situated in a fine and well-planted demesne; and Glanworth Glebe, of the Rev. John Brinkley, Prebendary, a large and handsome mansion adjoining the village, and commanding a picturesque view of the bridge and ruined castle. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Cloyne, united by act of council, at a period unknown, to the vicarages of Ballydeloughy and Derryvillane, the rectory and vicarage of Kilgullane, together with the particle of Legane (which has long since merged into the parish), constituting the union and the corps of the prebend of Glanore in the cathedral of Cloyne, and in the patronage of the Bisho