St. Dympnha's well
May 15th and 16th are dedicated to two Irish saints, the 15th for St. Dymphna and May 16th for Saint Brendan. Saint Dymphna was born in Cúil Damhnata in Co. Longford. Her father Damon was King of Oriel of pagan lineage On the death of St. Dymphna's mother, Damon proposed to his daughter. Dymphna fled to Killeenadeema, and from there to Belgium . Sadly she was killed by Damon her father.
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The Ultach's migrate to Woodford
By 1776 , living standards in Northern Ireland had vastly improved. Catholics were allowed to own and purchase land.The Penal Laws had relaxed.Then , the Battle of the Diamond brought an end to the dominance of Catholics. Hence, large numbers left their properties and ventured south to purchase land as a result of an advertisement by Sir Henry Burke in the Freemans Journal.
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The Land War and Local RICStations.
In the Woodford Ballinakill region, there were five Police stations during the "Land War". By 1879, the area was in a state of upheaval with agrarian unrest . The epicentre the parishes Woodford - Ballinakill saw an increase in Constabularly numbers. A constant presence of law men was recorded in the barracks of Looscaun, Rossmore, Ballynagar and Woodford.
During the Black and Tan war, thirty police were stationed there. |
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Sliabh an ÓirWhat a beautiful name and well chosen! During the tenure of Noel Dempsey as Minister for Natural Resources, Slieve an Óir and adjoining town lands were prospected . It was found that deep beneath the surface lay a ridge of gold and silver, so Sliabh an Óir proudly deserves its name.
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Woodford Cinema
As mentioned, Woodford cinema introduced us to our first steps on the road to fantasy . It was a two-storey theatre. Operating on Friday and Sunday nights , it provided themes of long discussions over the weekend.
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The drowning tragedy of Eanach Duín
Translated as "The marsh of the fort", the following narrative recounts one of the saddest drowning tragedies in our history. When the Caisleán Nua sank, eleven women and nine men lost their lives. Antoine Ó Raiftéirí in his rendering of "Anach Cuan" recalls the memories of September 4th 1828.
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The Knockbarron Races
First held on Monday 21st August 1752, the races were sponsored by Clanricarde and the landed gentry. They enjoyed coverage by "The Western People", "Tuam Herald" and "The Irish Times". The upper classes vied with each other for success and a beaten landlord felt much aggrieved . The Knockbarron races continued right up to August 22nd 1916. The final episode of Knocknabarron ended when the races transferred to Kiltulla , Oranmore , then to Bushypark and now Ballybrit.
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An Ambush averted
During the years 1920 - 1921 , the country was in the throes of arrests, betrayals and murders. The Black and Tans ruled all. Theur local patrol extended from Loughrea to Woodford. An ambush planned at Aille cross had to be abandoned as the Tans varied their journey.
Coming home unaware, was a young man Freddie Walsh. He was shot at and frog marched to his home. His mother faced the Tans with courage with the help of the Sacred Heart picture. |
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Casadh an tSúgáin
Ba í Rose Mooney a chuir an t-amhrán seo ar fáil. Tá rithim bhreá bhríomhar léis. Scéal simplí tuaithe atá ann. An rógaire seo í ngrá le h-iníon na sean-mhná. An tsean bhean i gcruachás ag iarraidh mo dhuine a dhíbirt. Fá dhéire, smaoinigh sí ar phlean . D'iarr sí air súgán a chasadh.
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Portumna Friary
Portumna translated as "The landing place of the oak" is both a market town and a tourist destination. It stands quite close to Portumna marina. At first , the Cistercian's owned it and built a small chapel there in the 13th century . Here Patrick Sarsfield and Honora Burke were married on 9th January 1689.
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