Con Houlihan behind Local Cabinet Decision

John Roche, Chairman of Castleisland District Heritage, recently visited Walter Lyons Furniture in Tralee and made a firm deal on the purchase of three secure metal cabinets for rapid delivery to the project offices in Castleisland.   The purchase came about following the acquisition of papers and artefacts belonging to the late and great journalist,…Continue Reading

Kilnananima: A Grave Legend of Gerald, Earl of Desmond

Gerald, The Rebel Earl of Desmond, was beheaded in 1583 thus signalling the fall of the great Earls of Desmond in Munster.  His troubled soul in ghostly form was said to haunt his grave at Ardnagragh where once stood the principal stronghold of the Fitzgeralds.[1]   Legends of the life and times of the Earls…Continue Reading

Kilmurry House, Castleisland in the Nineteenth Century

‘A fascinating house of indeterminate origins’[1]   Kilmurry House, located a few miles from the town of Castleisland in the parish of Ballincuslane, was built about 1839 by Rev Archibald Macintosh as a Church of Ireland rectory.[2]  This three-storey dwelling, with entrance set on the side, basement, four bays on south front, and hipped roof,…Continue Reading

Honouring Bob Finn, Captain of the Castleisland Moonlighters

‘The Moonlighters were the first that put hope into the nation’ – Memoir of Jerry Lyons, 1951   Castleisland District Heritage this week (19 July 2023) pays homage to Bob Finn, Captain of the Castleisland Moonlighters, at a Grave Renewal Ceremony in Old Kilbannivane Cemetery, Castleisland.  The historic memorial has been refurbished, with substantial financial…Continue Reading

Specs on! A Close Look at The Kerryman Calendar of 1934

In January 1934, The Kerryman issued a ‘pictorial almanac,’ described as an introduction to some of their special correspondents who helped to make the newspaper ‘so widely popular.’[1]  It was printed on art paper at the Kerryman printing works in The Market and Russell Street, Tralee:   These contributors are already well-known by repute to…Continue Reading

Cottage and Castle: Sizing up History at Coolcurtoga

Flesk Castle, Killarney dates to circa 1809.[1]  Its origins are associated with the Coltsmann family, butter merchants of Northumberland stock, who established themselves in Kerry as landlords.[2]  Its construction is attributed to John Coltsmann junior Esq, the only son of John Coltsmann Esq of London and Killarney.  His achievement was described in an obituary composed…Continue Reading

Daniel O’Connell on the Protestant Church in Kerry

Past West Cove, the road carries one down to the village of Cahirdaniel. Nestling in its woods under the towering hills, and beside a stretch of golden strand where the Atlantic flings its wrecks unchecked, lies the home of O’Connell.  Derrynane!  Truly a home for a chief[1] ‘There is an old proverb,’ wrote O’Connell in…Continue Reading

War and Words: The Unfinished Castles of Kilcrohane

In the disturbed days of the reign of Elizabeth I, the sept of O’Sullivan of Caherdaniel decided to construct a castle at Ballycarnahan, their chief residence in the district.[1] O’Sullivan’s Tanist lived nearby at Liss.  The two men were compelled to go away and fight in the Elizabethan wars.   The Tanist’s wife considered herself…Continue Reading