Location: Tree, Penitential Beds, Station Island
Lough Derg--Mapping--Locations--Vicinity
James L. Smith
logainm.ie
CC BY 4.0 International License
Geolocation
English
Key location
DD_0530
54.609009,-7.871214
Station island gazetteer entry
Lough Derg--Vicinity--Geography--gazetteer
The entry for Lough Derg in an 1842 Irish gazetteer
John Parker Lawson, d. 1852
The gazetteer of Ireland, containing the latest information from the most authentic sources, p. 310
Edinburgh Print. & Pub. Co., Edinburgh
1842
Digitised by Google, sponsored by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, archived on Hathi Trust digital library
Public domain
Gazetteer
English
Gazetteer
DD_0488
54.6153, -7.8864
"Foundations can scarcely now be traced"
Lough Derg--Pilgrimage--Magazine--Narrative
An account of Lough Derg from a late-nineteenth-century pilgrim.
Matthew Russell, 1834-1912
'Lough Derg: By a Recent Pilgrim', The Irish Monthly: A Magazine of General Literature Sixth Yearly Volume, p.25
M.H. Gill & Son, Dublin
1878
Sponsored and digitised by Google, Princeton University Library
Public domain
Article
English
Magazine Article
DD_0439
54.6153, -7.8864
Termon McGrath Castle and Settlement Archaeological Survey
Lough Derg--Vicinity--Archaeological survey--Castle
Located on the NW side of a tower house (DG105-014001-) and associated with a settlement cluster (DG105-014002-). The lands of Termon McGrath were granted to James, son of Archbishop Myler McGrath in 1610 (Hill 1877, 183-4). In 1611 Carew records that the 'Archbishop of Cashill hath begune a prittie castle at Termon Magragh w'ch he entends speedily to finish, havinge his materials ready at the place wher he meanes to buyld a bawne and finish the castle' (Hunter 1975, 82). In the campaign of 1649-50 Termon McGrath Castle was bombarded by Cromwellian troops and the N wall of the tower-house destroyed; it has remained a ruin ever since (Rowan 1979, 453). The ruins comprise a tower-house (DG105-001-) and bawn (DG105-014003-) sited where the Waterfoot and Termon rivers enter Lough Erne. The bawn (DG105-014003-) is roughly L-shaped in plan, the maximum dimensions being c. 27m x 27m; it is enclosed by a wall of roughly-coursed blocks and split stone rubble laid in mortar, and abuts the NE and SW corners of the tower-house. It was protected by two circular two-storey towers at the NE and NW corners; these were entered from the bawn by lintelled doorways with drawbar holes. They were fitted with gun-loops on both levels. Only the lower courses of the SE corner of the bawn wall remain. The E wall is c. 3m-4m in height and preserves indications for seven gun-loops. There is a splayed opening at ground level at the N end of this wall; its function is unclear. At the S end of the wall, opposite the tower, the wall is off-set 2.1m above present ground level which together with a corbel-like projection of mortared stones indicates a possible wall-walk or super-structure in this area. There are traces of a shallow fosse outside the E and SE bawn wall. The SW section of bawn wall is represented by footings. The W wall c. 2.5m-3.5min height has five gun-loops and had a small contemporary building near its S end; no visible trace of the E extent of this structure survives. The foundations of the N wall remain with traces of a central gate. A road, c. 4.3m wide and delineated by rubble blocks, leads N from the gate for c. 100m.
The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated.
Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983)
Archaeological Survey of Ireland
National Monuments Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Ireland
08 December 2011
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence
Archaeological survey summary
English
DD_0330
54.535733,-7.852544
Saints Island Structure Archaeological Survey
Lough Derg--Saints Island--Archaeological survey
It is traditionally believed that a monastic settlement was founded here in the fifth century by St. Patrick who installed Dabheoc as the first abbot. There are forty-six islands in Lough Derg but only two of them are of archaeological interest. The original monastic settlement is believed to have been located on Saint's (formerly St. Dabheog's) Island. This became a priory dependant on the Augustinian Abbey of SS Peter and Paul, Armagh in the 1130's and was suppressed and abandoned towards the end of the sixteenth century. The chief concern of the monastery was to minister to the needs of the pilgrimages to the cave, known as St. Patrick's Purgatory, on nearby Station Island. Some sources suggest that the original cave had been located on Saint's Island and that the pilgrimage was later transferred to its present location (Leslie 1961, 9-10). The Lough Derg pilgrimage was famous throughout Europe in the middle ages and a large literature grew up around it (Curtayne 1962, 160-62). An ancient roadway to the pilgrimage site from the village of Pettigo passes Rathnacross ringfort (DG105-002-) and Templecarn old church and burial ground (DG105-003; DG105-015-). The roadway continues to a point on the SW shore of the lake where a wooden bridge (DG101-002-) connected it to Saint's Island. Natural boulders projecting from the lake may be the remains of the supports for this bridge. On the SE shore of the lake is a natural L-shaped stone known as St. Brigid's Chair. St. Dabheoc's Seat on top of a hill to the S of the lake formerly consisted of a stone seat in front of a 'grave-like opening' (O'Connor 1879, 40). The area is now forested and nothing appears to remain of the site.
SAINT'S ISLAND
The remains here include the W half of a single-banked earthen enclosure (DG101-001001-) c. 20m in diameter. A fosse on the outside is up to 1.5m wide. The interior is uneven and overgrown and the E half appears to have been destroyed by a graveyard (DG101-001002-). This consists of a rectangular area 27m NE-SW x 22.5m. It is enclosed by a drystone wall. The interior is uneven and overgrown. At its centre is an irregular pile of rubble with graveslabs indiscriminately placed on it. The 3rd edition of the OS 6-inch map seems to show this as a rectangular foundation (DG101-001003-). A pathway (DG101-001004-) 44m long formed by two lines of grass-grown stones leads NE to the foundations of another rectangular structure (DG101-001005-). This is 9m E-W and 6.55m wide. It appears to be of drystone construction, the walls up to 1.15m wide and up to .95m high. To the NE of this structure is an enclosure (DG101-001007-) formed by a soil-covered stone wall and seeming to represent the NW quadrant of a circle. The diameter of this feature was greater than 18m. There are several other earthen banks and heaps of rubble, seeming to indicate old field boundaries. There is also an indication of an old quay (DG101-001008-) or landing place at the NE end of the island.
The above description was derived from the 'Archaeological Survey of County Donegal. A description of the field antiquities of the County from the Mesolithic Period to the 17th century.' Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin (Lifford: Donegal County Council, 1983). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated.
Compiled by: Brian Lacey with Eamon Cody, Claire Cotter, Judy Cuppage, Noel Dunne, Vincent Hurley, Celie O'Rahilly, Paul Walsh and Seán Ó Nualláin
Archaeological Survey of Ireland
National Monuments Service, Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Ireland
22 September 2008
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence
Archaological survey summary
English
DD_0294
54.6153, -7.8864
"The middle of the island looked like the memory Of some village evicted by the Famine"
Poetry--Twentieth Century--Patrick Kavanagh--Lough Derg
The poetry of Patrick Kavanagh's 'Lough Derg', detailing a visit in 1941
Patrick Kavanagh, 1904-1967
Kavanagh, Patrick, Lough Derg, pp. 14-15
Goldsmith Press, The Curragh, Ireland
1978
Citation for the purposes of criticism
Published poem
English
Poetry chapbook
DD_0250
54.608913,-7.870977
"On prizing up a few loose stones, one exposes heaps of enormous bluebell bulbs, white and skull-like in shape"
Lough Derg--Pilgrimage--Description--Alice Curtayne
The rampant flora overgrowing Saints' Island
Alice Curtayne, 1898-1981
Curtayne, Alice, Lough Derg: St. Patrick’s Purgatory, pp. 24-25
Burns Oats and Washbourn, Ltd., London and Dublin
1944
Citation for the purposes of criticism
Monograph
English
History
DD_0131
54.6153, -7.8864
"You will find instead only stumps, bumps, and conquering armies of weeds, cruel in their strength"
Lough Derg--Pilgrimage--Description--Alice Curtayne
"Do not visit Saints' Island with expectation of finding carved stones, a clear ground plan of ancient buildings, or examples of early Christian masonry..."
Alice Curtayne, 1898-1981
Curtayne, Alice, Lough Derg: St. Patrick’s Purgatory, p. 24
Burns Oats and Washbourn, Ltd., London and Dublin
1944
Citation for the purposes of criticism
Monograph
English
History
DD_0130
54.6153, -7.8864
"Unconcernedly the Easter sunshine poured down on that scene of desertion and decay"
Lough Derg--Pilgrimage--Description--Alice Curtayne
"The land [of Saints' Island] was cultivated at one time. The marks of the furrows were clearly to be seen at the early season of which I speak..."
Alice Curtayne, 1898-1981
Curtayne, Alice, Lough Derg: St. Patrick’s Purgatory, pp. 23-24
Burns Oats and Washbourn, Ltd., London and Dublin
1944
Citation for the purposes of criticism
Monograph
English
History
DD_0129
54.6153, -7.8864
"A melancholy silence shrouded the scene"
Lough Derg--Pilgrimage--Description--Alice Curtayne
"I remember a strange Easter Sunday spent on Saints' Island, not indeed with any hope of finding archaeological confirmation of its history, but simply in communing with the past..."
Alice Curtayne, 1898-1981
Curtayne, Alice, Lough Derg: St. Patrick’s Purgatory, p. 23
Burns Oats and Washbourn, Ltd., London and Dublin
1944
Citation for the purposes of criticism
Monograph
English
History
DD_0128
54.6153, -7.8864