FAHAN LOWER

In 1868, the parish of Fahan Lower contained the following places:

"FAHAN LOWER, a parish in the barony of Inishowen West, county Donegal, province of Ulster, Ireland. It contains the post town of Buncrana, and is situated on the eastern shore of Lough Swilly. The locality is bleak and rugged upland. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Derry, in the patronage of the Rector of Upper Fahan. The church, which stands at Buncrana, was built in 1804, and enlarged in 1816 by means of a loan from the late Board of First Fruits. There is a Roman Catholic chapel, a Presbyterian meeting-house, two Sunday and six day schools. There is a flourishing flax and spinning company, established since 1853, and a mill or factory giving vast employment. The railway from Londonderry is to be opened almost immediately, and it is contemplated that when open the Canada steamers may make it a place of call instead of Loch Foyle. There is an artillery fort, manned by invalids, a short mile from the town. Buncrana Castle is an ancient seat of the O'Dohertys. Slieve Snaght, on the N.E. boundary, rises 2,019 feet above sea-level. Good building-stone is abundant, and lime, iron, copper, and lead-ore are found in the hills. Dooninary, a curious cairn, is seen near Ballinary."

"BUNCRANA, a village in the parish of Fahan Lower, barony of Innishowen, in the county of Donegal, province of Ulster, Ireland, 10 miles to the S.W. of Cardonagh, and 158 miles from Dublin. It is seated in a mountainous and romantic spot on the eastern shore of Lough Swilly, and was the site of a castle belonging to the O'Donnells and O'Doghertys, and subsequently to the crown. The village is much frequented as a watering-place. The inhabitants are employed in the linen manufacture and the fisheries. Copper, lead, and slate are found in the neighbourhood. The village contains the parish church, chapels for Presbyterians, Wesleyans, and Primitive Methodists, an endowed free school, a court-house, a police-station, and a dispensary. Quarter and petty sessions are held here. Near the site of the old fortress stands Buncrana Castle, a modern seat, built in 1717 by the Vaughans."

[Transcribed from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868]
by Colin Hinson ©2018