Co. Louth

This page has been added at the request of members of the NIR-DOWN LIST. County Louth is a distinct county from DOWN but many families (especially from the Kingdom of Mourne and Newry town) have close connections to Co. Louth. County Louth is s contiguous to but not part of County Down.
Whereas Massforth Church is seven miles from Greencastle, St. James's Church in Greenore is only 2 and a half or 3 miles distant across the lough, and prior to the erection of Grange Church in 1926 it was quite common for the local parishioners to go across by boat for prayers in St. James's. (Source: Raymond Kelly). There are a lot of Louth born people living in Greencastle on the Census for both 1901 & 1911, most of them married to Down people. (Source: Sheila Philips).

County Louth

Louth, the smallest county in Ireland, covers an area of only 317 square miles. It runs northwards from the River Boyne to Carlingford Lough, consisting mainly of fertile undulating country with a coastline of wide sandy bays and occasional rocky headlands. In the North, however, between Dundalk Bay and Carlingford Lough, is the mountainous Cooley Peninsula. The territory now known as County Louth figures prominently in the epic tales of ancient Ireland. It was also the scene of important events, and many other chapters of Ireland's history are illustrated by the county's numerous relics of the past. Louth has great industrial towns like Drogheda and Dundalk as well as sleepy fishing villages. Source: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irelandlist/louth.html

Carlingford

Carlingford is situated on the shores of Carlingford Lough, directly across from Co. Down.
The preservation of its medieval character has ensured it to prevail among Irelands finest Heritage Towns. Its many architectural features include the Thosel, the Mint, Taaffes Castle and the Dominican Friary. King John's once might fortress, now in ruins, commands the entrance to the lough.
The town itself is a huddle of old streets, which grew around the castle. Carlingford prospered throughout the 15th and 16th centuries but with the growth of the nearby town of Newry its importance has steadily declined hastened by the early 18th century. Newry Ship canal which enabled ships to by-pass the port in their journeys up the lough to Newry.

Irish Times - Saturday, June 5, 1880

Click on photgraphs to enlarge

Omeath

Leaving Carlingford via the road to Newry, the Omeath district is entered at the townland of Ballyonan, stretching thence along the Lough shore to Cornamucklagh and ranging back from the shore along the northern slopes of Sliabh Foy (1,935 feet) to the Long Womans Grave and the northern slopes of Carnwaddy, Clermont, and the Flagstaff Hill standing high above Narrowwater on the west. This area and it's counterpart kingdom of Mourne on the north shore was almost certainly the site of the Viking settlement in Carlingford from whom it gets its name Carlinn Fjord. Later re-taken by the Irish the lands were re-apportioned, the northern side to the Mughdorna (Mourne) and the southern side to the Ui Meith (Omeath) both of the O' Carrall kingdom of the Oirghialla. Well served by a good road system the district can be accessed by car, cycle or on foot and provides panoramic views of Carlingford Lough, the volcanic ring dyke of Sliabh Foy and the mountains of Mourne across the Lough in County Down. Omeath was the last native Irish speaking district of north Leinster where an Irish School was maintained in the earliest part of the present century in what is now the Park Hotel before it was moved to Rannafast in County Donegal. In addition to the Tain Holiday village with its expensive leisure facilities and caravan park the village itself and its surrounding area are well supplied with hotel and guest houses and other catering facilities including pony and trap rides from Omeath.
Source: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irelandlist/louth.html

Cemetery at Omeath

Greenore

Greenore is a unique Victorian Railway Village located at the tip of the Cooley Peninsula on Carlingford Lough in County Louth. It was built in the 1870’s as a ferryport/tourist destination and operated by the London and North Western Railway Company. The village developed when the railway connecting Newry and Dundalk to the port of Greenore was first opened. From 1873 to 1951 there was a ferry service between Greenore and Holyhead. The London and North Western Railway constructed a substantial hotel and railway station to serve passengers using the ferry. The original railway line ran from Dundalk to Greenore and the first service was 1 May 1873 when the station opened. In 1876 the railway line was extended to Newry. In the 19th century there was a ferry from Greencastle to Greenore. The railway and the station closed on 1 January 1952 and was replaced by bus services to Dundalk and Newry.

Want to know more about Co. Louth?

http://www.jbhall.freeservers.com/index.htm
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