DRUMCLIFF

In 1868, the parish of Drumcliff contained the following places:

"DRUMCLIFF, a parish in the barony of Carbury, in the county of Sligo, province of Connaught, Ireland, 5 miles (English) N. W. of Sligo. It is bounded on the N. by the lofty mountain Ben Bulben, on the E. by the county of Leitrim, on the S. by the bay of Sligo, and on the W. by the Atlantic Ocean. The bay of Drumcliffe, an inlet of the bay of Sligo, intersects the parish. The surface of the parochial district is generally hilly, and without much bog. The benefice is a vicarage in the diocese of Elphin, of the gross value of £350 a year, and in the patronage of the bishop. The church was rebuilt in the year 1811, by money raised off the parish by vestry cess. It is a fine structure, with a very handsome tower. In the parish there are two other churches, being chapels of ease for the parochial districts of Lissadell and Rosses, and a licensed house of worship for the district of Kilsella. There are also a Methodist meeting-house, and two Roman Catholic chapels. There are five good scriptural day-schools, supported by Sir Robert Gore Booth, and the Right Hon. John Wynne, with assistance for two of them from the London Ladies' Hibernian School Society, and the Board of Erasmus Smith's Schools. There are also three large Sunday-schools, and three day schools, under the Irish National Board of Education. Petty sessions are held at Teeson, about 2½ miles from Drumcliffe, every second Wednesday. There are four post-offices in the parish-at Drumcliffe, Ballinful, Carney, and Rosses, all sub-offices to Sligo. This place was formerly the site of a considerable town, and the seat of an abbey, whose superior was a mitred abbot, having very extensive jurisdiction. Near the church is an ancient cross, the carving on which is extremely beautiful. There is also a curious stone obelisk, and the remains of an ancient round tower. At a little distance are a Danish fort, a cromlech, and several vestiges of ancient fortifications. About 5 miles W. of Drumcliffe is Lissadell Manor House, the seat of Sir Robert Gore Booth, Bart.; and about 2 miles farther, close to the seashore, ate the ruins of Ardtarmon Castle, the ancient residence of the Gore Booth family. Of the few other gentlemen's seats in the parish, the principal are Dunally House, the seat of the late Sir William Parke; Cregg House, the residence of J. Wheatley, Esq.; the vicarage, and Lissadell parsonage, a very beautiful house, built by Sir Robert Gore Booth for the accommodation of the perpetual curacy of the church and district of Lissadell. The greater part of the beautiful valley and lake of Glencar is in the parish of Drumcliffe.

"CARNEY, a village in the parish of Drumcliff, and barony of Carbury, in the county of Sligo, province of Connaught, Ireland, 6 miles to the N. of Sligo. It is seated on the coast of Drumcliff Bay, a small inlet of Sligo Bay, and has a police station and a dispensary."

"RAUGHLEY, a village in the parish of Drumcliff, barony of Lower Carbery, county Sligo, province of Connaught, Ireland, 8 miles N.W. of Sligo. It is situated on the N. shore of Sligo Bay, and is a fishing village, and has a coastguard station. A small pier has been erected for the convenience of traffic in fish and sea manure. Rockley Lodge is the principal seat, and on the western side of a peninsula are some curious caverns. The ruins of the old church and of Artarmon Castle are seen nearly swallowed up in sand.

"UPPER ROSSES, (and Lower Rosses) two villages in the parish of Drumcliff, barony of Lower Carbery, county Sligo, province of Connaught, Ireland, 5 miles N.W. of Sligo. They are situated between Sligo-pool and Drumcliffe Bay, and are frequented as bathing-places. Races take place in the vicinity.

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