Clare Places - Corrofin: Places of Interest

Clare Places: Towns & Villages

ST. CATHERINE'S CHURCH : It was built by Catherine Keightley between 1715 and 1720 and was renovated one hundered years later. By 1829 the steeple and vestry had been added.

CLARE HERITAGE CENTRE is now housed in St. Catherine's Church. It holds comprehensive research material to enable people with Clare roots to trace their ancestry. This genealogical centre also houses a small interpretative museum.

THE TAU CROSS is on display in the Heritage Centre. This t-shaped monument, carved from a single piece of carboniferous limestone, has been the subject of several theories and arguments. It was originally set in a large boulder-like rock on top of Roughan Hill but was moved several times for safe keeping. A replica has been set up on the original site. This cross has often been referred to as CROIS INNEENBOY, the cross of the daughter of Baoth. In 1937 Dr. Adolf Mahr, then keeper of Irish Antiquities and Director of the National Museum of Ireland, put forward the theory that this double-headed cross, the two-faced termon cross of Kilnaboy, might be compared to the well-known Celtic double-heads from Roquepertuse in south-east France. Three years later Dr. Joseph Raftery seemed to confirm this theory when he wrote that the Tau Cross seemed to belong to the same series of La Tene sculptures mentioned by Mahr. Dr. Etienne Rynne, however, wrote a definitive article on the Tau Cross in 1967. By comparing the craft style of the two carved heads with other work in the locality - the immediate neighbourhood supplied three representations of tau-croziers - he was able to justify his conclusion that the cross was in fact a boundary mark of the Romanesque period and not a pagan idol of the early Iron Age.

RICHMOND HOUSE near the bridge, dates from the eighteenth century. It was the home of Richard Brew in 1814. By 1837 it was occupied by the Rev. S. Walsh, parish priest of Kilnaboy. He was still in occupation in 1855. The building became an R.I.C. barracks around the turn of the century. It was restored during the middle of this century by Patrick McLoughlin.

INCHIQUIN CASTLE is called after the original O'Quin stronghold of Inchiquin, O'Quin's Island on Lake Inchiquin. It may have been built by Teige-an-Chomhaid O'Brien who died in 1466. It belonged to Turlough, son of Murrogh, first baron of Inchiquin, in 1542. Murrogh O'Brien, the fourth baron, was in possession in 1580. Situated on the northern side of the lake, it was the residence of the O'Brien family whose descendant, the Marquess of Thomond, derived his title of Earl of Inchiquin from this estate. During O'Donnell's raid on Clare it was attacked and captured by Maguire of Fermanagh, one of his lieutenants. Some time after this a more comfortable house, sometimes referred to locally as the banquet hall, was added to the old castle. Part of the old castle tower can still be seen and a good portion of the banquet hall is still intact. Christopher O'Brien, Murrogh the Burner's brother, lived here during the Confederate Wars. Murrogh's son, Colonel John O'Brien, abandoned Inchiquin towards the end of the seventeenth century. By then it was in a ruinous condition.

BALLYPORTRY CASTLE derives it's name from BAILE PORTRAITHE, or hog's town according to James Frost. It may also be a derivation of BAILE PORTACH or BAILE PORTAIGH, meaning the fortified town or home of the banks or ridges. In 1580 it was occupied by Mahone, the son of Brian O'Brien. Sir William Petty took a census of the county in 1659 and the castle featured on it as Ballyportrea. It appears to have escaped the ravages of both war and time. By the time O'Curry visited it in 1839 the walls were still intact and it afforded shelter to a poor family. In recent years it was the home of Bob Browne, who restored it lovingly and with care.

THE STATION HOUSE in Corofin has been tastefully renovated and many of the old features have been retained. The old station platform, the trackway and the garden blend with the original design of the station.

LAKES: Corofin is an ideal spot for anglers. A chain of lakes stretches away to the north-east. These include Lough Atedaun, Lough Cullaun, the Ballyeighter Loughs and Lough George near Ruan. The Fergus River flows through Lough Atedaun, then runs north-east to Ballyteigue Lake before turning south into Dromore Lake.