had done for him. Tom asked her to hold up her paw until he would take her measure.She did so and told Tom to leave her good room and bring her a nice laced ones. Tom went to Kilrush and the wife told him to try and get rid of the cat as she had got afraid of her. Tom went to his brother and told him his story. His brother told him to pretend that he should take her to Kilrush next day to get a proper fit and that they would be met on the road by hounds and horse men who would chase the devil out of her as they said she must be an old hag. Tom went home and told the cat that she should go to Kilrush. The cat asked him how she would go. He said he would

The patron St. of the Parish of Kilrush is St. Brigid. There are two Blessed Wells in the district belonging to St. Brigid, and at one of the wells there is a stone with the print of her foot in the stone. But the stone is broke now. This well is in Brideswell and the other well is in Kilrush. St. Brigid was buried, built a great monistory in Kilrush. She was also very fond of birds and animals. She use to feed the birds off her hands out in the fields in the long Summer days. St. Brigit was buried in Clonnmell. There are many people in the district, called after St. Brigid.

born in Kilrush. His father Billy Meehan was an attorney and had his office in Brian Dwyer's house Market Square Kilrush.Fr Meehan was a little above middle height, stout, muscular, no loose flesh. He was a good athlete. I saw him in front of his own door take a hurley and strike the ball into the air out of sight nine or 10 times without moving a foot - standing on the same spot. He had a gun and was a good fowler. I had a gun and was also a good shot. He often called at the school and took me fowling with him. Father Meehan said on three occasions "Tom, don't fire a shot till I miss, then you fire till you miss, and so on".
Father Meehan was a very good shot, the best around except Corney Curtin - Kilkee. Snipe was the principal game. He lived where Canon McMahon lives at present.Father Meehan was curate in Kilrush before coming to Carrigaholt. I knew him in Kilrush. He was the priest that heard my first confession when I was seven years old.When Father Malachy Duggan died in 1849 Father Meehan was appointed Parish priest of Carrigaholt. He was very fond of singing

The saddest drowning fatality on the river Shannon occurred in the year 1893.
On the fifteenth of August of the same year a party of young men and girls employed a man named Mr. Maurice Murphy who owned a small boat to take them across the river to the Clare coast. They set out from Tarbert Island and landed safely at Kilrush, from thence they travelled by train to Kilkee, and had a most enjoyable day at this beautiful sea-side resort. That evening they again came to Kilrush pier, all in high spirits and boarded a little frail boat which

There is an old path leading from the Kilrush main road down by Costello's, Shea Nugents and coming out at Neylons. It is a short cut for the people of Darragh coming to Ballyea school and Chapel. Mr Kelly who lived in Killglassey wanted to make a public road of it. There was a short cut from the Curragh road near the Kilrush main road to Newhall. Police took "poteen", from a man named Darcy. A mob followed them and as soon as they came to the stile a police fired at Darcy and shot him.

As offering from its fertile ground
Fifty milch cows to Convey
To Kilrush on every day.-"
"He kept at Kilrush two houses with a numerous family, who had constant charge of dressing victuals for a hundred strangers in one house and a hundred poor folks in the other with firing and bedding agreeable every day in the year. Every fugitive who came there either for sanctuary or other indignity had a year's welcome and entertainment according to his degree, and a new suit at his year's end. If then he or they take leave, and goes but one mile over the tombry of Kilrush and turn again they had the same welcome and entertainment for another year and so for life especially for foreigners."...
"St. Senan being stricken in years and had a desire before death to visit these places where he had the first tincture of learning as also to visit the holy virgins at Innislong

The shoes with the timber soles were worn thirty five years ago. Mrs. Griffin of Moloskey used wear them. They used be made in Kilrush at Jerry Hannons. They were called clogs.
Leather used be cured in Kilrush at the tan-house about fifty years ago. In the Aran Islands they make their shoes of cow hides and wear them.

saying. Later the dragon was compelled to leave Inis Cathaig and was chased by the Saint. He slept one night at the hill behind the Convent in Kilrush, Cnoc na Péiste, another night at the Curthill (?) just outside Kilrush and was at length banished into Molocha lake where he still is. Saint Senan forbade him to ever leave it and allowed him one and a half trout per day to eat. A very good lake for trout many people say that often the half trout is to be seen floating on the water - the remains of a dragon's dinner.

a cart from the farm-yard to the tillage fields. This, very often occurred in mountain lands, and where lands were soft and undrained. Roads are now much more easily travelled over, as there are improvement carried out recently by the Government in various areas where such improvements were necessary. In days gone by, even less than 100 yrs ago, sand and seaweed were carried on horseback from the shore at Quilty and Spanish Point to the Crossroads at the Hand a distance of 7 or 8 miles. These are still to be seen on donkeys in the little watering village at Lahinch, and in the town of Etymon. They were and are still to be seen around Lisdoonvarna. Even in most of West Clare and North Clare back loads of corn were carried to Kilrush, from distances as far as Kilfenora and Lisdoonvarna, before the construction of the roads leading from those places to Kilrush and Ennis. These baskets were made

clocks and they used leave for Kilrush at cock-crow which was about three o'clock in the morning.

within one mile of Kilrush. I cannot account whether it is north, south, east or west of it.

A good many beggars and travelling folk come to our house now and again. Not always the same ones come. Well, let me commence with Jimmy Casey. He gathers "spuds" and the next one that comes is his brother Peter.He sells little things such as stockings, pins, and studs. Mary Breen and her comrade, Kate Scully, always come together. Mary Bully Nevin and lots of other tinkers, Carthys and Scullys call. All these are from Kilrush. We often buy little things from them. They get all these things in Kilrush. The people have great welcome for them.

travelled into Kilrush only 4 miles away. They went into a public house for a treat and in taking something from his pocket the man let the bottle of St Senan's water fall from him and it got broken and the water got spilled. He was very sorry and he said he could not face the old Lady without the bottle of blessed water. He could not go back again for another bottle of the water because he would have to walk eight miles as he got a lift into Kilrush having no horse of his own. He got the publican to fill an ordinary bottle of spring water for him and off he sailed home with the bottle of ordinary water from the pump. Se was very grateful to him ever afterwards for bringing her the blessed water as she said it cured her and that she would be dead long ago but for it.

Once upon a time a man was living in Knockerra who made potheen and the peelers heard about it, and they came to Knockena searching for the still but they could not find it for a long time. A shower of rain came then and there was a cabin near and they went in to get shelter and when they opened the door of the cabin one if the peelers saw the still and six barrels of potheen inside. They brought some of the potheen to the barracks but they could not bring it all and all they could not bring they threw into the river which separates Coolminga from Knocknaheean. The man who owned the still got some of his friends who belonged to an organisation called "The White Boys" went to Kilrush on horseback and brought spade trees with them. They landed at Kilrush before the peelers and when the peelers were coming the "White Boys" pointed the spade trees and shouted to them to surrender and the peelers gave them the till but as they were near Knockerra Lake they saw the peelers coming with reinforcements and they threw the still into the lake where it remains always.

There are numerous tales of the famine years as they were called in 1846 and 1847. In those years the potato crop failed and the potatoes which were then the staple food in the country blackened in the ground and were diseased and unfit for food. Then owing to the shortage of food the government distributed meals through local agents. In some cases next was starvation and it was recorded that a man travelled thirty miles to Kilrush and was in such a pitiable state that he put his hand into a large boiler in which turnips were boiled to get a turnip to eat having scalded his hands. There was an epidemic of cholera and the people died in large numbers. There was a case of a man in Kilrush who was buried when he kicked at the cover of his coffin. He was released his health was restored and he afterwards went to Australia. The population decreased and a good many old habitations and landmarks of the famine years.

woman, nearly died on this occasion, for after all what good is two thousand pounds in the bank to a woman, if her husband chooses to endanger her respectability before the Sunday's congregation. Anyway she hid his clothes and Mick sensing some treachery became very angry and threatened to strike. Then he ordered his two young sons to launch his canoe, and when everything was ready (wh) he rowed out to Kilrush himself with an old dungaree pants, a soiled shirt and a straw hat that had seen five Summers. He walked into the Church that way, and if the Kilrush people were guilty of wilful distractions that day, they should be excused.

There is an ancient tree known by that name. It is situated on the roadside between Ballinlough Crossroads and the Gate Lodge. It is believed in Cromwell's time priests were hung on the tree. The local people fear to pass it at night (Mrs Leavy Kilrush - 50 s)
An ointment for "Scabs" used be made from daisy-roots; another ointment for yellow jaundice was made from primroses. ( Fuair Liam Ó Miodhcháin, (12) an píosa seo ó n-a aíntín Mrs Bennett, Kilrush -70-)

The Sandhole Field
So called because there is a sandhole in it. It is the second field in of the road beside Dan Clark's house on the Kilrush road.
The Three Cornered Field
So called because it has only three corners : It is situated in Kilrush.
The Ferry Hollow Field
So called because ferns always gren in the hollow, it is also in Kilrush.

The parish of Kilrush has five graveyards. These are an old and a new graveyard in Askamore (half-parish of Kilrush) and an old and a new grave-yard in Kilrush and one old graveyard in Brideswell, (in the half-parish of Askamore) which has been closed for about forty seven years.The old graveyards in Askamore and Kilrush are seldom used except for a burial of an old person who had got permission to be buried there.The graveyards are either square or rectangular in shape.Brideswell old graveyard is partly square shaped but the corners are not pointed. They are all level.Brideswell old graveyard is surrounded with big fir trees. Some shrubs and one sycamore tree are growing in Askamore Cemetry.The oldest date to be found in Askamore graveyard is November 1782. The stone is said to have been brought from Kilcavan old Graveyard - Parish of Tomacork. The stone is an old home-made one and bears the inscription of Elizabeth Doyle. Although the
had been removed it is not known whether the remains were removed or not.The next oldest date in Askamore graveyard is January, 1818. Denis Kirwan is buried there.

"Where Ocean fain would kiss my cottage door."Nay in a desert, by the stormy sea,"Yet art thou not my Birthplace, dear to me?"(End)
Copied from the original byF. Saunders
Mullagh N.S.
In going through some old books the property of my grandfather Thomas Keane (deceased) I came across this unpublished poem. My uncle John Keane (over 70 yrs of age) Moore Street Kilrush informs me that the author was a Kilrush man named "Pendy Downes". He said he heard that Downes was a great poet and wrote several poems. He was not able to inform me anything about the teacher named "Allen" mentioned in the poem. The oldest teachers he could remember were:- a Mr Considine, John Troundsell, a Mr Herhily etc.The poem must be very old as the "Chapel" mentioned was the old Catholic Church situated where John C. Mahoney had a saw-mill some years ago on a hill known as the "pig market" today. The street leading from the "pig market" to Moore Street is still known to the old residents as "Chapel Street". The present Catholic Church was built over 100 years ago.The "mansion" mentioned was the Kilrush seat of the Vandeluers before they changed residence to Cahercon. The Kilrush house was burned to the ground about 40 yrs ago. The "lake" mentioned in the poem is now practically dried up. It is called St Senan's Lake or Molougha Lake. It is said the water of it banishes worms in cabbage etc.