About sixty five years ago there were seven weeks of hard frost and Lough Conn was frozen from end to end. The Glass Island people had to break the ice with spades and shovels so as to get food for themselves. So one night when all the people were asleep a big wild animal came from the sea and he broke the ice about three feet wide from Knockmore to Pontoon. So the next day two young men traced him from Knockmore to Pontoon and they could not trace him no further.

Fairy Forts
There are several fairy forts in our district. One of the fairy forts is called Raheen. Raheen is also the name of the townland. There is also a fairy fort called Knockmore. It is on the top of Knockmore Hill in the townland of Knock. Most of them are circular in shape. Some have banks of earth and some have hazel bushes around them. None of them have an entrance holes. People have not gone down into them to explore the interior. There are no stories about this. The Wanes were supposed to live in them. Noones fairies were supposed to live in them. We have never heard of any animals having been seen in the neighbourhood of these forts. Nobody interfered with them when ploughing or planting the crops. There are no stories told in this connection. The following story was told to me by an old man :- There was an old man who lived in Ballinagole and as he was coming home from the bog one day he went up to the top of Knockmore hill and lay down and fell asleep. Suddenly he woke up and heard the sounds of music and

There are numerous fairy forts in the district. The names of some of the fairy forts are Raheen, Knockmore hill and Crisan.
Raheen fairy fort is in the townland of Raheen, Knockmore is in the townland of Knockmore and Crisan is in the townland of Crisan. Some of them are in view of one another. They are all circular in shape. Some of them have Black thorn bushes around them and some have banks of earth. There are doors at the entrances into the fairy forts. Nobody ever went down any of them to explore the interior of them. There are no stories attached to these forts. The Danes are supposed to have built them, and they also lived in them. There are no stories of cats or other animals having been seen in the neighbourhood

Loch na mBreac Caoch is a small lake situated between the town land of 0 Knockmore and Balla. It is very small but it is supposed to have no bottom. A large Eel dwells in the lake called a Master Eel. It is believed that he could turn himself into any form of animal. Old people have seen the Eel come on Knockmore hills grazing in the form of a calf, pig or donkey. Others have seen him put his tail in his mouth and whistle loud enough to be heard for miles around. Up to the present no fishing is done in that lake as people say it is not lucky to interfere with it in any way.

In this village of Prison lived a tailor. He had a house and garden. He was paying rent to Ormsby of Knockmore but he always gave the land-lord a week's work instead of cash for rent. He went to do the sewing in Mrs Ormsby's house at Knockmore.
One night when returning home very late after his day's work he saw a little horse grazing on the side

There was a man going to Foxford one night. When he was between Foxford and Knockmore he heard a lonesome cry. He stopped and listened carefully and the crying came nearer to him. He started on his journey again. When he had gone a few yards he saw a big light coming down the mountain side. When it came near him he saw it was a funeral cross the road. It went in over a well beside Lough Conn. The well is about a mile from the south of Knockmore

These are the names of some of the roads in my district. The Thread Road, Doirín a bhéag, The Hill Road, Boithrín Cloch, The Meadow Road and The Church road.
The Thread Road branches off from the main road between Foxford and Ballina at Tom Bourke's about a mile from Foxford and ends at James Clarke's in Stonehall.
It is the main road for the people of Stonehall going to Foxford and to their meadow in jack's Park. It was made in 1914 by The Board of Works and it was repaired about 6 years ago.
Doirín a Bhéag
branches off from the main road from Foxford to Pontoon and goes along Drummin Wood for a mile, then it goes through Gurteenamuck and ends at Thomas Maloney's Knockmore; Ballina. It is a bad, rough, crooked road. It is the main road of the people of Gurteen to Foxford and to their bogs along Drummin Wood. It is also the main road for the people of Gurteen to Knockmore and to their parish church in Knockmore. It was made by The Board of Works in 1908.

and was repaired about 10 years ago.
The Hill Road.
Starts at Dan Brogan's in Stonepark and ends at The Gate Lodge on the main road to Knockmore from Michael Duffys in Lisaniska to John Gaughan's in Knockmore. It was made about 10 years ago by the Board of Works. It is a near way for the people of Stonepark to Knockmore and to their land which is mostly along it.
Coithrín Cloch
Starts at Pat O Horas in Stonepark and extends for about a mile along the mountain in Stonepark. It is rough bad crooked boreen. It is convenient to some of the people of Stonepark for putting their cattle to the mountain. It was made about six years ago by the Board of works.
The Meadow Road
branches off the main road from Foxford to Ballina at Martin Clarke's Slievebrack about two miles from Foxford. It is only a short road. It is the road by which the people of Stonepark draw their hay. It was made by the Board of Works in 1918.

Burnings and drownings.
The house of Ellen Brogan Shraheen. Foxford was burned down to the ground and three children [?]
A Co-operative store was burned in Knockmore.
The house of Michael Armstrong Knockmore, Ballina was burned.
The barns and stables of Mr. Perry Coolcronan, were burned some time ago.
There were two men drowned in Loughborough Conn called John and Patrick Madden of Glassisland and William Lynch of Coolcronan was drowned in the River Moy.
John Gaughan of Pontoon is able to build boats and Edmund Perry of Coolcronan was able to build boats
John Gaughan, Knockmore, Ballina can make all sorts of things including clocks, bicycles,tomb -stones, fiddles and coffins.

Situated between Knockmore and Balla, lies a very remarkable lake, having no outlet of any kind. Although small, the lake is very deep and is supposed to have no bottom.
A large Eel dwells in this lake, people call it the Master Eel. This Eel is supposed to be able to turn himself into the form of any animal.
Old people not long dead have seen the Eel come grazing on Knockmore hills, in the form of a calf, pig or donkey. Others have seen him put his tail into his mouth and let a whistle loud enough to be heard for miles around, and immediately afterwards there was a terrible rushing and lashing of the waters in the lake followed a minute after by perfect calmness of the waters. Up to the present day no fishing is done on this lake, as people say it is unlucky to interfere with it in any way. The narrator says her brothers heard the awful whistle.

There are only two forges in this parish. One belongs to Pat Bourke and the other to Martin Walshe. Walshe's forge is the nearest to us it in in Knockmore beside a stream is convenient to Lough Conn.
Knockmore forge is a big one. It has a very big door which faces the rising sun. The fire place is built up in the middle of the floor the chimney is like a square pillar and the bellows is beside it. The bellows is beside it made of two pieces of timber and a piece of leather like a leather bag between them. When the handle of the bellows is raised it fills with air and when the handle is lowered the air is forced through the fire and

There are three forges in this parish. One at Knockmore, one at Rathduff and one at Curroy. The one at Knockmore is nearest to us. The forge is built beside a stream. It is build beside the stream so as to cool the tyres of carts when he is putting them on. It is said there are cures for certain diseases in the forge water.
The forge is of a round shape and it has a roof in the shape of a v. There is one fire place in it. There is a lot of coal burnt in it every day. There is a lot of tools used in the forge. Namely: bellows, hammers, pincers, axe and other tools. The

again.Knockmore was considered a very good parish and he gave it to him. He then could not be interfered with on account of Ormsby being at the head of the priest hunting .
He then thanked Ormsby very well for all the favours he did him . He read Mass in the parish of Knockmore on the following Sunday .After Mass he preached a sermon , and the sermon was on priesthunters and priest hunting especially on the Ormsbys and a few other parties he knew to be at the head of the priest hunting.
He preached that old Colonel Ormsby was in Hell and all of them that were living were on their way to Hell . Young Ormsby heard of the sermon shortly after . He got angry when he heard of it after all the favours he did him and he resolved to kill him .He made a feast and invited the young priest .He also invited all the priesthunters he

About sixty years ago there lived in Knockmore a shoe-maker named O'Dea. One day he and a man named McMahon went for a bathe in Knockmore lake. The shoe-maker was drowned and McMahon escaped.
Two schoolboys Kelly and Quinlivan were drowned in Knockalough lake. As they were going home from school one of them slipped and fell into the lake, the other went to his rescue and both of them were drowned. This happened about fifty years ago.
About the year 1830 Brew "Ruadh" a landlord lived in Shyan. One night he was coming from Kilrush with

Hegarty was killed, there is a cross and it is surrounded with wire. The day he was killed there were a few other coffins brought to Bofeenaun Church. One of them was from Knockmore.

entered the house he asked his mother who was living with him what time was it. He then said "I am done". He died shortly afterwards. His remain were laid to rest in the parish Church, Knockmore.

Storms and severe frost
When the last big wind came it knocked a house belonging to James Ryder, Knockmore Ballina.
Loch Conn was frozen thirteen weeks during the big frost of 1896 and people used to skate across it.
The roof of James Gaughan's house, Lisanisha, was blown awy the time of the big wind of 1839.
During the big wind the roof of Walter Prendergast's house, Rathbane, Knockmore, was brought away by the big wind.

Knockmore is the name of a townsland in the Parish of Borris, in the barony of St Mullins (Lower) Co. Carlow. The Irish name for this townsland is "An Cnoc Mór. The following are the names of fields and places in it. "Creteen the well field" "Mullinavee" "the grove" "Kiln field" "Raheen field" "Rye field" "Bull field" "Clashahulla" "Round field" and others

There were many hurling and football matches played in this parish in former times. There was a hurling match played in the townland of Knockmore. The match was between the townlands of Cronera and Knockmore. The match was not finished because they began to fight, and they fought with their hurling sticks. There was also a tug o' war played in this townland years ago. It was between upper and lower Corlough. The team of lower Corlough won.The ball used to be kicked across from townland to townland and whatever townland won, had the honour of bringing home the ball with them.Sometimes the teams

rather numerous. Pat Blowick of Elmhall (called Elmhall by Colonel Cuffe who had a "big house there".) is 84 years old. He remembers to see the following Protestant families attending the Protestant church of Belcarra that church which is now derelict. Coughlans Belcarra
O'Donnells Knockmore
Ormby Knockmore - landlords
Morrison Roslahen - land agents
Phibbs Lakelands land lords
Dr. Blackwell Knockmore
Actons Belcarra land-lords
Actous Bridgemount land lords
Robinsons Thomastown land lords
Brewsters Frenchill Farmers
Hamiltons Frenchill Farmers
Carsons Frenchill Farmers
Bennets Frenchill Farmers
Deane Manulla Station Master
Brownes Brownhall Landlord
Collins Belcarra Cottiers
Brownes Fairhill Large farmers
McAdams Frenchill Small Famers