Rathlee, aka the Point of Kinesharrow,the Point of Kinesharrow, called also Rathlee Point, a
Rathlee / Roslee Castle, another O’Dowd fortification, of which Lewis (1837) recorded “considerable remains“, , although its identity is oftern misapplied to
Rathlee church (es?)
Rathlee Signal Tower built (belatedly!) the early C19th to warn against French invaders, and last used as a coastal look out point during WWII.
Easky (Co. Sligo / Northwest)
Easky / Easkey (Iascaigh – “abounding in fish”), a small village and holiday resort on the Atlantic coast, shares its name with a modern parish roughly coterminous with the area formerly known as Imleach Iseal– “the low imleach / low land verging on the water”.
The River Easkey, from which both village and parish derive their name, is a fast flowing (spate) river that rises at Lough Easkey in the Ox Mountains, and descends northwards for approx 12 miles through bogs woods and rough pastureland to flow past the village into the ocean. Renowned for its excellent fishing, this river gives of its best from July to September. Most stretches are controlled by Fortland Fisheries. A state license is required for salmon and sea trout.
The avid fisherman can also enjoy first class sea angling from Easkey pier and along the adjacent coastline. The main catches from here include pollock, coalfish, mackerel, wrasse, dogfish and congor-eel. The best fishing methods are spinning and baitfish; best fishing months are July, August and September. No licence is required.
The rugged seaside, of geological interest due to fossil structures dating back millions of years, is also frequented by keen surfers and other water sports enthusiasts.
The undulating countryside, scenically set against the Ox / Slieve League and Benbulbin mountain ranges, is popular for walking, cycling, horse riding and picnics. There are several walking routes around the river estuary and coastline and through the local woods in the townland of Fortland, where a chalybeate spring was recorded by Samuel Lewis (1837) who also mentioned several “Danish forts“, and wrote “on the lands of Townamodagh is a cromlech, seven feet high, and supported by four square pillars” and “At Alternan is a station, holy well, and saint’s bed, named after St. Ernanus, and much frequented by pilgrims; the patron is held on the last Sunday in July“.
“EASKEY, a parish, in the barony of TYRERAGH, county of SLIGO, and province of CONNAUGHT, 11½ miles (N. N. E.) from Ballina, on the old road to Sligo; containing 6124 inhabitants, of which number, 289 are in the village. This parish is situated on the north-west coast, between the entrances to the bays of Sligo and Killala; it includes nd comprises 12,977 statute acres, principally under an improving system of tillage; there is a large quantity of bog. Limestone, which abounds with fossils, is found on the sea shore: much seaweed is collected for manure. The village consists of one long street of 76 houses, and has petty sessions once a fortnight, a market on Wednesday for provisions, fairs on 3 June and 18 November, and is a chief constabulary police station; fairs are also held at Rosslee in July, and on 28 October. (…) The glebe-house, on a glebe of nine acres, was built by a gift of £300, and a loan of £500 from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1815. The church is a neat building with a square tower, erected by aid of a loan of £1342, from the same Board; the Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recently granted £130 for its repair. The R. C. parish is co-extensive with that of the Established Church, and contains a chapel. Here is also a place of worship for Baptists. About 600 children are educated in five public schools; and at Killenduff is a school supported by Col. Irwin, who built the school-house, and endowed it with three acres of land. In the village are the ruins of the old parish church; andand, on the opposite side of the river, the remains of another, on the lands of Castletown. There are Near Fortland is
O’Dowd Castle
Built in 1207, the castle became home to the O’Dowd chieftains of Tireragh (the barony of much of West Sligo). The castle was originally built for Oliver McDonnell who came to the area to marry an O’Dowd widow. A dominant landmark in West Sligo, the castle is beside Easky pier. Much of the original structure of the castle has been lost over time, yet the main body of the castle remains. 19.2 metres (63 feet) high, the highest part is known as the “Sailor’s Bed.”
The Split Rock
Outside the village, in the townland of Kileenduff lies the Ice Age boulder known locally as the “Split Rock.” Local legend holds that the rock was split as a result of an argument between two giants on the Slieve Gamph mountains (Ox Mountains), one of whom was Fionn MacCumhaill. It is said that the rock will close if one walks through the rock 3 times.
Easky Abbey
The centre of the village is dominated by the structure of the Old Abbey and graveyard which dates back to Medieval times. The graveyard contains many uniquely designed tombstones, and remained in use until 1888.
Easky Bridge
The bridge provides access to the main village from the Sligo side of the area. It was built in 1847 after the old bridge was washed away in a storm in 1844. It contains the Bullance stone, which is built into the bridge wall and is a symbolic drinking trough, which qualified the village to hold a “Fair Day”. The water is reputedly a cure for skin infections. Hangings took place at the bridge in the 19th century. A similar type bridge is located south of the village in the local woods. This is known as “Fortland Bridge.”
Easky Courthouse
In the townland of Aderavoher, opposite the local vocational school, is the location of Easky Courthouse. It came into existence during the Irish Famine and is one of Easky’s most historical buildings. At the start of the 20th century, the County Sligo court held its sessions here. The building was attacked during the Irish Civil War. In 2010, the Courts Service of Ireland announced that Easky Courthouse would no longer hold its monthly sessions.
The parish of Easky, including the townlands of Rathlee, Killeenduff and Owenbeg are littered with numerous forts and mounts which date back to ancient times.
g in 1786 refers to “Fortland, pleasantly situated on the banks of the river Easky” as the seat of Mr. Browne. It later passed to the Jones estate. Both Leet in 1814 and Lewis in 1837 record it as a Jones property. In the mid nineteenth century it was bought by Richard Graves Brinkley who was leasing it to John Wingfield King at the time of Griffith’s Valuation when it was valued at £14. It was offered for sale in the Landed Estates Court in 1874 when it was occupied by Mrs. Charlotte Lloyd, presumably a relative of Richard Brinkley’s wife, Hester Lloyd. In 1906 it was the property of John L. Brinkley and was valued at £39. McTernan notes that the house was afterwards damaged by fire and partially demolished. Various buildings, including substantial remains of an estate farmyard, survive at this site.
Water sports[edit]
Surfing[edit]
Surfing is an popular attraction in Easky. The village is widely known for its surfing areas, including two reef breaks. The waves in Easky break over rocks rather than on sand which makes the waves hollowed and faster than beach breaks.
In 1979, the Pro/Am Surfing World Championships came to Easky. Various national surfing events continue to be held here.[citation needed]
In 1995 the Irish Surfing Association established its headquarters in the Easky Surf and Information Centre on Main Street. The building, now known as “Easkey House” is located in the centre of Easky village.[citation needed]
The popularity of Easky as a surfing hot-spot was highlighted on the RTE travel programme ‘No Frontiers,’ in the episode broadcast on 31 January 2010.
Kayaking[edit]
The Easky River is a popular river for kayaking and canoeing. In 2003, Easky hosted the World Surf Kayaking Championships.
Fishing[edit]
The Easky River is an attractive river for fishing of salmon, grilse and trout. The river rises in Lough Easkey in the Ox Mountains and moves through bogland and various terrains before flowing past the village. Most of the best fishing spots are owned and managed by the Fortland Fishery, but significant stretches of the river are open to the public.[citation needed]
Culture[edit]
Jack Harte (Irish writer) was born in the Easky townland of Killeenduff, where his father was the local blacksmith. He draws on his experience growing up in the area, and ultimately being torn away from it as his father was forced to move in search of work, in his novel In the Wake of the Bagger. Another novel, Reflections in a Tar-Barrel is also set in the area. Harte also draws on Easky, its people and mythologies, in many of his short stories.
The sculptor Fred Conlon was born and grew up in Killeenduff, Easky.
The mother of Irish playwrights Martin McDonagh (director of the film In Bruges) and John Michael McDonagh (director of The Guard) comes from Easky. In a recent interview, John Michael McDonagh revealed that he has written a new script, a comedy-drama about a priest called ‘Calvary’ that Irish actor Brendan Gleeson has signed up for. McDonagh stated that: “I’ve written it for a county called Sligo, and the reason it’s there is there’s a town called Easkey where my mother is from, and it’s one of the Top 10 surfing scenes in the world because of the rips they get. I wanted again a widescreen backdrop, surfers, there’s sort of a meditative quality about the sea rushing in.”[3] It is unconfirmed whether or not the drama will be filmed in the Easky area.[citation needed]
Local townlands[edit]
The parish of Easky contains a numerous amount of localised townland-names. They are (in alphabetical order): Aderavoher, Alternan Park, Ballybeg, Ballycummin, Ballymeeny, Ballymeeny (Armstrong), Ballymeeny (or Hillas or Carrownabinna), Ballymeeny (Jones), Booakaun (Browne), Bookaun (Tottenham), Bunowna, Caltragh, Carrowmacbryan, Carrownrod, Carrownrush, Carrowpadden, Castletown, Cloonagleavragh, Cloonagleavragh Park, Cooga, Curraghnagap, Easky Town, Finned, Fortland, Keadues, Killeenduff, Kilmacurkan, Lenadoon, Monereagh, Old-Grange, Owenbeg, Owenykeevaun or Tawnamaddoo, Rathlee, Rathmeel, Shannonspark East, Shannonspark West and Shraheens.
Local amenities[edit]
The village itself has a cafe, take-away, 2 pubs, several shops, a post-office, St James’s Roman Catholic church (which dates back to 1833) and St Anne’s Church of Ireland (which dates back to 1820), a community centre, family and resource centre, indoor sports hall and a History and Genealogy Centre..
Coastline
Dromore West
Workhouse – Cillian and Imelda Rogers live in the old Workhouse in Dromore West, Co. Sligo, and take groups for guided tours. There are many of the old cooking-utensils still there, including the 80-gallon cooking-pot. Cillian is a great story-teller too, and he takes his listeners expertly through time.
Templeboy
Skreen
Mac Firbis Memorial Chair, Skreen, Co. Sligo
History from a Roadside Monument
The Mac Firbis family were historians to the O’Dowd Clann in Tireragh for a few hundred years. Their seat of learning was at Lacken, Enniscrone. Some of their books survive: the Great Book of Lecan and the Yellow Book of Lecan.
Duald Mac Firbis was murdered in Skreen on his way to Dublin in 1670. He had called at a Síbín close to the present monument and reprimanded a drunken soldier for taunting a young lady. He was stabbed and died on the spot. He was 80 years old at the time.
The inscription says the chair was built here in 1934 to the memory of Duald Mac Firbis. A chair is associated with learning and wisdom.
Dromard