Townland Survey of County Louth (Continued)

County Louth Archaeological and History Society

Townland Survey of County Louth (Continued)Author(s): Donald MurphySource: Journal of the County Louth Archaeological and Historical Society, Vol. 21, No. 4(1988), pp. 398-406Published by: County Louth Archaeological and History SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27729654 .

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Townland Survey of

County Louth [Continued from Vol. XXI, 3, (1987), p. 321]

Termonfeckin

By Donald Murphy

Termonfeckin is in the parish of Termonfeckin and barony of Ferrard and will be found on sheet 22 of the 6" Ordnance Survey map of County Louth. It lies approximately five miles

north-east of Drogheda and is surrounded on the west by the townlands of Bellcotton and

Ballymaglane, on the south by Betaghstown and Balfeddock, on the east by Newtown, Duffsfarm and Dardisrath and on the north by Curstown, Almondstown and Blackhall. Its

1097 acres, 2 roods and 16 perches (including the detached portion to the south of 7 acres, 2

roods and 13 perches) are generally all under the 100 feet level though it sweeps gently

upwards on the north to the base of Castlecoo Hill. The land is mainly agricultural though Termonfeckin village occupies the south-east corner.

DERIVA TI ON OF THE NAME : Termonfeckin is an anglicis?t ion of the Irish Tear mann

Feichin which translates as the sanctuary of St Fechin. Though nothing now remains on the site

except a high cross, it is generally accepted that St Fechin founded a monastery here in the

seventh century. There is a reference to Termonfeckin for the year 664 A.D.1 at which time it was known as Cluainirard which means the meadow of the Fir-Arda. This tribe inhabited the area at the time and gave their name to the present barony of Ferrard. It is referred to as

Terfeccan in 17032 and at that time contained only 216 acres and 3 roods (Irish plantation measure) and stretched north only as far as the River Ballywater. It is also referred to in the

registers of Primates Sweetman3, Cromer4 and Dowdall5 and was the scene of many of the

ecclesiastical courts of Armagh while the archbishops resided here.

DUNS, RATHS, FORTS, SOUTERRAINS : Evidence for early settlement in the area

comes in the form of kitchen middens on the beach6 as well as two standing stones in nearby Baltray. It was not until the Christian Period however that Termonfeckin came into

prominence. A ring-fort, most probably dating to this period, existed in Nunneryland in

Termonfeckin.7 This fort has since been levelled but aerial photography indicates that it was a

1. Enda, "St Fin?an of Dromin" in Notes and Queries, C.L.A.J., III, 3, (1914), 301. 2. Rev. Chancellor J. B. Leslie, "Extracts from Rent Rolls of the See of Armagh, 1703", C.L.A.J., IX, 2, (1938),

87-95

3. Rev. A. Gwynn, "Extracts relating to Co. Louth from the Calendar of the Register of Primate Milo Sweteman, 1361-1379," CL.A.J. XI, 3, (1947), 187-203.

4. Rev. L. P. Murray, "Archbishop Cromefs Register", CL.A.J., VII, 4, (1932), 516-24; VIII, 1, (1933), 38-49; VIII, 2, (1934), 169-88; VIII, 3, (1935), 257-74; VIII, 4, (1936), 322-51; IX, 1, (1937), 36-41; IX, 2, (1938), 124-30; Rev. A. Gwynn, "Archbishop Cromefs Register," CL.A.J., X, 2, (1942), 116-27; X, 3, (1943), 165-79.

5. L. P. Murray, "A Calendar of the Register of Primate George Dowdall, . . .," CL.A.J., VI, 2, (1926), 90-100; VI, 3, (1927), 147-58; VI, 4, (1928), 213-28; VII, 1, (1929), 78-95; VII, 2, (1930), 258-75.

6. R.A.S. Macalister, "Ancient Hearth-Sites at Termonfeckin", CL.A.J., IV, 4, (1919-20), plates between pp 300-301.

7. G. F. Barrett, "The Reconstruction of Proto-historic Landscapes Using Aerial Photography: Case Studies in

County Louth", C.L.A.H.J., XX, 3, (1983), 215-36.

398



Townland Survey of County Louth : Termonfeckin 399

Map of Termonfeckin townland. Reproduced from the Ordnance Survey by permission of the Minister for Finance.



400 County Louth Archaeological and Historical Journal

multivallate site with possibly four ditches. The fort was sited on fertile arable soil overlooking a small river.

About 250 metres to the north-west of this fort there is a souterrain.8 It consists of a main

passage running northerly which terminates in a beehive chamber. There is also a secondary passage off the east side of the main one. It too terminates in a beehive chamber though this one has a recess at the back. There is a step up from the main passage into the side one which

may have been incorporated to act as an obstruction to any unwelcome intruder. The main

passage may have originally been somewhat longer, and though narrowing of the side-walls

towards the south end of the passage may suggest that it would not have continued for any

appreciable distance it may also be evidence for the existence of a creep. The floor level also

increases in height at this point. No associated overground enclosure has yet been identified.

(Since this survey was compiled a second souterrain has been discovered, see F. Carroll

and D. Murphy, "A Second Souterrain at Termonfeckin", C.L.A.H.J., XXI, 3, (1987),

287-9.) There is also a reference to another fort in the townland of Termonfeckin in an ancient

Irish inscription which is incorporated in the inside wall of the present St Fechin's Church of

Ireland. When translated it reads "A prayer for Ultan and Dubhthach who built this stone

fort". It is not known to what fort the inscription refers. Ultan however was the name of a

great personal friend of St Fechin and so it is possible that the inscription refers to him and the

building of a caiseal to enclose the monastic foundation set up by St Fechin in the seventh

century. It is alternatively possible that the inscription refers to Ultan who was abbot of

Termonfeckin in 664 A.D.9 and it may have been he who built the caiseal.

PATRON SAINTS, HOLY WELLS : Though the townland is famous for its number of

wells, there are only two which are definitely known to be sacred. These are St Fechin's Well

and Trinity Well. St Fechin's Well is situated on the south side of Strand Road and is known in

Irish as Tobar Fechin. It consists of a metal pan which sometimes leads the well to be called Pan Well. The structure is covered with loose stones and is sodded on top. A few steps lead

down to the spring itself. St Fechin's Well is situated on the north side of the River Ballywater in a valley known as Fechin Valley. Also on the north side of the valley is the most probable site of St Fechin's monastery from the seventh century. This site is the cemetery which along

with the immediate area to the east is collectively known as the tearmann or sanctuary of St

Fechin.10 It is needless to say that the St Fechin referred to here is the great saint of Fore.

According to tradition he originally intended to build his monastery on Castlecoo Hill but

while in the process of building a raven snatched away his foreman's headgear and dropped it

within the confines of the present cemetery. St Fechin was said to have taken this as a sign of

where the Almighty wished him to build his monastery and so he built here. St Fechin's

presence in the parish is reflected in St Fechin's Well, Fechin Valley, St Fechin's Church of Ireland and indeed the townland itself. St Fechin himself died in 665 A.D. but his monastery

continued into the second millenium and the presence of a high cross which probably dates to

the ninth or tenth century illustrates the importance of the monastery at this time.

According to the Annals of the Four Masters the monastery was raided by Vikings in

1013, by the Ui-Chrichain in 1025 and by the men of Bregia in 1149." In 1164, Donough O'Carroll, king of Oriel, repaired the church and placed Canons Regular in it. A note in an

8. R. ? Floinn, "A Souterrain at Termonfeckin". C.L.A.H.J., XIX, 2. (1978), 128-30.

9. Enda. loc. cit.

10. "Louth Ordnance Survey Letters". C.L.A.J.. [V. 4. (1919-20). 335. 11. M. Stokes. "Notes on the High Crosses ot Moone. Drunicliif. Termonfeckin and killamerv". IR?A., XXXI.

(1901). 561-2.




antiphonary of Armagh Cathedral tells us that Donough O'Carroll was responsible for the

construction of a monastery of canons here in Termonfeckin.12 The site of this monastery is

most likely the spot where the present National School now stands. Associated with this

monastery was the other sacred well in the townland ? Trinity Well, just a short distance

away. A station was held here on Trinity Sunday every year until recently. This monastery set

up by Donough O'Carroll eventually came under the jurisdiction of the abbey of Louth before

the end of the twelfth century.13 CHURCH RUINS, KILLEENS, GRAVEYARDS : There are no church ruins present in

the townland but we know that there was a convent of nuns founded here in the twelfth

century by Donough O'Carroll.14 This convent of nuns was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin

Mary. There is now no trace of this convent but there is a reference to it upon dissolution in

1539.15 We read that in the 32nd year of Henry VIIFs reign there was nothing of the nunnery left to pull down. It has been suggested that the convent was set up in Nunneryland obviously because of the name. If so then it may be the site towards the end of the lane on the left-hand

side where there is now a cattle shed as well as dry stone walling along the road. It is known

that at some stage of its history they set up a secondary residence in the townland of

Callystown.16

It is known that during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries there were three chantries

associated with Termonfeckin.17 These were dedicated to the Holy Saviour, the Blessed Virgin and St Nicholas. There are now no visible signs left of these chantries in the townland nor can

their sites be pointed out. While the archbishops were in Termonfeckin there were three

chapels attached to the primatial foundation. These were St Fechin's, the Holy Trinity and the

Immaculate Conception. St Fechin's stood on the site of the present Church of Ireland of the

same name. This was known as the great church of St Fechin and was the principal church of

the primatial foundation. Some of the building stones that were used in its construction are

now incorporated in the pier of the gates.18 They are 15 inches long and 8 inches wide and have

a depth of 10 inches. The Holy Trinity chapel probably stood near the present Trinity Well.19

The site of the chapel of the Immaculate Conception is not known though its name is

incorporated in the present Roman Catholic church which was built in 1883.20

Termonfeckin Cemetery is the main parish graveyard and has been used as such for at

least 400 years. Present in the cemetery is a high cross21 which belongs to the transitional

period. The cross itself is not in situ having been originally to the south side of the church. Its

present base is also not the original, that having been destroyed. The cross is of silicious

sandstone and stands lV/i feet high and 2 feet IV2 inches across the arms. The Crucifixion is

depicted on the east face with a male and female figure at the base of the cross, most likely

being John and Mary. It is interesting to note that Christ is not nailed but tied to the cross. The

west face is taken up with Christ in all his Glory. The remaining panels of the cross are taken

up with spirals, dragons, trumpet patterns and interlacing. At the base of the cross is a crucifixion slab (probably seventeenth century) and the base

12. Rev. H. J. Lawlor, "The Genesis of the Diocese of Clogher", C.L.A.J., IV, 2, (1917), 139.

13. T. Gogarty, "St Mary's Abbey, Louth", C.L.A.J., IV, 2, (1917), 183.

14. Lawlor, loc. cit. 15. "Returns of Property of Monasteries at Dissolution", C.L.A.J., VII, 1, (1929), 50-52.

16. Rev. J. G. McCooey, "Townland Survey of County Louth: Callystown", C.L.A.J., VII, 2, (1930), 184.

17. Rev. L. P. Murray, "The Ancient Chantries of Co. Louth", C.L.A.I., IX, 3, (1939), 183.

18. "Louth Ordnance Survey Letters", loc. cit.

19. V. M. Buckley, Archaeological Inventory of County Louth (Dublin, 1986), 82.

20. M. Corcoran and J. Garry, Church of the Immaculate Conception Termonfeckin 1883-1983 (Drogheda, 1983), 5.

21. Stokes, loc. cit., 564.




of another smaller cross. A stone, formerly in the north side of the cemetery, was recorded by the Ordnance Survey in 1836.22 According to tradition it was the baptising stone belonging to

the great church of St Fechin. The hollow for containing water was about 16 inches deep and 3

feet square at the base.

There are also many late eighteenth and early nineteenth century decorated headstones in

this cemetery. Since they have already been described and illustrated in this Journal,23 it is only necessary to point out here the different patterns which occur.Three Nativity scenes from

1818, 1819 and 1820 are all carved by the same hand. Two scenes from the Stations of the

Cross also occur ? Christ receiving the cross (c. 1799) and Christ being met by Veronica with

her veil (c. 1818). Other patterns that are prominent in the cemetery are based on the

Crucifixion, skeleton and St Michael, and angels, altar, crucifix and candles.

CASTLES AND OLD HOUSES : There were originally two castles in the townland

though only one survives to the present day. Both castles have been identified as tower

houses.24 The first of these two tower houses was built on the south bank of the river westwards

from the bridge. Nothing now remains of the castle except a boundary wall and traces of

surviving outhouses. This castle was the home of both pre- and post- Reformation archbishops from the Norman invasion until 1656 when Primate James Ussher was the last to live here.

There is a reference to the castle in the rent rolls of the see of Armagh for 1703.25

On this townland stands an Old Castle which is 3 story high. There have been 3 good roomes in it with large clousetts but the windows are small & the stone stayrs leading up to the roomes are very narrow & dark. There are good valts or sellors under it. The roomes are lofty and the maine tymber of the floores have been very good, but for

want of care part of it is decay'd, particularly the great beam which goes cross the

floore of the second story, which being rotten or decay'd at one end fell down and has

much damaged the floore below it. Some of the clousetts have neither floore nor roof

but the timber of the roof of the Castle seems to be preety good, though the covering wants repairs. There is to this Castle adjoyninge a Dwelling house which appears to

have had some good roomes and good offices in it . . .

The castle was illustrated by many antiquarians such as George P?trie, Lieut. Grose and

Thomas Wright.26 P?trie illustrates it as a square tower house with two rectangular corner

towers on the east side and a trapezoidal structure adjoining the north side which may possibly be a fore-building. The dwelling house referred to in the rent rolls above is most likely the

house which adjoins the castle on the east side in Petrie's illustration. The castle had been

partly destroyed in the Confederate wars of 1641 and though Primate Bramhall made

arrangements for its repair, he died before any work was carried out. The building itself was

not completely torn down until after 1820.27 In 1744 the castle was visited by Isaac Butler28 who

remarked "upon one of the wings of the building there is the Archi?piscopal Arms of the See of Armagh with the year 1627, also the motto which is worn out".

From Petrie's illustration of the castle we can see that it had a round corner turret which was situated to the south-east of the building. An area to the immediate south of the castle is now known as the Bawn which is evidence for an enclosed area around the castle at some time.


23. A. K. Longfield, "Late Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Century Decorated Headstones in County Louth", C.L.A.J., XII, 3, (1951), 113-8.

24. Buckley, op. cit., 95.

25. Leslie, loc. cit., 93-4.

26. "Termonfeckin Castle", C.L.A.J., V, 1, (1921), 58-60 and plate between pp 56-7. 27. Ibid. 28. J. Deane, "Extracts from Isaac Butlers Journal", C.L.A.J., V., 2, (1922), 107.




The second tower house in the townland is now a National Monument and is situated on a

hill overlooking the River Ballywater and Feichan Valley. This tower house was probably built

during the fifteenth or sixteenth century. It is a three-storeyed tower house with a square

projecting tower at the south-east corner. It has some fine stepped battlements and excellent

examples of trefoil-headed windows. Its most unusual feature however is the corbelled roof on

the third storey. It was not a common feature in tower houses of this late date. The tower house is in a prominent position in the landscape. From the roof a good deal of the

surrounding countryside can be seen on all sides. This tower house was also damaged during the Confederate wars for in 1641 it was repaired by a Captain Brabazon.

Apart from the castles there are many other historic buildings in the townland. These include the Royal Irish Constabulary Barrack which stands at the top of the hill in the main street. One of the prison cells in the barrack was known locally as the Black Hole. A little further north in the main street is Triple House which as the name suggests was originally three houses which later were made into one. It was at one stage last century the parochial house. Before this the parochial house was nearer the river and was known as Bridge House. It also stands to the present day. At the crossroads to the north of the village stood the courthouse and dispensary. The courthouse was the scene of the Petty Sessions early this century. Temperance Hall was yet another building which stood in the middle of Big Street. This

together with the courthouse and dispensary was blown up by the Black and Tans. In the north-east corner of the village on Thunder Hill stands the parish hall (also known as

Temperance Hall). Originally this was a Roman Catholic chapel. It was a long barn-like

building with a small projecting wing and an outside stairway which led to an inside gallery. This gallery was only for the better-off in the community. The poorer members had to remain on the ground floor which was of stone. The roof, which was originally thatched, is now slated, but apart from this and a few other minor alterations the building is still basically the same.

Mass was celebrated here for the last time in 1883 when the new church of the Immaculate

Conception was consecrated.29 The chapel on Thunder Hill was subsequently used as a school and appears under this heading on the Ordnance Survey map. With the opening of a new

school in Yellow Gap in 1912, the school on Thunder Hill was converted into a parish hall. One teacher who was synonymous with the new school was Miss H. Anglin. The grotto in the

grounds of the church of the Immaculate Conception is dedicated to her and bears the date 1925.

OLD PA THS AND ROADS : While the parish of Termonfeckin has many paths and old

roads, very few exist within the townland itself. One lane is said by older members of the

community to have run from the Constabulary Barracks westwards along a ridge to some houses in a nearby field. Traces of the lane can still be discerned along the north side of the

present waterworks building. No traces of the houses can be detected in the field however. Another old lane which appears on the Ordnance Survey map is the lane down to the corn mill

in Sheetland. It ran from the Sheetland road, shaded by trees, the whole way down as far as

the mill which lay in the centre of a small wooded area. Regrettably both the lane and mill have lately been removed.

OLD TRADES AND CUSTOMS: Two corn mills were present in the townland in the

past. One of these mills is that at Sheetland referred to above. In 1703 it was described as "an over shott Mill well custom'd but in summer sometimes (but seldom) wants water. Patrick

Monk who is miller, is tenant and holds with it a small tenement . . ."30

29. Corcoran and Garry, op. cit., 7.

30. Leslie, loc. cit., 92.




The mill itself was powered by an artificially constructed watercourse known as the

mill-race which brought water from the River Ballywater across a waterfall to the wheel and

then on to rejoin the river further downstream. The mill was reached by a lane from the

Sheetland road and was at least two storeys high. Older members of the community remember a ladder leading to a second storey or loft. The other mill in the townland was a windmill, the

stump of which still stands today to the north of the village. Nothing can be learned of its

history however.

The linen industry was very prominent in the area and to complement it, bleachyards were also set up. A bleachmill was known to have been set up in Garveystown in the townland.

During the eighteenth century a forge was set up by the Byrne family to the north of the village which they maintained for over 200 years.31 The forge was originally thatched but is now

covered with corrugated iron. Its presence here for over 200 years can be seen in the wealth of

obsolete farm machinery it gathered over those years.

According to the Louth Ordnance Survey Letters32 a parish patron used to be held on St

Fechin's Day (20 January) each year. This tradition ceased before 1836 however. One custom

that did continue after this time was the patron which was held each year on Trinity Sunday. On this day people would all gather at Trinity Well. The well itself would be adorned with

flowers and people would come from both near and far and would remain there for the best

part of the day. This custom died out early this century though people still decorated the well

until quite recently. Another custom prevalent in the townland was the recital of the rosary and other public prayers in Irish. This stopped witji the arrival of Fr McKeown in 1846. He did

however make provision for those who could not pray in English. PERSONAL ASSOCIATIONS : The most obvious association with the parish and

indeed townland of Termonfeckin was that of the archbishops of Armagh. They used the

tower house on the south bank of the river westwards from the bridge as their residence for

three months of the year following the Norman invasion.33 Among those who administered the

diocese in part from Termonfeckin was Nicholas MacMaelisu who was elected in 1272. He

granted to the church of Armagh an annual pension of twenty marks payable out of his manor

of Termonfeckin.34 By 1361 when Milo Sweteman was advanced to the primacy, the

archbishops were beginning to spend a greater part of the year in residence at Termonfeckin.

From his register35 it is evident that Primate Sweteman himself spent the early part of the year in residence here. John Swayne became primate in 1418 and in his register there is what may be the earliest reference to St Fechin's Cemetery.36 He mainly resided in his manors at

Termonfeckin and Dromiskin. The primates held many ordinations in Termonfeckin during these years and it seems that there was a chapel attached directly to their manor here.37 John

Prene, who was appointed to the primacy in 1439, became sick in his manor in Dromiskin in

June of 1443. On the twelfth of that month he was gently carried from there between two

horses to his manor of Termonfeckin where he thought the air was more pure and salubrious.

The pure air did not much help the primate for he died the following day in his manor here. He

was buried on the 15th after celebration of a solemn mass in St Fechin's Church.38

31. I.CA., Guide Book to Termonfechin (Termonfeckin, 1970), 9.


33. J. Stuart, Historical Memoirs of the City of Armagh, revised by Rev. Ambrose Coleman (Dublin, 1900), 97.

34. Ibid., 96.

35. Rev. A. Gwynn, "Extracts relating to Co. Louth from the Calendar of the Register of Primate Milo Sweteman,

1361-1379", C.L.A.J., XI, 3, (1947), 187-203.

36. D.A. Chart, The Register of John Swayne (Belfast, 1935), 113.

37. Ibid., 44.

38. Stuart, op. cit., 122.




Eventually the diocese of Armagh came to be administered to a great extent from the manors in the southern region. This was done without any financial support from the northern

region and eventually led to an accumulation of debts. In 1457 John Bole was appointed to the see in the hope that he could redeem the debts. He did not succeed however and his successor

John Foxall, who was appointed to the see in 1471, allowed the financial situation to

deteriorate and after a short period in office he died. His successor Edmund Conisburgh realised after just one year that he could not redeem the debts either and so returned to

England.

Eventually the financial situation deteriorated to such an extent that Pope Sixtus IV was

forced to send as his papal nuncio a member of the great Florentine banking family of

Spinelli.39 Octavian del Palacio was obviously having some success in this task for in October 1479 he was appointed to the primacy. One of his first engagements after his consecration was to visit the convent of nuns in Termonfeckin. This he did on 12 February 1480. Janet White

was prioress at this time and the convent chapel was found to be in good order but one of the sisters was found guilty of disobedience and incontinence and was ordered to do penance enclosed in her cell.40 Primate Octavian administered the diocese for thirty-four years and

upon his death in 1513 he was buried in a great tomb in St Peter's in Drogheda.41 George Cromer was the last primate to reside in Termonfeckin before the Reformation.

Many interesting cases were tried and judged in Termonfeckin during this period. Among them is a record of a public penance imposed on a Termonfeckin gentleman who had been convicted of perjury and was sentenced to walk around the cemetery clothed in white linen on six different Sundays and to fast on bread and water for three days.42 We also get a great insight from Cromer's register into the history of the convent on the eve of its suppression. A troublesome lawsuit broke out between the convent and the local clergy around 1510. The

chaplain to the convent was expected to assist the local clergy in the parish church in return for financial support. When Alexander del Palacio, nephew to Primate Octavian, was presented to the vicarage after the death of Simon Geffrey in 1507, he proceeded to cause a lot of trouble for the convent by refusing to support the chaplain. The nuns were forced to retire to their

secondary residence in Callystown in Clogherhead and the chaplain went with them and no

longer assisted the clergy in Termonfeckin. Upon their return the nuns refused to bear the whole cost of the chaplain and the case was brought to court. The dispute was finally settled in 1521 when the vicar was obliged to share the cost of the chaplain's maintenance and in return the chaplain was to assist the vicar in his parochial duties.43

In 1535 another dispute arose upon the death of the prioress Alsona Plunket. There was some doubt as to the correct procedure which should be followed in the election of her successor. Primate Cromer hesitated to make himself responsible for the election of a new

prioress probably because he was aware of the fate about to befall the monasteries and convents of Ireland. The abbess of Odder in Co Meath, Margaret Silke, appeared before Primate Cromer claiming that she had a voice in the election of the new prioress. She

presented a petition that Margaret Hubbard, one of the canonesses of St Mary Le Hogges in

Dublin, should be admitted as new prioress of Termonfeckin. Four years later Margaret Hubbard is again mentioned in relation to the surrendering of the convent to the king's

39. Corcoran and Garry, op. cit., 6. 40. Rev. A. Gwynn, The Medieval Province of Armagh (Dundalk, 1946), 111. 41. Corcoran and Garry, op. cit., 6. 42. Rev. L. P. Murray, "Archbishop Cromer's Register", C.L.A.I., VIII, 1, (1933), 44. 43. Gwynn, op. cit., 111.




officers.44 The final mention of the convent in Termonfeckin was in 1578 when on 20 April a

lease of the convent was granted to Catherine Bruton.45 Primate Cromer took the side of the

king during the Reformation and as a result was deprived of his primatial authority by Pope Paul III in 1539. From this time on there was both a Catholic and Protestant primate in the

diocese. The Protestant primates continued to occupy the castle at Termonfeckin. Among these primates was George Dowdall, a native of Louth and last prior of the Crutched Friars of

Ardee. He obtained possession of the primacy by donation of Henry VIII.46 Primate Henry Ussher who died in Termonfeckin in 1613 was succeeded by Christopher Hampton who

proceeded to build a new residence in Drogheda. Primate James Ussher was the last resident

of the castle in Termonfeckin which was partly destroyed during the wars of 1641. Though Primate Bramhall collected the materials for its repair he died before any work could be

carried out.

There is a strong local tradition that St Oliver Plunkett came often to Termonfeckin staying in a house quite near the castle which had been used by the primates.47

PLACE-NAMES : Some local place-names include: 1. Nunneryland, 2. Feichan Valley, 3. Horan's Hill, 4. Big Street, 5. Goat Street. Nunneryland is known locally by some as the

"Cailleach Dubh" which may refer to the nuns belonging to the convent of the Blessed Virgin which according to local inhabitants was situated there. Horan's Hill came to be known as such

because of his public house which was situated here. Big Street was originally called Big Ash

Street referring to the ash tree which once stood at the crossroads, the trunk of which was to be

seen in 1835.48 When the tree was removed the term "big" came to be applied to the street

instead of the non-existent ash tree. Goat Street was to the north of the village and goats were

always to be seen along it.

OBJECTS DISCOVERED : The only discovery known to have been made within the

townland was a piece of tracery from a large cusped glazed window.49 It was found in the

cemetery and is the only remaining fragment of the original great church of St Fechin apart from the building stones already mentioned.

GENERAL NOTES : In the illustration by George P?trie of the archbishop's palace, a bridge is to be seen in the foreground. This bridge is the one which still stands today over the river.

The date on the bridge is 1799. Before this the need for a bridge over the river was illustrated

when in 1531 Cormac Roth, vicar-general to the primate, granted an indulgence of forty days to anyone who would subscribe to help build one.50 Near the present bridge on the north side

can be seen one of the millstones taken from the mill in Sheetland upon its destruction. The

stone is of a wheel-like form with a hollow in the middle and measures about three feet in

diameter.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would like to acknowledge the generous and continuing assistance of Ms Marie Carolan,

Drogheda.

44. Ibid., 113-5.

45. M. Archdall, Monasticon Hibernicum (Dublin, 1786). 46. Stuart, op. cit., 142.

47. "Termonfeckin Castle", C.L.A.J., V, 1, (1921), 58-60.

48. Stokes, op. cit., 563.

49. O. Davies, "Old Churches in Co. Louth", C.L.A.J., X, 4, (1944), 293.

50. Rev. L. P. Murray, "Archbishop Cromer's Register", C.L.A.J., IX, 2, (1938), 129.



Documents

Townland Survey of County Louth (Continued)