BALLYMORE-EUSTACE

In 1868, the parish of Ballymore Eustace contained the following places:

"BALLYMORE-EUSTACE, a parish and market town in the barony of South Naas, in the county of Kildare, province of Leinster, Ireland, 13 miles to the E. of Kildare, and 34 miles from Dublin. Its name is derived from the family of its founders, the Eustaces (a branch of the Fitzgerald family), who had a strong fortress here. The parish is situated in a pleasant hilly country on the river Liffey, which is here crossed by a bridge of six arches. An extensive woollen manufactory was established in the town in 1802, which furnishes employment to many hands. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Dublin, Glendalagh, and Kildare, value, with two curacies, £100, in the gift of the archbishop. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners for Ireland receive the rectorial rent-charge. In the churchyard are ruins of an ancient church. There is a remarkable waterfall near the town, called Poul-a-Phooka, or the "demon's hole;" here the river Liffey precipitates itself through a narrow passage between steep rocks into a basin below, and thence passes by two other falls to the lowest level. The whole height of the fall is 150 feet. An elegant bridge, consisting of one Gothic arch, has been thrown across the basin. A police force is stationed in the town. Ardenode, the seat of George W. West, Esq., is the principal residence. The market day is Wednesday. Fairs are held on Easter Monday, the 24th June, the 26th August, the 28th October, and the 21st December."

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