Rev. Stephen Lower (c. 1727-1799)
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Three Ancient Glenmore Churches
As our third instalment of Chapter 4, of volume 4 of Fr. Carrigan’s History & Antiquities of the Diocese of Ossory (1906) (p. 91-93) three ancient Glenmore Churches will be discussed including; Kilcoan (Weatherstown); Kilbride and Kilmakevoge (also called Kilivory). For all three of these ancient churches Carrigan provided not only the dimensions of the churches, important stones he found in the ruins and nearby Holy Wells. While reading the rest of this fascinating volume in the Mullinavat chapter we came across Big Wood Church which we have also included below because it was supported by nearby Glenmore people.
Kilcoan
“Irish speakers call it Kil-choo-ann, that is, the Church of St. Cuan (pronounced Coo-ann, accent on second syllable). Kilcoan church was a rectangle, 18 feet wide internally, and about 37 feet long, the walls being 2 ½ feet thick. The foundations alone now remain. From the amount of very large rough stones lying on and around the site, it must be concluded that the church was rudely built and was of great antiquity. A graveyard of about two acres is believed to have surrounded it in ancient times; but, at present, all appearances of a burial ground have been obliterated, and the site of the church itself is merely a small patch of unprotected commonage beside the public road. About 150 yards to the south, in the wall of a lane-way, is a great, rugged stone, with a basin-shaped artificial hollow, 12 inches in diameter and 3 inches in depth, cut on the surface” (Carrigan, p. 91).
“St. Cuan’s holy well, called Thubber-chooann, is about a quarter of a mile from the site of the church, in the townland of Flemingstown. Beside it is another holy well, enclosed by a wall and called Thubber-Wizzha (Tobar Muire), or the Blessed Virgin’s Well. Both wells are still frequented for devotional purposes by the people” (Carrigan, p. 91).
Previous to the Reformation the parish and church of Kilcoan belonged to the Priory of Inistioge, as appears from the Red Book of Ossory (Carrigan, p. 91)”
[According to Danny Dowling (1927-2021) the site of this ancient church was in the hamlet of Weathertown in a common at the side of the junction of two lanes. Danny recorded that he spoke with Larry Doyle (c. 1933-2021) of Weathertown regarding some stones Larry uncovered on or near the common in Weatherstown. Larry said that he was working for old “Billy Fitz” (Bill Fitzgerald, c. 1905-1983) of Weatherstown in the late 1960’s or early 1970’s. Larry was clearing an area and came across what appeared to be paving stones. From their description and the location Danny concluded that they may have been part of a floor or yard connected to the ancient church of Kilcoan.]
Kilbride
“In Irish, Kyle-vzheedha (Iold Irish Script that looks like, Cill Drugue) or St. Bridget’s Church. The Church was a rectangle, 43 feet long, internally, and 18 ½ feet wide; but the walls, which were 2 feet, 5 inches thick, are now all fallen to a height of one yard from the ground. The entrance door was in the north wall, near the west gable. The graveyard is very large, with portion of a deep fosse at the south-west end. At the east end of the church is an uninscribed head-stone chamfered on both sides, in front, and having carved on it, in relief, an ancient cross patee, [head] inscribed in a circle; it is now deeply sunk in the ground (Carrrigan, p. 91).
“The baptismal font lies in the fosse at the south-west end of the churchyard; it is square on the outside, and quite rough; the basin is 1 foot 7 inches by 1 foot 5 inches; and is 7 inches deep. A holy water stoup, near the west gable of the church, has a round bowl, like a basin, 11 inches in diameter, and 4 ½ inches deep. Another holy water stoup, much resembling this, was taken away out of the churchyard about 1878. A stone, or rather rock, weighing some tons, in the field under the churchyard, has a basin-shaped cavity on the surface, 1 foot in diameter and 6 inches in depth. Besides this rock is a well, supplied with water by a drain from a holy well about 30 or 40 perches distant, called, Thubbervzheedha or St. Bridget’s Well. The drain was made, and the holy well destroyed in the year 1842″ (Carrigan, p. 91).
Kilbride church and parish belonged to the Augustinian Canons of the Congregation of St. Victor, St. Catherine’s Priory, Waterford” (Carrigan, p. 91).
[For further photos of Kilbride ruins and graveyard taken in 2020 click here]
Kilmokevoge
“The church of Kilmokevoge was originally dedicated to St. Mochaevog, or Pulcherius, abbot and patron of Liath-Mochavog, in the Co. Tipperary; but, after the Norman Invasion, it was placed under the patronage of St. James the Apostle (July 25). In Irish it is called Kill—mo-chac-voogue, that is, the Church of St. Mochaemhog or Mochaevog. In English it is often called Kilivory, from a popular notion that mochaemhog means ivory; but this, writes O’Donovan, ‘is truly ridiculous and in every way incorrect’ (O’Donovan’s Ordinance Survey Letters)” (Carrigan, p. 92).
“Kilmokevoge church is rectangular, and, though long a ruin, is still substantially perfect. Internally it measures 42 feet by 18 12 feet. In the west gable, 12 or 14 feet from the ground, are two narrow loops, somewhat damaged and widely apart, each having at top a round arch cut out of a single stone. There is a door in the north side-wall, 3 feet wide below, but all the upper part of the framework is broken away. The wall here 3 feet 2 inches thick. There is a broken window in the same wall, near the east gable, and another window, also ruined, opposite this, in the south side wall. The east window is blocked up by a mural monument of the Stranges of Aylwardstown. There are corbels in the west end for the support of a gallery; and a broken locker in the north side wall, near the east end. Some very large stones may be observed here and there in the walls” (Carrigan, p. 92).
“The church is undoubtedly ancient, but, as its distinguishing features are either entirely destroyed or seriously injured, its age cannot be fixed. Most probably it is older than the middle of the 12th century. In the south east corner beside where the altar stood, rests the Very Rev. Dr. Lower, P.P., on whose monument may be read:
‘Erected by the Revd. Thos. Malley. Doctor of the
Sacred and White Facility of Bordeaux in memory
of the Rev. Stephen Lower, Bachelor of Lovain,
Doctor of Rome, Prothonotary Apostolic, Archdeacon &
Vicar General of Ossory & Parish Priest of Ida,
Who depd. This life the 9th of Janry, 1800, aged 73 years,
Requiescat in pace. Amen.’
Dr. Lower’s grave is hollowed out to a considerable depth by people taking away the clay therefrom, in the firm belief that it possesses virtue to heal their bodily ailments(Carrigan p. 93). Carrigan later in the volume describes Fr. Lower as “one of the grandest characters that figure in the ecclesiastical history of our Diocese. (Carrigan, p. 210).”
“The Strange monument, besides Dr. Lower’s, commemorates Peter Strange of Aylwardstown, who died Dec. 22nd, 1872, aged 67 years; his father Lawrence; his grandfather, Peter, who died at Aylwardstown, Sept. 1824, aged 89 years; and Thomas F. Strange, who was born, May 11th, 1812 and died Feb. 2nd 1897.”
“In the graveyard, at the end of the church, is an altar tomb marking the burial place of the Forrestalls of Rochestown; it has the family arms, and is inscribed to the memory of Mr. Edmund Forrestall, of Rochestown, who died in 1797, aged 45 years” (Carrigan, p. 93).
“A little to the north of the church is St. James holy well, called, in Irish, Thubber San Seeum, or Well of St. James. The church and parish of Kilmokevoge were appropriated by the Nunnery of Kilkilliheen, probably by David fitz Milo, about the year 1240” (Carrigan, p. 93).
[For further information on Fr. Lower, the saviour of Slieverue in 1798, see our post of 11 November 2020.]
[For photos and headstone inscriptions in Kilivory (Kilmakevoge) churchyard click here.]
Bigwood
“The present chapel of Bigwood was built in 1824, by the contributions of the people of the neighbouring townlands in the parishes of Mullinavat, Kilmacow, Slieverue and Glenmore; and to the present day the inhabitants of these same townlands, no matter to which of the four parishes they may belong, look on Bigwood chapel as their own, pay their share of its expenses, and contribute to all parochial collections held here. The old chapel of Bigwood, erected some time after 1787 and discontinued in 1824, stood at the extreme end of the present chapel yard” (Carrigan, p. 179).
[Since Carrigan’s work was published Bigwood has built a newer church in the 1960’s.]
Please send any corrections, further information or photos to glenmore.history@gmail.com.
Dr. Kathleen Moore Walsh