Curraghmore Gortcloonmore, Waterdale, Mullaghruttery, Gortadooey and Cloghaun townland minor placenames

The minor placenames of the townlands of Curraghmore, Gortcloonmore, Waterdale, Mullaghruttery, Gortadooey and Cloghaun, Claregalway, Co. Galway

This post concerns the minor placenames to the north of the parish of Claregalway in the townlands of

• • Curraghmore  – The big Marsh (792 acres)
  • Gortcloonmore  The big meadow (517 acres)
  • Waterdale  The Yew (679 acres)
  • Mullaghruttery The Knights Hilltop (229 acres)
  • Gortadooey The Black Fields (130 acres)
  • Cloghaun The Little Bridge (11 acres)

During the mid 19th century, much of this area comprised un-reclaimed bog and rough ground, particularly to the west of the parish in the townland of Curraghmore, where, prior to the construction of the Curraghline in the 1860s, according to Griffiths valuation (1848-1864) only three people lived.  Similarly, the townland of Gortcloonmore was also sparsely populated dsuring this time, with just 12 residents in a small village to the southeast of the townland in the 1860s – the remainder of Gortcloonmore largely comprised bog prior to drainage of the land. Just 18 people are recorded as living in the townland of Gortadooey in Griffiths Valuation although with considerably better land than Gortcloonmore according to the Ordnance Survey Name Books: 

‘...the property of James Lambert, Esq., Cregg of Clare. All under tillage and near its north end is a remarkable fort on the Parish boundary. The road from Claregalway to Shrule bounds its west side. Near its eastern side stands a Trigl. Station’

The quality of land improves moving eastward from the bogs, and historical settlement in this area reflects this. A small part of the townland of Waterdale is named as Cloghaun and located in the parish of Claregalway, with the remainder of Cloghaun townland being in the parish of Lackagh near the exceptionally dense vernacular settlement of Liscananaun – a very interesting area  on the northern bank of the Waterdale River with medieval settlement worthy of study. Liscananuan is even marked on William Petty’s Hiberniae Delineatio (c.1672). The townland of Waterdale itself is interesting, not just for the presence of Waterdale Demesne in the 19th century, but that the original name Eochaill/Owghell (from which Waterdale is likely derived) is recorded in 1591 and suggestive of continuous settlement in the this area from at least the High-to-Late Medieval period. A ringfort located on the Waterdale Demesne in the townland indicates earlier Gaeilic settlement. Adjacent to this is the townland of Mullaghruttery, meaning ‘the Knights hilltop’, again supporting the idea that this part of Claregalway/Lackagh parish was important to Gaelic society. Our work in the townlands during 2020 identified 69 new minor placenames and places of interest known locally within the townland. These are marked on the map below, and included in tabulated format. These placenames were collected by Seamus O’Connell from Mary Costello, Peter Greally, P. Keane, Michael O’Connell, George Fox and Gerry Forde. A special thank you to John Duffy who submitted additional placenames in the townland of Waterdale that he collected from Peggy Duffy. The placenames collected refer to fields, wells, houses, bótharíns, burial places, and other elements of the local landscape.

This work is on-going. If you know of any other minor placenames in the parish of Claregalway that may be of interest, and you would like to contribute to our survey, please do get in touch.