Clare Places: Kilbaha: Parliamentary Gazetteer of Ireland, 1845

Kilbaha

A fishing village, and small sea-port, in the parish of Kilballyhone, barony of Moyarta, Co. Clare, Munster. It is situated on the estuary of the Shannon, about 3¼ miles east of Loop Head, and about 13 miles west of Kilrush; and stands on the estate of Mr. William Westby. A small open sweep of the estuary at the place is sometimes called Kilbaha bay. An artificial harbour was constructed here by means of grants of £200 from Mr. Westby, £115 7s. from the Dublin Committee, and £1,148 18s. from government; and consists of a cut right through the beach into a bog, a partially excavated basin within the bog, two retaining walls of 140 feet in length along the sides of the cut, and about 40 feet of quay-wall within the basin. "Owing to the facilities afforded by this pier for landing sea-manure," says an official report, "the country round it bears evident marks of agricultural improvement. It is also useful to the fisheries, in which about 110 persons are exculsively employed; and it is also and asylum-harbour for small craft coming in from Loop Head and other fishing-stations to the Shannon." Area of the village, 34 acres. Pop., in 1831, 460; in 1841, 531. Houses 82. Families employed chiefly in agriculture, 61; in manufactures and trade, 15; in other pursuits, 26. Families dependent chiefly on property and professions, none; on the directing of labour, 64; on their own manual labour, 38.

The Parliamentary Gazetteer of Ireland, 1845
Courtesy of Clare Local Studies Project