Clooneen
Clooneen in Irish “ An Cluainín” meaning little meadow or sometimes water meadow. In the Electoral division of Drumkeary it is 74.14 acres or 30 hectares in size.
Clooneen borders Ballynakill, Carrowroe, Drumkeary East, Drumkeary West, Knockdrummore and Knockroe.
What we recorded
- Placenames
- 2
- 2 field
- Buildings
- 2
By type
Map
Placenames
| Name | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Kennedy’s | field | Consists of 3 fields, the one the point is on and the 2 on either side to the north-west and south-east. |
| John Joe’s | field | Consists of the 5 fields on this south-western side of the townland of Clooneen. |
Buildings
| Name | Notes |
|---|---|
| Nun’s Dwelling? | |
| Ballynakill Castle |
Population
In the 1841 census there were 8 people and 2 houses and there were no returns for the 1851 census. The 1840 map had 4 houses or outbuildings in the townland. There are no houses recorded on the 1901 or 1911 census.
Land and Household Records
Landholders and heads of household recorded in the Tithe Applotment Books, Griffith’s Valuation, and the 1901, 1911 and 1926 censuses.
Tithe Applotment Books, 1834
Not yet compiled.
Griffith’s Valuation, 1856
Not yet compiled.
1901 census
Not yet compiled.
1911 census
Not yet compiled.
1926 census
No returns.
About the Townland
Ballynakill Castle
Situated in Clooneen townland the Castle would have served as both a defensive stronghold and a residence for a local Gaelic or Anglo Norman family. It was a rectangular stone structure rising to a number of storeys with narrow window openings to serve as arrow slots and thick walls designed to withstand siege and assault. The upper floors would have contained the living quarters, and included a great hall where the lord would have received visitors and conducted business.
These castles were typical of tower houses all over the Irish countryside that date from the late medieval period (12th to 16th centuries). Coolfin Castle in nearby Abbey parish is another local example.
The Castle was surrounded by a ‘bawn’ wall a word derived from the Irish word bathún meaning cattle enclosure. They were often constructed initially of mud and stone and finally of local stone construction as extra protection for humans and animals. William Burke is recorded as living there in the late 16th century and it is felt that the Castle was severely damaged and no longer lived in before the Cromwellian years in Ireland 1649 to 1653, a period that led to such death and destruction.