No. XIII.

UNION OF

NOUGHAVAL AND CARRUNE,

(Diocese of Kilfenora, and County of Clare,)

BY THE REV. ROBERT GABBETT, LATE RECTOR,

I. Name of the Parish, Situation, Extent, &c.

THE ancient and modern names of these parishes Name: are Noughaval and Carrune. Both are situated in situation. the county of Clare, barony of Burren, and diocese of Kilfenora; they join each other, and are situated about from 9o 14' to 9° 28' west longitude, and from 52° 49' to 52° 55' north latitude. Noughaval is Boundaries bounded on the east by the parish of Carrune, on the west by that of Kilfenora, on the north by that of Rathbourney, on the south by that of Kilnaboy. Carrune parish is bounded on the east by the county of Galway, on the west by the parish of Noughaval, on the north by that of Kilcorney and Octmanna, and on the south by the parishes of Kilnaboy and Kilkeedy.

The extent of Noughaval is about three miles by Extent. two; that of Carrune is about six miles by three..

N N

Soil

Bog.

Roads.

Raids.

Castle.

Raths.

In the former of these parishes, the proportion of tillage or meadow land is very small, the whole being mostly a limestone rocky pasture. Such parts as are capable of being tilled, produce potatoes, oats, and bere; there are about 15 acres of meadow land in it, and about 80 acres of pasturable mountain, The latter parish has a much less proportion of tillage, and no meadow land; almost the whole consists of extremely rocky pasture, all of a limestone soil, which answers well for sheep. There are about 80 acres of pasturable mountain in Noughaval, and about 20 acres of bog in the same parish.

II. Mines, Minerals, &c.

None.

III. Modern Buildings, &c.

One road passes through Nonghaval, from the village of Carraffin to the Bay of Galway, and another through Carrune to and from the same places, with a road branching off from Noughaval through Car

rune.

IV. Ancient Buildings, &c.

In Noughaval are the ruins of an old church, connected with which is a glebe land, consisting of about twenty-seven acres, in five divisions; and, except about two acres, it consists entirely of rocky pasture. There is one castle, and the ruins of two more, and three of what are called Danish forts. In Carrune are the remains of three old churches, a small glebe of about one acre and a half, and the remains of two

I old castles, and five of what are called Danish forts, There are no traditions current with respect to any of these.

V, Present & Former State of Population, Food, &c.

ment.

The parish of Noughaval contains about 50 in- Population habited houses or cabins, and about 295 inhabitants, of whom about 148 are males, 147 females, all Roman Catholics. Carrune contains about 118 inhabited houses, and about 719 inhabitants, of whom about 371 are males, and 348 females, all Roman Catholics; this number includes men, women, and children; Employ, their occupations are farming, labour and herding. Most of the land in these parishes being pasture, is tenanted by persons residing in other parts of the county, consequently herding constitutes the employment of a considerable number of the inhabitants; but there are some comfortable wealthy resident farmers with the exception of these, the inhabitants are in general poor and indifferently dressed, and always live on potatoes and milk. They are in gene- Food. ral healthy, but the writer has not heard of any ex- Health. traordinary instances of longevity.

VI. The Genius & Disposition of the Poorer Classes,&o.

The inhabitants in general appear to be industrions Language. and well-disposed. The language used by the people in general is the Irish. There are no particular customs, patrons, or patron days, nor have any traditions of a local nature been handed down, which might serve to throw light on the manners or habits of the people here.

School.

Chapela.

Tythe.

VII. Education and Employment of Children, &c.

The children have no particular employment, except that of assisting their parents occasionally in the labours of the field. There is no endowed school in Noughaval, and but one private school, containing about thirty scholars; the quarterly salary is from 1s. 7d. to 3s. 3d.: in Carrune, is another private school, containing about forty scholars, at the same quarterly rates. In both of these the children are instructed in reading English, writing, and arithmetic.

VIII. State of Religious Establishment, Tithes, &c.

There is no Protestant place of worship, it being unnecessary, as there is not one Protestant inhabitant in these parishes; there is a Roman Catholic chapel in the parish of Noughaval. In Carrune there is also a Roman Catholic chapel.

The tythe of the tillage and meadow land is viewed and valued, and let to the parishioners yearly. The tythe of sheep, which contributes a considerable proportion to that of those parishes, is rated at so much per hundred, the average number being taken from frequent views in the course of the year, and an agreement then made with the parishioner for them: they are set by the year. These parishes are 4dvowson, in the gift of the Bishop of Killaloe and Kilfenora, and they are the corpse of the chantership of Kil fenora.

IX. Modes of Agriculture, Crops, &c.

Land.

The rent of the land differs extremely in these Rent of parishes, owing to the rockiness of by much the greater part of the soil. In Noughaval the best land lets at about four pounds per acre; the second quality at about two pounds, and the third quality at about thirty shillings: in Carrune the best at about two pounds; the second quality at about one pound, and the third, at about ten shillings per acre.

tare.

The small share of agriculture is of the old mode; Mode of they make their manure from straw and fern; the Agricul stock is mostly sheep, but in some parts where the land is good, cows are fattened. There are neither markets nor fairs in these parishes.

X. Trade, Manufactures, Commerce, &c.

None,

XI. Natural Curiosities, Remarkable Occurrences, &c.

List of Incumbents, extracted from the First Fruits' Records

bents.

By certificate of Edward lord archbishop of Tuam, Ineumand bishop of Fenebore, dated the 25th day of May, 1724, from the 3d day of July, 1723, dignitas precentoriat. eccliæ. Cathlis. sancti Feckaan. Feneboren. necnon vicariæ eccliarum. parlium. de Noughvaile, Carne, Kiltoraght, Clouney, Kilmainheen, et Killaspuglenane in comitatu Clare et diœces. nra. Feneboren. per mortem naturalem Roberti Couperthwaite clici ultimi ibm. incumbentis jam vacan.