The Townland of Cappagh
Source: Cappagh-a sense of
history Author Frank Whelan
A Stoneage dwelling
The parish of Cappagh (An Ceapach-a tillage
plot) is called after the townland of it's first church. It is situated in the barony of
Lower Connello. The earliest settlers lived in houses built of wood, stones or earth and
surrounded by an earthen mound. Because of the superstitious nature of the native Irish
through the centuries the forts have been left relatively untouched and bear witness to
the harsh lives of our ancestors. There are a number of ruined castles in the townland
which bear testimony to the many military campaigns over the centuries. Cappagh village no
longer exists. It died out like many other villages through famine and emigration. In it's
heyday it was a popular center with the people of the local hinterland having a number of
bars and shops. But by the late 1800s it had all but disappeared. All that is left are
faint impressions in the ground and even fainter memories in the minds of the older
people. In recent years with a more affluent society and an ever larger section
of the community who are under the age of twenty five there is a huge increase
in the number of new houses being built in the area.
The
Vulcan is a statue set in a niche high in the wall of a building which was
almost certainly the silversmiths workshop at Stoneville, an area originally
called Faranree. When the silver mines were in production in the late 1700s this
would have been an expensive piece of sculpture. My mother ,who was born in this
building told a story about how the miners survived the sudden flooding of the
mines. She said that the miners had found some silver and went to the local inn
near the railway station in Rathkeale to celebrate their luck. When they
returned the mines had flooded and had they been there, they would almost
certainly have perished.
The last twenty years have seen huge changes in Cappagh. With the rise and demise of the so called Celtic Tiger a great number of people have come to live in the parish. Many new houses have been built and the school has been extended and modernized.
The parish of Cappagh (An Ceapach-a tillage
plot) is called after the townland of it's first church. It is situated in the barony of
Lower Connello. The earliest settlers lived in houses built of wood, stones or earth and
surrounded by an earthen mound. Because of the superstitious nature of the native Irish
through the centuries the forts have been left relatively untouched and bear witness to
the harsh lives of our ancestors. There are a number of ruined castles in the townland
which bear testimony to the many military campaigns over the centuries. Cappagh village no
longer exists. It died out like many other villages through famine and emigration. In it's
heyday it was a popular center with the people of the local hinterland having a number of
bars and shops. But by the late 1800s it had all but disappeared. All that is left are
faint impressions in the ground and even fainter memories in the minds of the older
people. In recent years with a more affluent society and an ever larger section
of the community who are under the age of twenty five there is a huge increase
in the number of new houses being built in the area. 