Abbeylara
In the garden at Abbeylara
It was always summer,
Bees fumbling the lilac,
The pink & white blossoms
Of the flowering potatoes.
- John Montague
Brief History of the Area
The village of Abbeylara is three miles from Granard town on the bus route to Dublin, eighteen miles from Longford, sixteen miles from Cavan and twenty-five miles from Mullingar. As you approach the village, the first thing that you see is the ruin of a monastery. It is from this monastery that Abbeylara gets its name “Mainister Leathratha”, which means ‘Abbey of the half rath or little rath’.
The following is an extract taken from the Lewis Topographical Dictionary – 1835:
‘ABBEYLARAGH, a parish, in the barony of Granard, county of Longford and province of Leinster, containing 3,112 inhabitants, of which number 316 are in the village. The monastery of Lerha, at this place, is said to have been founded by St. Patrick, who appointed St. Guasacht its first Abbot: it was refounded for monks of the Cistercian order, and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, in 1205, by Lord Richard Tuite. The parish is divided into two nearly equal parts by that of Granard, which intersects it from north to south; the eastern division is situated on Lough Keinaile, and western on Lough Gownagh. The village, in 1831, contained 66 houses: a market and fairs are about to be established here by Capt. Ball, who is making great improvement.’
Abbeylara, the land of lakes and legend is an historical rural village with meandering streets leading to the surrounding fields and forest walks. It has great lakes nearby at Lough Kinale and Lough Derragh, where locals and visitors can enjoy excellent fishing.
Abbeylara Monastery
The site of the Cistercian Monastery may also have been the site chosen by St Patrick for ecclesiastical foundation, when he visited the area circa 460AD. Abbeylara comes into prominence in Irish ecclesiastical history from the foundation of a Cistercian Abbey there by the Anglo Norman Tuites. Sir Richard Tuite established himself at Granard and built his motte and bailey there in about 1200. He founded a Cistercian Monastery in honour of the Blessed Virgin, and granted eighteen cartons of land. The Cistercian tableau gives the year of its foundation as 1214, which probably refers to the year in which the monastic buildings were completed. Sir Richard was killed accidentally by a falling tower in Athlone in 1211. He is buried in Abbeylara.
In 1315, Edward, brother of Robert Bruce, King of Scotland, seized the monastery of Abbeylara and wintered there. The monks returned in 1316 and Abbeylara became the burial place of the O’Farrells, the local ruling family. The last abbot, Richard O’Farrell, surrendered the abbey with its land and possessions to Henry VIII when he decreed the dissolution of all monasteries and the confiscation of all monastic property. At the time of the dissolution, the monastery buildings were in ruins, but the monastery property still consisted of 5,000 acres of land. Today, very little remains. There is a fine arch supporting one side of what was once the church and several smaller arches, all of which are now enclosed. The winding staircase is still intact.
Fishing and Boating
Derragh Lake and the River Inny are well noted as fishing areas. Trout, tench, bream and pike are in plentify supply. Annual competitions are held here by the local angling club. A good day’s fishing is practically guaranteed. The river and lake are also navigable for small boats.
Crannogs
A crannog was a dwelling built on an artificial island. The word crannog comes from the Gaelic word for tree because so many tree branches were used in their construction. They were constructed by Early Bronze Age people. Crannogs were usually circular with a diameter of about 30 metres. They contained two or three small huts and it is believed each would have been home to one family and their dependents. Crannogs nowadays look very much like ordinary islands. The crannog on Lough Derragh is only one of a number of such islands in the area.
Lough Kinale Shrine
The object, almost certainly a casket or shrine for a book, was found in the parish of Abbeylara during the summer of 1986 on the bed of Lough Kinale. Although it was in a dismantled state when found, most of its components survive and is now being reconstructed and restored by the National Museum in Dublin.
The shrine measures 34.5cm long, 28cm wide and measures 11cm in thickness. It is a wooden box to which metal plates are nailed and decorated with a series of cast and pierced mounting of bronze. It is thought that the shrine is dated to the 8th century AD, as similar scrollwork and animal interlace occur on the Tara Brooch.
Historical Stones
The only remains of stone circles in the Midlands are to be found at Cloughernal and Cartronbore, in the parish of Abbeylara.
Cartronbore Circle
The stones are set around the outer edge of a slightly raised central area, roughly circular on plan and set about ninety feet (27 metres) across. It is a flattened dome in sections and seems to be naturally formed, though possibly with artificial scarping around the edge.
Cloughernal Circle
Barely half the circuit of stones remain, marking the east and south perimeter of an irregular-shaped setting. At least six (of the surviving total of 22) stones were set on edge, with the others standing upright. A fallen triangular slab overlooks the “Druid’s Altar”, just visible away to the west in Aughnagarron The stone circules at Cloughernal and Cartronbore, together with standing stones at Clough, Creevy, Dalystown Lower, Cloughernal and Tromra are probably from the Bronze Age.
The Black Pig’s Dyke/Race
This linear earthwork probably consisted of a deep steep-sided ditch with a high bank or rampart along the side. It ran 6¼ miles (10k) from Lough Kinale to Lough Gowna, possibly as a boundary during the Iron Age between the Celtic Kingdoms of Midh and Ulster. The best example is to be seen at Carrickduff.
St Bernard’s Church and Fr Drumgoole
St Bernard’s Church – St Bernard’s Church was built in 1958/59 when Fr John Donoghue was PP and Fr Mark Mimnagh was CC. The altar was given by MIV Staten Island and the bell tower was also built in memory of Fr Drumgoole. The bell was donated by Joseph Reilly, Aughnagarron/New York. Changes in accordance with Vatican II regulations have been carried out.
Fr Drumgoole – Fr John Drumgoole was born in Coolcroft, Abbeylara on 15 August, 1816. His father having died, his mother emigrated to New York and John later joined her there. He entered a seminary in Niagara, New York in 1865 and was ordained on 24 May 1869. He founded an orphanage for homeless boys on Staten Island, which catered for 19,000 boys and was known as “The Children’s Shepherd”. During the severe winter of 1888 he worked tirelessly rescuing boys. He caught pneumonia and died on 28 March 1888.
St Mary’s Church and Bully’s Acre
St Mary’s Church, Carra, built in 1838-39, replaced an earlier church which stood in the nearby cemetery. Major renovations were carried out in 1960 and again to comply with Vatican Council regulations. Opposite the church lies “Bully’s Acre”, which marks the graves of those who died in Granard’s workhouse during the Famine and in later years. It is still possible to detect the outlines of some of the graves when the land is dry in the summer. A plaque has been erected at this site and the original gates have been restored.
McNicholas Shop
This was an old RIC Barracks. In 1920 a sergeant who came from Mayo was stationed there. Then, in 1922, the RIC was disbanded and the new force, the Garda Siochana, was formed. The barracks closed and the sergeant purchased the building and turned it into a confectionery and hardware shop. It was an old style shop with wooden counters and a door in the centre. The shop sold flour, animal feeds, lamp oil, shoelaces, ice-cream, etc. The house was occupied until 1980.
Holy Wells
Tobar Riogh an Domhnagh
Well of the King of Sunday
This well was supposed to pursue those who violated it. It was speculated to have been dedicated as one of the vindictive deities of pre-Christian times.
Tobar na mBan Naomh
The Well of the Holy Women
This well was founded near the ruins of the Cistercian Abbey. A reason for the name “The Well of the Holy Women” was from the many devout women who used to frequent it for prayer and penance.
Handball Alley:
The handball alley was built in 1924 by local people. The alley is a central meeting place for young and old and local handball competitions are still organised today.
‘Down by the ball alley
the men are congregated
a handball cracks against the concrete
and rises in the air a looping perambula.’
- John Montague
Clubs
The local GAA Club can be traced back to 1889. At various times the teams representing the parish were called Carragh, Ballywillian and Abbeylara. The present club was reformed in 1964 as a junior club. It has won its way up to senior ranks and at the present time is going strong. On most Sundays during the summer one can enjoy a good game of football at the local pitch in Ballyboy.
The gun club was founded 20 years ago and has a good membership. It holds various competitions throughout the year.