Castleisland is situated in a broad, fertile valley in the centre of Kerry. The ancient name of the town was Oileán Ciarraige. It was so called on account of it's peculiar position between two rivers. One, the river maine, flows south of the town, the other a rather small river flows on the north side. Both unite a short distance west of the town, cutting of a section of land and thus forming and island. In 1226 Geoffrey de Marisco, a Norman Knight built a castle on this island and so the town came to be called Castleisland. In the fourteenth century this Elinor De Marisco married one of the Geraldines therefore this was the principal stronghold of the