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Aghadown

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AUGHADOWN, or AGHADOWN, a parish, in the East Division of the barony of WEST-CARBERY, county of CORK, and province of MUNSTER, 3¼ miles (W. S. W.) from Skibbereen; containing, with several inhabited islands, 5419 inhabitants. This parish is situated on the north bank of the river Ilen, and comprises 7063 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act, and valued at £5400 per annum. Its surface is very uneven; in some parts, especially towards the north, it is rocky and unproductive; but near its southern boundary, towards the Ilen, the land is good and produces excellent crops. About two-thirds of it are under cultivation; the remainder is rocky ground and bog, of which latter there is a considerable extent near Newcourt. The state of agriculture is not much improved; the old heavy wooden plough is still used, and some of the land is cultivated by spade labour; the fences are everywhere much neglected. Several good roads intersect the parish, one of which is a new line from Skibbereen to Crookhaven, likely to be of considerable advantage. The Ilen is navigable for vessels of 200 tons' burden nearly to its eastern extremity: a quay and storehouses have been constructed at Newcourt, but are entirely neglected, and the harbour is only frequented by a few sand boats, which discharge their cargoes there for the convenience of the farmers. The principal seats are Aughadown House, that of H. Becher, Esq., occupying an elevated site in the midst of flourishing plantations, and commanding a fine view of the western coast; Lake Marsh, of Hugh Lawton, Esq.; Whitehall, of S. Townsend, Esq.; Newcourt, of Becher Fleming, Esq.; the glebe-house, the residence of the Rev. T. D. Moore; and Holly Hill, of the Rev. J. Coppinger, P. P. Fairs for the sale of cattle, sheep, pigs. &c., are held on May 6th and Oct. 2nd. A manor court is held monthly by a seneschal appointed by Lord Carbery, for the recovery of debts under 40s.; and here is a constabulary police station.

The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Ross, and in the patronage of the Bishop; the rectory is partly impropriate in Lord Audley and partly forms the corps of the archdeaconry of Ross. The tithes amount to £600, of which £300 is payable to the impropriator and appropriator, and £300 to the vicar. The church, situated on the margin of the river, is a small neat edifice with a square tower, and was built by aid of a loan of £500, in 1812, from the late Board of First Fruits. The glebe-house is handsome and commodious, and is situated on a glebe of 45½ acres. In the R. C. divisions this parish is the head of a union or district, which comprises also the parish of Kilcoe and part of Abbeystrowry, and contains two chapels, situated at Aughadown and Kilcoe, the former of which is a large and handsome edifice, occupying an elevated site near Currabeg. In addition to the parochial schools, there are schools at Whitehall and near Newcourt, also a pay school.

In the demesne of Whitehall are the ruins of Kincoe or Kincolisky castle, built by the O'Driscols in 1495; and on the grounds of Lake View are some picturesque remains of an ecclesiastical edifice, called by the people of the neighbourhood the Abbey of Our Lady.

from Lewis's Topographical Dictionary of Ireland, 1837.

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Description & Travel

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Gazetteers

The transcription of the section for this parish from the National Gazetteer (1868), provided by Colin Hinson.

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Land & Property

Tithe Applotment Books for county Cork and its  parishes are available online on the National Archives of Ireland website .

The entry for Aghadown from Griffiths Valuation 1847/64

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Maps

You can see maps centred on OSI grid reference W0346731454 (Lat/Lon: 51.528052, -9.391711), Aghadown which are provided by: