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Lewis 1842: County Tyrone augher - aughnacloy - ballygawley - caledon - castlederg - clady - clogher - cumber - strabane - urney

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County Tyrone

TYRONE (County of), an inland county of the province of ULSTER, bounded on the east by the county of Armagh and Lough Neagh, on the north by the county of Londonderry, on the west by the counties of Donegal and Fermanagh, and on the south by those of Fermanagh and Monaghan. It extends from 53° 59' to 54° 37. (N. Lat.), and from 6° 28' to 7° 50' (W. Lon.); comprising an area, according to the Ordnance survey, of 754,395 statute acres, of which 555,820 are cultivated land, 171,314 are unimproved mountain and bog, and 27,261 are covered with water. The population in 1821, amounted to 261,865; and in 1831, to 302,943. In the time of Ptolemy it was inhabited by the Scoti, which tribe extended itself over most of the inland regions; though some writers place Erdini here as well as in the neighbouring maritime county of Donegal. It was afterwards known as the district or kingdom of Cineal Eoghain, frequently called Tir Oen, whence its present name of Tyrone is derived, a portion of its southern border embraces the northern parts of the ancient dirstrict of Orgial or Uriel. According to Camden it was divided into Upper and Lower, or North and South Tyrone by the Slieve Callion mountain; but as this range is now wholly included within Londonderry, it is probable that the name of Tyrone was then extended to the greater part of that county also. This district was from the earliest period of the Irish annals the chief seat of the power of the O'Nials, the princes or kings of the country, who traced their origin from Nial of the nine hostages, and several of whom obtained the sovereignty over the whole island. In the tenth century, Hugh O'Nial, lord or chief of Tyr Oen, was solicited by Malachy, King of Ireland, to assist him against Brian Boroimhe, then claiming the rank of King of Ireland, and was offered a large portion of Meath as the reward of his aquiescence. O'Nial of Tyrone was one of the chiefs in Roderic O'Conor's army in his unsuccessful attempt to drive the English out of Dublin. In 1177, his death is recorded under the title of King of Tyrone. On the second arrival of King John in Ireland, O'Nial, who had been a formidable opponent to De Courcy during his invasion of Ulster, was prevailed on to give his personal attendance on the king, but not until two hostages had been sent for the security of his person. Hen. III, in a letter to the Irish subordinate princes who had done homage to the English sovereign, style him O'Neil regi de Kinelum sive Tir Oen. The O'Nial family was also one of the five Irish septs which were specially entitled to the enjoyment of English rights and privileges. On the first arrival of Rich. II in Ireland, O'Nial met him in Drogheda, being the first of four native princes who waited on that king. During this period and for many years after, this territory of which Tyrone was the principal part and the usual seat of the ruling prince's residence, was untouched by the English; while, on the contrary, their borderw were exposedto this predatory incursions. O'Nial was one of the adherents of Edward Bruce in his attempt to conquer Ireland. In 1333, on the death of the Earl of Ulster, who was assassinated at Carrickfergus by his own servants, O'Nial crossed the Bann and seized part of the counties of Down and Antrim, which he parcelled out into the diestricts of the Upper and Lower Claneboy, and these continued subject to the family till the reign of Jas. I. In the reign of Hen. VIII., Hugh Baccagh, or the Lame, invaded Meath but was afterwards induced to submit to that monarch, by whom he was honoured with a collar of gold; and though he had supported the Kildare family during its rebellion, he was not only pardoned, but had the title of Earl of Tyrone conferred on him, with remainder to his illegitimate sone Matthew. On his death, however, his legitimate son John, better know by the name of Shane O'Nial, assumed the family title and seized on the inheritance, claiming the sovereignty of the province and arrogating the supremacy over all the subordinate clans; after maintaining a desultory warfare against the English government, he was assassinated by Alexander Oge McConnell, or McDonnell, the leader of the Scots in Ulster, to whom he had recourse for protection when unable to give effectual resistance to the English. The title was claimed after his death by Tirlough Lemagh O'Nial, a nephew of the first Earl of Tyrone, but being advanced in years and of a peacable disposition, he suffered it to be wrested from hi by Hugh, the sone of Matthew O'Nial, who, after performing some services to the English in the war against Desmond, was admitted to the title and rank of Earl of Tyrone and to the estate of his ancestors, in virtue fo the grant made to his grandfather; a fort on the Blackwater being the only place excepted from his jurisdiction. He afterwards became one of the bitterest and most formidable enemies of the English. In consequence of alleged grievances, he raised forces and suddenly seized on the above-mentioned fort, which was the key of his territory on that side; but being hard pressed by Sir John Norris, he evacuated that position, burnt the town of Dungannon, and the neigbouring villages, together with the greater part of his own fortress there, and endeavoured to preserve his life by concealment. Afterwards, being buoyed up with promises of succours from Spain, he joined a league of all the northern chieftains against the English. In 1597, the whole of Ulster, except the castles along the coast, was in the possession of O'Nial or his adherents; and in an attempt made to relieve the fort of the Blackwater, then hard pressed by his army, Sir Henry Bagnall, Marshal of the English, his inveterate enemy, was utterly routed and slain. After having baffled the celebrated and unfortunate Earl of Essex by a succession of affected submissions and unexpected hostilities, and joined in the expedition to Munster to aid the Spaniards at Kinsale, he was invaded in turn by the royal forces under Lord Mountjoy, who, by seizing on the passes and erecting forts at Charlemont, Mountjoy, and other important positions, reduced him to such extremities that he surrendered at Mellifont, and attended Mountjoy to Dublin, who proposed to send him thence to the Queen. Her death changed his destination for that time; but in the beginning of the ensuing reign, being suspected of an attempt to excite a new insurrection in Ulster, he fled to Spain; and his princely property being consequently confiscated, was parcelled out into six counties, which were modelled, divided and planted with English settlers under special instructions from the king. According to the rules of his settlement, the whole county, which was estimated to contain 1571 balliboes, or 98,187 acres, being at the rate of 1000 acres to 16 balliboes, was divided into 78 portions, which, after deducting a portion for the church and some lands for Trinity College, Dublin, were granted to English and Irish undertakers, that is, settlers, who engaged to build, fortify, and stock the lands with British tenantry. Five borough towns, Dungannon, Glogher, Omagh, Strabane, and Mountjoy, were allowed a certain portion of the surrounding grounds; and another portion was assigned to some of the members of the O;Nial family. The Irish were distributed as tenants among the undertakers, the swordsmen excepted, who were to be removed to the waste parts of Connaught or Munster, where they were to be dispersed and not suffered to settle together in one place. On an inspection of the progress of the plantation, made by Captain Pynnar under the king's direction in 1618, it appeared that the county was divided into the five precincts of Strabane, Omy, Clogher, Mountjoy, and Dungannon: the first of these, Strabane, was allotted to Scotch undertakers, of whom those then in possession of the lands granted to the original patentees were the Earl of Abercorn, Sir Geo. Hamilton, Sir William Stewart, Sir Robert Newcomen, and Sir John Drummond; Omy, allotted to English undertakers, was in the possession of the Earl of Castlehaven and Sir John Davies; Clogher, also allotted to English undertakers, was held by Lord Ridgware, George Ridgware, Sir Gerard Lowther, Lord Burleigh, John Leigh, Sir William Stewart, Sir William Cope and William Parsons; Mountjoy, allotted to Scotch undertakers, was held by SIr Robert Heyburne, Lord Vehiltree, Captain Sanderson, Mrs. Lindsey, Alex. Richardson, Andrew Stewart (son to Lord Vehiltree), and Davide Kenedare; Dungannon, allotted to servitors and natives, was held by Lord Chichester, Lord Ridgware, Sir Toby Caulfield, William Parsons, SIr Francis Ansley, Lord Wingfield, and Tirlagh O'Nial. The only towns, in the erection of which any progress had been made, were those of Strabane and Augher. The county continued to improve during the reign of Jas. I., but it suffered greatly during the war of 1641, at the termination of which, much of the lands fell into the hands of new proprietors; and in the subsequent war of 1688 it was the scene of many military events connected with the seige of Londonderry. The county is partly in the diocese of Clogher, partly in that of Armagh, but chiefly in that of Derry. For pruposes of civil jurisdiction it is divided into the baronies of Clogher, Dungannon, Strabane, and Omagh. It contains the borough and market and post towns of Strabane and Clogher; the disfranchised borough and market town of Augher; the market and post towns of Cookstown, Stewartstown, Newtown Stewart, Aughnacloy, Caledon, Ballygawley, Castlederg, and Moy; the market towns of Drumquin, Beregh and Trillick; and the post towns of Fintona, Five-mile town, Dunamanagh, and Coal Island. The principal villages are Claudy, Coagh, Dromore, Gartin, Pomeroy, Six mile cross (each of which has a penny post), Killeter, Newmills, Termonmaguirk and Tullyhoge. It sent ten members to the Irish parliament: two for the county, and two each for the boroughs of Dungannon, Strabane, Augher, and Clogher. Since the Union its representatives in the Imperial parliament have been two for the county and one for the borough of Dungannon: the election for the county is held at Omagh. The county constituency, as registered to the commencement of the year 1837, was, 322 freeholders of £50, 346 of £20, and 1805 of £10; 1 rent charger of £50, and 30 of £20; 50 leaseholders of £20 and 46 of £10; making a total of 2600 electors. Tyrone is included in the north west circuit, the assizes are held at Omagh, where the county gaol and court house are situated, general sessions of the peace are held alternately at Omagh and Strabane, for the Omagh district, which comprises the baronies of the same name; those for the district of Dungannon, which comprises the baronies of Dungannon and Clogher are held at Dungannon and Glocher alternately. The local government is vested in a lieutenant, 13 deputy lieutenants, and 106 other magistrates, together with the usual county officers, including two coroners. There are 29 constabulary police stations, having in the whole a force of an inspector, a paymaster, 2 stipendiary magistrates, 5 officers, 32 constables, 189 men and 5 horses. The district lunatic asylum is in the city of Londonderry, the county infirmary at Omagh, the fever hospital at Strabane; and there are dispensaries at Termonmaguirk, Stewartstown, Augher, Clogher, Castlederg, Caledon, Dungannon, Newtown Stewart, Strabane, Dunumanagh, Drumquin, Fintona, Coagh, Dromore, Trillick, Omagh, Gortin, Ballygawley, and Cookstown: supported by equal Grand Jury presentments and private subscription. The Grand Jury presentments for 1836 amounted to £35,331. 13. 2., of which £4031. 11. 10 was for roads, bridges, &c., being the county charge; £18,952. 1. 2½. for the same, being the baronial charge, £5450. 17. 8. for public buildings, charities, officers' salaries, and incidents, £2574. 6. 2½. for the police; and £4322. 16. 3. for the repayment of advances made by the Government. In the military arrangements the county is in the northern district, and contains one barrack for infantry at Omagh. The surface is greatly diversified by a continued variety of hill and dale, rising into elevated mountain tracts in the north and west, which are known by the general name of the Munterlowny mountains; the most elevated is Sawell, part of which is in the county of Londonderry, 2235 feet high; the next is Mullaghearn, 1778 feet. Bessy Bell and Mary Grey are the fanciful names of two mountains detached from this range and standing prominently remarkable on each side of the river Mourne: the former is said to derive its name from Baal or Bel, whose religious rites called Baase were performed on its summit, hence the expression Baase Bell, which by a natural corruption has been moulded into its present popular appellation; the origin of the name of the other has not been ascertained. To the west of the barony of Dungannon are the mountains of Ballygawley, and still further south-west are those of Morley or Murley, both so high as to preclude the possibility of cultivation, though not so lofty as the northern range. The less elevated districts present many views of rich tranquil scenery. The mountainous parts, particularly near the courses of the numerous rivers and streams, abound with picturesque and romantic prospects; the central part of the county from Omagh to Ballygawley is mostly a dreary expanse of bog and heath. The lakes are few and small; in the demesne of Baronscourt are three, in one of which is an artificial islet, clothed with timber, called McHugh's island, from a chieftain of that name who constructed it and erected a fortress on it. Not far from Baronscourt is Lough Creevy; Lough Frae or Fry is in Lissan parish; there are others, small but interesting for their scenery, near Pomeroy, Donoughmore, Fairlough, and Dunamanagh; the border of one in the demesne of Pomeroy presents an exact miniature resemblance of the outline of Ireland. The climate is very variable: the prevalence of western winds occasions a constant humidity of the atmosphere, which is a frequent cause of rheumatism and paralysis; but the county is improving greatly in this respect; disease is much more uncommon than it was formerly, and those who are well fed and clothed are as free from sickness here as the similar class in any other part of the country. In the mountain districts to the north the soil is cold and shallow, seldom exceeding six inches in depth; in some parts the subsoil is a tenacious clay, rendering the surface wet and spongy; in others it is a compact bog, equeally renacious of moisture and therefore equally injurious by retaining the surface water; yet even amidst these elevated cold and moory districts in the north and west, some spots of excellent land appear, well-cultivated and highly productive. At Strabane the lands are of a dry and fertile description, and also in a high state of cultivation; near Urnery are some meadow lands of the richest quality. The eastern parts are a deep alluvial soil based upon liemstone, adequate also to produce excellent crops. The vale of the Blackwater is exceedingly picturesque and also of the greatest fertility. Agriculture has made rapid advances of late years, particularly in the eastern districts where crops of every kind are raised of the best quality. The culture of wheat is universal except in the mountainous parts; the farmers are peculiarly skilful in the management of flax and potatoes. The lands in the more fertile districts are much subdivided, the general size of farms varying from 5 to 50 acres, the fields are judiciously laid out; the gences generally of white thorn except in the hilly country where they are mostly of dry stone; sometimes 8 feet broad at the bottom, very carelessly built and much neglected; where stones are scarce, walls built of sods, and often topped with furze, are used. Draining and irrigation form part of the general system in many parts, but the water is not good fo irrigation. The improvements in the agricultural implements and carriages have kept pace with those in tillage. Spade cultivation is not so prevalent here as in the hilly districts of other counties. An implement caled a "skroghoge", for cutting scraws or sods, is peculiar to this part of the country: it is in the form of a large spade, with a blade of ten inches both in length and breadth and a handle about four feet and a half long. The sods used in the covering of houses, to lay between the wattles and the thatch, are cut with it about two feet broad and from an inch to two inches thick; the length is determined by that of the slope of the roof: when cut, they are rolled upon a stick like a roll of parchment, and thus carried to the place on which they are to be laid. The mode formerly general here of allowing land to rest for a few years to recover itself naturally, without the assistance of clover or hay-seeds, prevented the pastures from being of a rich quality; but it is no longer practised except by the poorest class of farmers. A pernicious custom exists in many parts of turning the cattle into the potato grounds before the stalks are withered, thus checking the growth of the bulb and injuring the land. Red and white clover are the most common kind of artificial grasses. The native cattle are mostly reared on the mountains; they are of various colours and shapes, but generally small as heavy stock could not subsist on the scanty vegetation produced there, being principally heath and a coarse kind of sedge grass which springs up immediately after burning the heath, a common practice in many parts. In no other county in Ireland has there been a greater improvement in the breed of cattle than in the county of Tyrone. Some of the best description in England and Scotland have been brought over. The numerous crosses thus produced have occasioned a great variety of stock which, however, appears necessary to suit the various soils. In the valley of the Blackwater and some other similar districts, the Durham breed thrives remarkably well and in many parts a judicious cross with the Kerry cow has been introduced to great advantage. Though there are few extensive dairy farms, butter is mad in large quantities, and some cheese; the butter is usually salted and made up in firkins for the Scotch market. The natvie horse, though ill shaped, is hardy and well suited to agricultural purposes; a superior description, for the road or field sports, is brought in from other counties; the great mart for the purchase of good horses is the fair of Moy; yet some very fine horses are now reared in the county from British sires. The native sheep are small and ill shaped, and very inferior both as to fleece and carcass; these are confined to the mountainous districts; in the fertile parts the breed is good; but, strictly speaking, Tyrone is not a sheep-feeding county. The vicinity of Strabane is the only part in which pigs are kept in great numbers; and little improvement has taken place in this kind of stock. The county exhibits some very striking geological features. The red sandstone formation embraces a considerable portion of its southern and eastern parts while the greatest part of the north and west belongs to the clay slate formation. In both districts there are considerable exceptions. The clay slate is intersected by a vein of micaceous limestone which first appears in the bed of the river Poe; thence passing near Newtown-Stewart and crossing the Munterlowney mountains it terminates near the village of Dunamanagh in the northern extremity of the county. Detached portions of limestone, similar to that of the great central field of Ireland, are to be met with in many parts: white limestone containing numerous nodules of flint, similar to that of Antrim, is found near Coagh. Near Cookstown is a species dissimilar to all the others, and containing a great variety of organic remains; the vein extends southwards to Stewartstown and is disposed in strata varying from five inches to four feet in thickness. But the most remarkable geological feature of the county is its coal formation in which, though the field is of small extent as compared with those in the south and west, it surpasses them in the thickness of the seams and quality of the mineral. The district around this coal field contains rocks of every class: from the more ancient of the primary, to the latest of the secondary or alluvial formations. In the Coal Island works the coal rests on fire-clay, in Drumglass on soft porous sandstone, and in Annahoe on blue clunch; but as the country in which the collieries are situated is covered with alluvial soil to the depth of from 20 to 30 feet, it is often difficult to trace the various beds. In its external aspect it is in general similar to that composed of sandstone; the surface exhibiting an assemblage of low hills with steep acclivities and flattened summits rarely exceeding 100 feet in height; when higher, their upper part is generally composed eigher of new red sandstone or of trap. The Coal Island district is 8 miles long by an average breadth of 2½ miles, and therefore comprehends an area of about 1140 acres; the Annahoe district is little more than a mile long by half a mile in breadth and may therefore contain about 500 acres. Both districts contain sandstone, sandstone-slate, shale, argillaceous iron-stone, and fire-clay. The composition and external character both of the coal and of its accompanying strata are nearly similar in the two divisions; it burns rapidly, giving out a bright blaze and intense heat, like that of Ayrshire. The shale, called by the miners metal, varies in colour from light blueish white to black, is extremely soft, and decomposes rapidly on exposure to the atmosphere; it sometimes contains impressions of ferns, myrtle, and gigantic reeds. An uncommon species of clay stone, extremely compact and difficult to break, occurs interstratified with the shale. Argillaceous iron stone is not abundant; when found, impressions of a large species of fern are frequently detected in the interior. The fire-clay, which lies immediately beneath the bed of coal, is so soft as to form a pulpy mass on the admixture of the slightest moisture, and by allowing the pillars of coal which support the roof to sink into it immediately swells and would close the workings were not great precautions adopted. This clay makes fire bricks equal to those of Stourbridge. Great irregularity prevails in the direction and inclination of the coal strata, the main dip in the southern extremity is north east; in the northern, south-west; but it is frequently altered by wavings or undulations, which are generally north and south. Besides these undulations, which throw the strata into confusion, the continuity of the beds is often broken by slips or faults. The average angle of the strata with the horizon is about 11° 30', or one foot of fall for five of length, but in many places it increases to 50°; the difficulty of clearing off the water is much increased by this increase of angle. The quantity of coal capable of being produced from the Coal Island district may be estimated from the fact that, in workable beds of coal amounting, in the aggregate, to 34 feet of coal in a depth of 244 yards, no instance occurs in the great mining districts of England of an equal number of beds so near each other. From the sulphureous and ferruginous appearance of the water in many places, it is evident that large quantities of ireon ore are deposited here. Clay of various colours for making bricks may be procured in all parts of the county. Good flooring and ridge tiles, garden pots, and coarse earthenware are made in the neighbourhood of Moy and Killyman. Excellent pottery is manufactured near Coal Island: the clay, with is of a muddy white before it is baked, is made up into small oblong wedges of about a pound each, and sold as a substitute for fullers earth, for which purpose it is sent to all parts and brings back a profitable return. A line of escars proceeds from Killyman, by Dungannon, Ballygawley, and Clogher, to Five-mile-town, where it enters the county of Fermanagh. Those in this county are formed of nodules of basalt, greenstone, porphyry, limestone, chalcedony, jasper, and agate; a branch of them near Fintona is almost exclusively formed of chalcedony, jasper, agates, and quartz. At Killeshill and Newtown Saville the formation of the escars is as regular as if they had been artificially arranged. In the sandstone formation in Killyman, fossil fishes of several species are found, among which the trout and pike can be distinctly recognised: on raising the stone from the quarry, the fish is found imbedded in it, one side of it being raised in high relief, and the concave impress of it in the lower stone exhibits the marks of the gills, eyes and scales with the utmost accurary. The linen manufacture has long been the staple of the county, and though it has declined considerably, large quantities are annually manufactured and bleached, principally for the English market. Bleach greens were numerous in every part, but nearly two thirds of them are unemployed or converted to other purposes. The linens are all carried in a brown state to the towns of Omagh, Dungannon, Cookstown, Ballygawley, Fintona and Strabane, and sold in the markets there. The wool of the county, and all that is brought into it, is made up into cloth, blankets and druggets. The farmers, who are in general linen weavers, consume the greater part of the cloth and blankets; the druggets are worn by the poorer class of women; the cloth is generally yard wide, and of very good quality. The people are all expert at dyeing for their domestic purposes; they dye various colours, but blue is the favourite. Excellent druggets of two parts wool and one linen are much esteemed. An economical practice of the wool spinners is worthy of notice: the root of the common fern is replete during summer with an oily glutinous substance, an excellent substitute for oil or butter; and as wool cannot be manufactured without the aid of some substance of this nature, a pound of wool requiring a quarter of a pound of butter, the common people supply the want of it by cutting the fern root into small pieces, bruising it in a mortar, and pressing out the juice through a cloth. Spades, shovels and other farming implements, crucibles and other chymical vessels, and fire bricks are manufactured very extensively at Coal Island. Tannning is carried on in several places, as is also the manufacture of tobacco, soap and candles. There is a good ale brewery at Donoughmore; distilleries are worked in various parts. There are large flour mills at Caledon and Coal Island, plating mills at Lectkpatrict, Fintona and New-mills, and scutch mills in most parts. The county is copiously watered by the numerous branches of the Foyle which, under the names of the Munterlony, the Poe, the Mourne, the Carnown, the Owenkellow, and the Owenreagh, rise in the mountainous central distrcts; the Derg joins the Mourne from a lough of its own name; the Dennet empties itself into the Foyle near the northern boundary of the county. The Foyle, which forms part of the western boundary, is navigable to St Johnstown, and thence by an artificial navigation between three and four miles farther up to Strabane. The Ballinderry river forms part of the north-eastern boundary. The Blackwater, which forms part of the southern boundary, and discharges itself into Lough Neagh, is navigable to Moy and Blackwatertown; near the mouth of this river a canal proceeds from the lake to Coal Island, and more than half a century since was partially opened above New Mills, but this latter part of the undertaking was abandoned before the canal was completed. The beauty of the scenery in several parts is much enhanced by woods and plantations. Large tracts of land near Baron's Court and Rash or Mountjoy forest, have been planted since 1795. Near Augher and Favour Royal there are considerable natural woods and throughout the greater part of the county the soil appears disposed to throw up a spontaneous growth of timber, but in too many instances the young trees are neglected and the cattle suffered to browse upon them. Near Strabane are many large and well-stocked orchards. The roads are numerous, and in general judiciously laid out and kept in good repair. A new line is now in progress of formation from Omagh by Mountfield, Kildress and Cookstown to Belfast. The roads are all made and repaired by county presentments. The remains of antiquity are neither numerous nor peculiarly interesting. Raths are scattered over almost every part: near the western border of the mountain named Mary Gray, more than twelve of them may be seen within the compass of a mile; they are generally in pairs; many are now scarcely discernible in consequence of the farmers having drawn off the mould for manure. The most perfect has a parapet six feet high, with stepping stones projecting from the inner sides in an oblique direction to the top like the winding of a staircase: its diameter is 33 yards. A very remarkable Druidical monument, called Clogh togle, or the "lifted stone", stands on a hill a mile north of Newtown-Stewart: it consists of three large stones set upright in a trinagular position about 7 feet high each, and coveret with a broad horizontal flag 11 feet long, 7 broad, and 15 inches thick. On an opposite hill, at the distance of about 100 yards, was a similar relic of larger dimensions, now lying on the ground. There is a large and very beautiful one, also called Clogh togle, at Tamlaght near Coagh; it consists of six upright stones standing about 5 feet above the ground on which is a large slab whose greatest diameter is 10 feet, its cirucumference 28, and its greatest thickness 7 feet; and there is another, but less perfect, in the demesne of Loughry; and a very noble one, 12 feet high, a quarter of a mile above Castle Derg. At Kilmeillie, near Dungannon, are two circles of stones, each about 20 yards in diamgeter, in the form of the figure 8. On the same hill was found a kind of altar of dry stones, with the charcoal an bones fresh among the stones which retained the marks of fire. An urn was found in a little sandy hill near Cookstown, covered with a large limestone slab and surrounded by six others. Near Omagh, three small chests containing as many urns were found in 1712 under two heaps of stones. In the parish of Errigal Keroge is a flat stone set upright about three feet broad and of the same height above ground, having one side covered with carvings of a regular design, consisting of waving and circular lines: it had been the cover of a vault formed of flags set edgeways; in the fault were found two earthen vessels containing ashes. Near Dungannnon were found several brazen trumpets of an uncommon construction with a hole in the side and the smaller end stopped, supposed to have been Danish. The monastic institutions of which traces yet remain are those of Ardboe, Ardstraw, Cluin Dhubhain, Garvaghkerin, Puble Grange and Donoughmore. Those of Glogher, Airecal, Dachioroc or Errigal Keroge, Corock, Ballinasagart, Dungannon, Omagh, Maghclair, Strabane and Trillick exist only in the records of history. The remains of ancient castles are numerous, but few of them are of much importance. Benburb is the largest: near it are the ruins of one of the residences of Shane O'Nial; those of Newtown Stewart, Dungannon, Strabane and Ballygawley are, together with the modern mansions of the nobility and gentry throughout the country, noticed under their respective parishes. The peasantry are very industrious. The houses of the farmers are built in some parts of stone, in others of clay; slating is becoming more prevalent than thatch for roofing. The want of native timber has also been much felt in the construction of the houses of the small farmers and cottiers. The cabins are generally built at the joint cost of landlord and tenant, in which case the latter has an abatement of rent; when the whole is executed at the tenant's cost, a year's rent is usually allowed him. The use of turf for fuel is universal except in the immediate neighbourhood of the collieries. The food consists of potatoes and oatmeal, and in seasons of scarcity, barley meal; milk is used in summer and autumn; in winter, herrings. Sometimes a pig is killed at Christmas, or several labourers join in the purchase of a cow. The Donagh, which is kept at Brookborough, near Five-mile-town, is a box or casket about the size of a thick quarto volume containing a representation of Christ and the Apostles in high relief on brass coated with silver, under which are some relics; it is used as a test of veracity in taking evidence among the people. A belief in fairies, called here the Wee People, is universal among the poorer peasantry; as is the custom of driving their cattle round fires lighted on Midsummer-eve. A kind of hurling here called "common" is a favourite amusement of the young men; formerly they devoted eleven days at Christmas to this exercise, now they give only one; a proof of te increase of habits of industry. There are chalybeate springs at Dunbonrover in Badony parish; at the foot of Douglas mountain; besides several of less note among the Munterlowny mountains. At Aghaloo is a sulphureous water stronger than that at Swanlinbar; and a very valuable mineral water at Scarvey, two miles from Aughnacloy. Tyrone gives the inferior titles of Earl and Viscount to the Marquess of Waterford, the head of the Beresford family.

Augher, Co. Tyrone

AUGHER, a market-town (formerly a parliamentary borough), in the parish and barony of CLOGHER, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 2 miles (N. N. W.) from Dublin; containing 726 inhabitants. Of the origin and early history of this place but very little is known. In the reign of Elizabeth, Lord-Deputy Mountjoy placed in it a powerfule garrison to defend the pas through the valley in which it is situated, that retained possession for some time, constantly harassing the army of the Earl of Tyrone till his final surrender at Mellifont. From this place the queen's army marched when it crossed the mountains to give battle to the earl at Magheralowney, where that chieftain's principal magazine was taken, in June 1602. At the time of the English settlement of Ulster, by virtue of a decree by Jame I. in 1611, Sir Thomas Tidgway, Knt., Treasurer at War for Ireland, received, in 1613, a grant of 315 acres of land in the barony of Clogher, under an agreement that he should, within four years, settle on a parcel of land called Agher twenty Englishmen or Scots, chiefly artificers and tradesmen, to be incorporated as burgesses and made a body politic within the said four years; and should set apart convenient places for the site of the town, churchyard, market-place, and public school; he was likewise to assign to the burgesses houses and lands and 30 acres of commons. Sir Thomas received also, in 1611, the grant of a market and two fairs to be held here; and in 1613, the town and precincts, with the esception of a fort and bawn called Spur Royal castle, which had been erected, were created a borough. Besides the 315 acres of land on which he was to gound the borough, Sir Thomas received a grant of 2000 acres called Portclare; and according to Pynnar's report in 1619, it appears that, besides the fort and bawn, he had built 16 houses of stone in the town, which were inhabited by English artificers who were burgesses, and had each two acres of land, and commons for their cattle. In 1630, Sir James Erskine, Knt., then proprietor of the manor, received a grant of two additions fairs. On the breaking out of the war in 1641, a garrison was stationed here by Col. Chichester and Sir Arthur Tyringham, and the castle was gallantly defended against the insurgent forces, who, in an attempt to take it by stoem, were repulsed. This defeat so exasperated their leader, Sir Phelim O'Nial, that in revenge he ordered his agent, Mac Donnel, to massacre all the English Protestants in three adjacent parishes. Sir James Erskine dying without male issue, the extensive manor of Portclare, which in 1665 was confirmed in the family by Chas. II., under its present name of Favour Royal, was divided between his two daughters, who married into the families of Richardson and Moutray, and the respective portions are still in the possession of their descendants, of whom the present proprietor of Augher castle hass assumed the additional surname and arms of Bunbury. The castle was finally dismantled by order of parliament, and continued in a state of dilapidation and neglect till 1832, when it was restored and a large and handsome mansion built adjoining it by Sir J. M. Richardson Bunbury, Bart. The ancient building consisted of a pentagonal tower surrounded by a wall 12 feet heigh and flanked by four circular towers; the wall has been removed, but one of the round towers has been restored; and the entrance gateway has also been removed and rebuilt on an elevated situation commanding some fine views, in which the remains of the old castle form an interesting object: the mansion is situated in a well-wooded demesne of 220 acres, and upon the margin of a beautiful lake. The town is situated on the river Blackwater, over which is a bridge adjoining it, and in a fertile valley between two ridges of lofty mountains clothed with verdure to the summit, of which the highest, Knockmany, is covered on its south side with thriving plantations. It consusts of one principal street, from which another branches at right angles on the south leading to Clogher; and has a penny post to Aughnacloy. Several new roads have been lately formed; and not far distant is an excellent bog. The lands in the neighbourhood are well cultivated. Besides Augher Castle, there are several gentlemen's seats near the town, described in the article on the parish of Clogher, which see. The market is on Monday, and has lately become a good market for oats; and fairs for the sale of cattle, sheep, pigs, and other commodities, are held on the last Monday in every month, in the market-place set apart under the original grant at the bottom of Clogher-street; the market-house is the only public building in the town. The collection of tolls and customs has been discontinued by the proprietors of the manor. Here is a chief station of the constabulary police. The charter granted in 1613 incorporated the inhabitants under the style of "The Burgomaster, Free Burgesses, and a Commonalty of the Borough of Agher," with the privilege of holding a civil court of record with jurisdiction to the extent of five marks, and of returning two members to the Irish parliament, which they continued to exercise till the Union, when the £15,000 compensation money for the abolition of its franchise was awarded to James, Marquess of Abercorn. Since that period no corporate officers have been appointed, and the town is now entirely within the jurisdiction of the county magistrates, who hold petty sessions irregularly. The seneschal of the manor holds a court here every third Monday, for the rcovery of debts to the amount of 40s., the jurisdiction of which extends into the parishes of Errigal-Kerogue, Errigal-Trough, Ballygawley, and Clogher; and a manorial court leet is held once in the year. Divine service is performed in the market-house every Sunday by the officiating clergyman of Clogher. A school for boys was built on part of the Commons Hill, or Gair Green, granted by the proprietors of the manor to the deans of Clogher, in trust for a school-house, and with funds provided from the "Lord-Lieutant's School Fund:" it is supported by private subscruptions and by a weekly payment of 1d. from each pupil; and a school for girls is supported in a similar manner.

Aughnacloy, Co. Tyrone

AUGHNACLOY, a market and post-town, in the parish of CARRENTEEL, barony of DUNGANNON, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 16 miles (S. E.) from Omagh, and 75½ (N. N. W.) from Dublin; containing 1742 inhabitants. This place, which is on the confines of the county of Monaghan, is situated on the river Blackwater, and on the mail coach road from Dublin to Londonderry. The town was built by Acheson Moore, Esq., who also erected the parish church, and it is now the property of R. Montgomery Moore, Esq., his descendant; it consists of one principal street of considerable length, from which three smaller streets branch off, and contains 365 houses, of which the greater number are thatched buildings, although there are several good houses of brick roofed with slate, and in the immediate neighbourhood are several gentlemen's seats, which are described in the articles on their respective parishes. The market is on Wednesday, and is very well attended; and fairs for live stock are held on the first Wednesday in every month. There is a convenient market-house. A constabulary police station has been established here; and petty sessions are held every alternate Monday. The church, a spacious and handsome edifice, was erected in 1736. There are a R. C. chapel, and places of worship for Presbuterians in connection with the Synod of Ulster, and for Primitive and Wesleyan Methodists. The parochial school is supported by the archdeacon, and there are three other schools. At Garveym one mile distant, is a very valuable mineral spring, which has been found efficacious in dyspeptic and cutaneous diseases; it is enclosed within a large guilding, and near it is a house affording excellent accommodation to those who frequent it for the benefit of their health. Dr. Thomas Campbell, author of Strictures on the History of Ireland, was a native of this place.

Ballygawley, Co. Tyrone

BALLYGAWLEY, a market and post-town, and a parish, partly in the barony of CLOGHER, and parly in that of DUNGANNON, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 13 miless (S. E.) from Omagh, and 74 miles (N. W. by N.) from Dublin; containing 4428 inhabitants, of wich number, 927 are in the town. The lands and monor of Moyenner and Balegalle were granted by Jas. I. to Capt. William Turvin, but he neglecting to comply with the conditions of the grant, they were afterwards granted, in 1614, to Sir Gerard Lowther, who erected on the bank of a small river a very extensive castle, which he enclosed within a bawn of stone and lime and made a place of great strength. This castle was destroyed, in 1642, by the insurgents under Sir Phelim O'Nial: the walls and two towers of the bawn, with part of the castle walls, are still remaining; and a modern house has been recently erected on the site. The town is situated on the mail coach road from Dublin to Londonderry, and consists of three streets and a market-place; it contains about 250 houses, some of which are large and well built, and is the prperty of Sir Hugh Stewart, Bart., whose handsome mansion, Ballygawley House, is about two miles distant from the town. Innismagh, the seat f Col. Verner; Anahoe, of H. Crossle, Ewq.; and Martry, of Mervyn Stewart, Esq., are within the parish. A small manufacture of gloves is carried on in the town, which, from the goodness of the materials and the neatness of the workmanship, are in general demand. There is an extensive brewery, that has asquired celebrity for the quality of its ale, and a large distillery of malt whiskey has been established. The market is on Friday; it is amply supplied with provisions of all kinds, and every alternate week a large quantity of linen cloth is exposed for sale. Fairs are held on the second Friday in every month, principally for the sale of cattle, sheep, and pigs. A constabulary police force has been stationed here; petty sessions are held once a fortnight; and as the head of the manor of Moyenner or Ballygawley, manorial courts are held in the town for the recovery of debts not exceeding 40s. This district was constituted a parish in 1830, by an order of council under the provisions of an act of the 7th and 8th of Geo. IV., when eighteen townlands were separated from the parish of Errigal-Kerogue, in the barony of Clogher, and twelve from that of Carrenteel, in the barony of Dungannon, and formedinto the parish of Ballybawley. These townlands are situated near the mountains and contain some good land, particularly on the north-east, where the soil is good and well cultivated. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the diocese of Armagh, and in the alternate patronage of the Rectors of Errigal-Kerogue and Carrenteel. The curate's income if £80 per annum, and the archdeacon of Armagh, as incumbent of Carrenteel. The church is a small but handsome edifice, in the later English style, erected at an expense of £1000, of which sum, £900 was a gift from the late Board of First Fruits. There is a place of worship in the town for Presbterians in connection with the Synod of Ulster, of the third class; also a Baptist meeting-house in the parish. A boys' school is supported by Sir Hugh Stewart, and there is a school at Knockany, together affording instruction to about 130 boys and 130 girls; there is also a private school as Lisgonnell of about 70 boys and 30 girls.

Caledon, Co. Tyrone

CALEDON, a market and post-town, in the parish of AUGHALOO, barony of DUNGANNON, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 7 miles (W.) from Armagh, and 70 miles (N. N. W.) from Dublin; containing 1079 inhabitants. This town, which was formerly named Kennard, as it is still frequently called by old people, although its manor, markets, and fairs, are all known by the modern name of Caledon, appears to have been more anciently called Aghaloo, it being the head of the parish of that name, and site of its venerable church, which was destroyed in the insurrection of 1641. It appears to have been an important military post from a very early period, having been the property and principal residence of one of the princly sept of O'Nial. The first direct mention of it is in 1498, when the Lord-Deputy Kildare marched against Mac Art O'Nial, and having defeated and driven him from his strong hold in Kennard, presented the fortress and territory in the British ally, Tirlagh O'Nial, whose descendants seem never to have been found in arms against England, until Sir Phelim O'Nial headed the insurgents in 1641; for, in the settlement under Jas. I., Tirlagh O'Nial had a grant of Kennard, with 4000 scres. Tirlagh built here a bawn of lime and stone, some time prior to 1619, near which he erected a castle. This was afterwards the residence of Sir Phelim, from which he sallied on the evening of the 22nd of October, 1641, having invited himself to supper with Lord Caulfield, at Charlemont. While at the supper table he made Lord Caulfield a prisoner, and having separated his lordship's family and the garrison, carried them prisoners to Kennard, in the castle of which he put his lordship to death. Sir Phelim, who had been educated as a Protestant in England, soon found himself at the head of 30,000 men and waged a sanguinary warfare against the English. The whole of the country of Tyrone remained in the possession of the insurgents till 1646, when Gen. Munroe, at the head of 6000 foot and 800 horse, marched against the Irish under Owen Roe O'Nial. Having passed through Armagh, Munroe, on the 6th of June, crossed the Blackwater at the ford near Kennard, and fought the battle of Benburb, or, as it is here called, Batterford Bridge, in which he was defeated and many British officers and men were slain. This town, which is situated on the river Blackwater, and on the road from Armagh to Omagh, was, before 1816, a mean village, but is now, through the exertions of the Earl of Caledon, one of the best built towns in the North of Ireland: it contains 226 houses, nealy all of which are built of stone. The neighbourhood presents gentle swells and fertile vales, producing abundant crops. Close to the town are extensive flour-mills, erected by Lord Caledon in 1823, where above 9000 tons of wheat are ground annually, all of which is grown in the vicinity, where scarcely an acre of wheat was sown at the beginning of the century. The Ulster canal, now in the course of formation, passes through the Earl of Caledon's demesne, a little to the westward of the town. The market is on Saturday, and is well attended; and a fair is held on the second Saturday in every month. A constabulary police force has been stationed here; and there are barracks for the militia. A court for the recovery of debts under 40s. is held in the market-house, on the first Monday in each month., for the manor of Caledon, which extends into the parishes of Aughaloo and Clonfeacle, in the county of Tyrone, and of Tynan, in that of Armagh; and petty sessions are held in the town once a fortnight. There are several large and elegant houses in the neighbourhood, the principal of which is Caledon Hill, the seat of the Earl of Caledon, which stands in a richly ornamented demesne of 650 Irish acres, extending beyond the Blackwater into the county of Armagh. Not far distant are Tynan Abbey, the residence of Sir James Stronge, Bart.; Glasslough, of Mrs. Wynne Leslie; Crilley, of R. Pettigrew, Esq.; Rahaghy, of N. Mayne, Esq.; Annagh, of C. Richardson, Esq.; Drummond, of H. Moore, Esq.; and the glebe-house, of the Rev. E. A. Stopford; besides several large and good houses in the town. The living was made a perpetual curacy in 1807, and 20 acres were then added to the old glebe, which consisted only of 6½ acres: it is in the diocese of Armagh, and patronage of the Archdeacon. The income is £100 per annum, arising from a salary of £50 paid by the archdeacon; £15, the estimaged value of 26*frac14; acres of gleve land; and £35. 2., paid by the trustees of Primate Boulter's augmentation fund. The present church occupies the site of the ancient building, and is the parish church of Aughaloo: it was erected by Primate Robinson, in 1767, during the incumbency of the Rev. C. W. Congreave; the spire was built by the present Lord Caledon, by means of a bequest by his late father; and the church was enlarged and otherwise improved by his lordship. It is a large and handsome edifice, in the later English style of architecture, comprising a nave, chancel, and south transept, and for repairing it the Ecclesiastical Commissioners recently granted £175. 8. 11. There are a R. C. chapel and a place of worship for Wesleyan Methodists. The parochial school is situated near the church: it was built in 1776 by Mr. Conreave, and is endowed with 3 acres of land and 3 tenements given by Primate Robinson, and also with £8 per annum by Lord Caledon. Schools at Ramakit, Curlough, Dyan, and Minterburn, are principally supported by Lord Caledon; there are national schools at Rahaghy and Mullinshorn; and near the demesne is a female school built and supported by the Countess of Caledon, in which 40 girls are clothed and educated. Here is a dispensary; and a mendicity association was established in 1829, to which Lord Caledon subscribes £100 per annum. Among the charitable bequests is £100 left by Alex. Pringle, Esq., and vested in the funds, in the name of Lord Caledon; the interest, with that of several smaller sums, is applied to the relief of the poor. Two extensive lakes existed here formerly, one on the north and the other on the south side of the town, with an island in the centre of each; that on the south has been drained and brought into cultivation; the north lake remains, and the island in it, which borders on the glebe is beautifully planted. Almost the last vestiges of the ancient castle of the O'Nials were removed a few years since, and a clump of trees planted to mark the entrance into the courtyard: some of the flooring of the castle was subsequently discovered, about four feet beneath the surface of the ground, in forming the new road to Aughnacloy. Some old swords and other military instruments have been found in the neighbourhood, and are preserved at Caledon Hill. Caledon gives the titles of Baron, Viscount, and Earl to the family of Alexander, in which the proprietorship of the town is vested. -- See AUGHALOO.

Castlederg, Co. Tyrone

CASTLEDERG, or DERG-BRIDGE, a market and post-town, in the parish of SKIRTS, barony of OMAGH, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 8 miles (S.) from Strabane, and 107¼ (N.) from Dublin; containing 575 inhabitants. The town is indebted for its origin to Sir John Davis, attorney-general for Ireland to Jas. I., to whom a grant of 2000 acres of land, then called Garertagh, was made in 1609, on which Sir Joh, prior to 1619, built a castle and established 16 British families; he also erected a stone bridge over the river Derg, adjoining the castle, which, being the first built over that river, gave the town the name of Derg-Bridge, by which it is still frequently called. Sir John had another grant of land at Claraghmore, upon which he built a castle, called Kerlis, and constructed a causeway, seven miles long and eight feet wide, in a straight line over mountains and through bogs, from one castle to the other. Several parts of this road are still traceable, but others have been broken up to make the road from this town to Drumquin. In the war of 1641, Sir Phelim O'Nial beseiged the castle of Derg; and although he was driven away with disgrace and considerable loss of men, horses, and ammunition, yet he so greatly injured it that it was never afterwards repaired, and remains a noble pile of ruins on the northern bank of the river. The bridge erected by Sir John Davis remained till 1835, when it was taken down, and a handsome bridge of hewn stone, of four arches, has been erected. The town, which is also called Castle-Derrick and Churchtown, is situated on the road from Newtown-Stewart to Pettigo, and on the new line of road from Londonderry to Enniskillen, between which places two coaches running daily pass through it. It consists of one principal and two smaller streets, containing 105 houses, many of which are large and well built, and has much improved under the patronage of Sir R. A. Gerguson, Bart., its proprietor, who has lately built a very handsome inn. The market is on Friday, and is large and well attended; a fair is held on the first Friday in every month. A constabulary police force has been stationed here; petty sessions are held on alternate Saturdays; a court for the manor of Hastings every third Saturday, in which debts under 40s. are recoverable; and a monthly court for the manor of Ardstraw, for debts to a similar amount. There was anciently a church in the town, which was in ruins in 1619, when it was rebuilt by Sir John Davis; but being destroyed by Sir Phelim O'Nial in 1641, there was no church till 1731, when the present neat edifice was built by Hugh Edwards, Esq., of Castle-Gore, and was much improved in 1828. There is a national school for boys and girls, and a dispensary. Hugh Edwards, Esq., in 1735, bequeathed an acre of land on which to build a school-house, and £24 annually for the support of a master, to teach eight poor boys, but the school was not built; it is now, however, about to be erected and endowed. Not far from the town are the ruins of Castle-Gore, formerly the residence of the proprietors of the Manor-Hastings estate. -- See SKIRTS.

Clady, Co. Tyrone

CLAUDY, a village in the parish of URNEY, barony of STRABANE, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 3 miles (S. S. W.) from Strabane; containing 176 inhabitants. It is situated on the road from Londonderry to Sligo, and on the river Finn, comprising one irreularly built street containing 44 houses, most of which are old. Fairs for the sale of cattle, sheep, and puigs, are held on Aug. 1st and Nov. 16th. Close to the village is a handsome bridge of seven arches over the Finn, connecting Claudy with the county of Donegal. Prior to the erection of this bridge, there was an important ford here, which was contested with great slaughter by the partisans of William and James, in 1688; and at the time of the siege of Londonderry it was a strong post under Col. Skeffington, who was driven from it by the Duke of Berwick, a short time before Jas. II. crossed the Finn at this place. -- See URNEY.

Clogher, Co. Tyrone

CLOGHER, an incoporated market ans port-town, a parish, and the head of a diocese (formerly a parliamentary borough), in the barony of CLOGHER, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 7 miles (W.) from Aughnacloy, and 82½ (N. W. by N.) from Dublin; containing, with the towns of Augher and Five-mile-town, and the village of Newtown-Saville (all separately described) 17,996 inhabitants, of which number, 523 are in the town. This place is said to have derived its name from a stone covered with gold, which in pagan times is reported to have made oracular resonses. The Clogh-or, or "golden stone," was preserved long after the abolition of paganism; for McGuire, canon of Armagh, who wrote a commentary on the registry of Clogher, in 1490, says "that this sacred stone is preserved at Clogher, on the right of the entrance into the church, and that traces of the gold with which it had formerly been covered by the workshippers of the idol called Cermaed Celsetacht are still visible." There is still a very ancient stone lying on the south side of the cathedral tower, which many believe to be the real Clogh-or. It appears to have some very ancient characters engraved on it, but it evidently nothing more than the shaft of an antique cross of rude workmanship, of which there are several in the ancient cemetery. Clogher is called by Ptolemy Rhigia or Regia; and according to some authors, St. Patrick founded and presided over a monastery here, which he resigned to St. Kertenn when he went to Armagh, to establish his famous abbey there; but according to others, it was built at the command of St. Patrick in the street before the royal palace of Ergal, by St. Macartin, whoe died in 506, and from its vicinity to this palace both the abbey and the town appear anciently to have been called Uriel or Ergal. In 841, the abbot Moran Mac Inrachty was slain by the Danes. In 1041 the church was rebuilt and dedicated to St. Macartin. In 1126 the Archdeacon Muireadhach O'Cuillen was killed by the people of Fermanagh. Moelisa O'Carrol, Bishop of Clogher, in 1183, on his translation of the archbishoprick of Armagh, presented to this abbey a priest's vestments and a mitre, and promised a pastoral staff; he also consecrated the abbey church. Bishop Michael Mac Antsair, in 1279, exchanged with the abbot the episcopal residence that had been built near the abbey by Bishop Donat O'Fidabra, between 1218 and 1227, for a piece of land outside the town, called Disert-na-cusiac, on which he erected another episcopal palace. His immediate successor, Matthew Mac Catasaid, erected a chapel over the sepulchre of St. Macartin. In 1361 the plague miserably afflicted Ireland, particularly the city of Clogher, and caused the death of the bishop. In April 1395, while Bishop Arthur Mac Camaeil was employed in reebuilding the chapel of St. Macartin, the abbey, the cathedral, two chopels, the episcopal residence and 32 other houses, were destroyed by fire; but the bishop applied himself with unwearied diligence to the rebuilding of his cathedral and palace. In 1504, another plague ravaged Clogher and caused the death of the bishop. Jas. I., in 1610, annexed the abbey and its revenues to the see of Clogher, by which it was made one of the richest in the kingdom. Between 1690 and 1697, Bishop Tennison repaired and beautified the episcopal palace; and his successor, Bishop St. George Ash, expend £900 in repairing and improving the palace and lands, two-thirds of which was repaid by his successor. Bishop Sterne, in 1720, laid out £3000 in building and other improvements of the episcopal residence, £2000 of which was charge on the revenues of the see. The town is situated on the river Blackwater, the source of which is in the parish, and consists of one row of 90 houses, the northern side only being built upon. Some of the houses are large, handsome, and well built with hewn stone, and slated. The episcopal palace is a large and handsome edifice close to the cathedral, on the south side of the town, and consists of a centre with two winds: the entrance is in the north front by an enclosed portico, supported by lofty fluted columns. It is built throughout of hewn freestone, and standing on elevated ground commands extensive views over a richly planted undulating country. Its erection was commenced by Lord John George Beresford, Primate of Armagh, while Bishop of Clogher, and completed by Lord Robert Tottenham, the present bishop, in 1823. Attached to the palace is a large and well-planted demesne of 566 acres, encircled by a stone wall; and within it are the remains of the royal dwelling-place of the princes of Ergallia, a lofty earthwork or fortress, protected on the west and south by a deep fosse; beyond this, to the south, is a camp surrounded by a single fosse, and still further southward is a tumulus or cairn, encircled by a raised earthwork. The market is on Saturday; the market-house was built by Bishop Barnett. Fairs for live stock are held on the third Saturday in every month. The market was granted to the bishop by letters patent dated April 20th, 1629: he was also authrosed to appoint two fairs and receive the profits of the market and fairs. The old fairs, which are supposed to have been branted by the charter, are held on May 6th and July 26th. At the solicitation of Bishop Spottiswood, Chas. I., in 1629, directed that, "for the better civilizing and strengthening of these remote parts with English and British tenants, and for the better propagation of the true religion, the lord-lieutenant should by letters patent make the town of Clogher a corporation." This was to consist of a portreeve and 12 burgesses, to be at first nominated by the bishop; the portreeve was afterwards to be elcted on Michaelmas-day, by and from among the burgesses. No freemen were created, and the bishops appear to have connecte a burgess-shop with each of the stalls in the cathedral. Prior to March 29th, 1800, the bishops had nominated the members of parliament for the borough without opposition, and the seneschal of their manor had been the returning officer; but at that time the Irish House of Commons resolved that the limits of the borough were co-extensive with the manor, and as the freeholders of the manor had tendered their votes in favour of two candidates, they were declared by the Irish parliament to be duly elected, and the bishop's nominees were unseated. At the Untion, the £15,000 granted as compensation for abolishing the elective franchise was claimed by the bishop, the dean and chapter, and prebendaries of the cthedral, and the Rev. High Nevan, seneschal of the manor; but their claim was disallowed and the money paid to the Board of First Fruits. By the charter a grant was to be made to the corporation by the bishop of 700 Irish acres near the town, for whch a rent of 8d. per acre was to be paid. Out of the profits of 200 acres of this land the corporation was, within two years, to erect a shool-house and maintain a school-master, with a servant, for a grammar school. Wnglish was to be taught by the master, who was always to be appointed by the bishop. The portreeve was to have 200 acres of the grant assigned for while support while holding the office, and for the payment of a steward and serjeant or bailiff; and the profits of the remaining 300 acres were to be divided among the burgesses. This grant appears not to have been made. The charter granted a civil court of record to the corporation, with a jurisdiction extending to a circle of three miles in every direction round the cathedral, and to the amount of £5 English, with a prison for debtors. Since the death of the last seneschal, about 1823; this court has not been held. Quarter sessions are held here twice a year in the sessions-house, alternately with Dungannon, for the baronies of Dungannon and Clogher; and there is a bridewell. The SEE of CLOGHER is one of the most ancient in Ireland, and had its origin in the reilgious foundation instituted by St. Patrick, or his friend St. Macartin, a descendant of Fiachus Araidh, King of Ulster, who was succeeded in the mingled abbacy and prelacy by St. Tigernach, St. Laserian, St. Aidan (who converted the Northumbrians to Christianity, and was the first bishop of Lindisfarne), and other celebrated ecclesiastics of the early ages. So late as the 12th century, Edan O'Killedy, bishop of this see, subscribed his name as Bishop of Uriel to the great charter of Newry. The equaly ancient see of Clones was at a remote period annexed to it, as also were those of Ardarath and Louth. About 1240, Hen. III. sent a mandatory letter to Maurice Fitzgerald, Lord-Justice of Ireland, commanding him to unite the bishoprick of Clogher to the archiepiscopal see of Armagh, on account of the poverty of both. This union was not then effected, but under the Church Temporalities act is will take place on the death of the present bishop. About 1266, the bishoprick of Ardarath was taken possession of by the Bishop of Derry, and Louth by the Archbishop of Armagh; and on the death of Bishop Arthut Mac Camaeil, the archbishop claimed his best horse, ring, and cup as an heriot. Clogher being situated in a part of the island to which the English arms or laws had scarcely ever extended, had not a bishop of English extraction before the time of Edmund Courcey, who was consecrated in 1485. The last bishop who held the see and its temporalities from the court of Rome was Hugh or Odo O'Cervallan, promoted by Paul III., and confirmed by Hen. VIII., in 1542. The first Protestant bishop was Miler Magragh, who had been a Franciscan friar and was made Bishop of Down by Pope Pius V., but afterwards becoming a Protestant, was placed in this see by Queen Elizabeth in 1570, and soon afterwards was made Archbishop of Cashel, From the time of his translation, owing to the disturbances in this part of the country, there was no bishop till 1605, when George Montgomery, a native of Scotland, was made bishop by Jas. I., and held the see with those of Derry and Raphoe, and afterwards with that of Meath. On the death of Bishop Boyle, in 1687, the episcopal revenues were paid into the exchequer, and the see continued vacant bout three years, when King William translated Dr. Tennison to it. This diocese is one of the ten which constitute the ecclesiastical province of Armagh: it comprises a small portion of the county of Louth and parts of the counties of Donegal and Tyrone, the greater part of Fermanagh, and the whole of Monaghan; and is 76 British miles long and 25 broad, comprehending a cuperficies of about 528,700 plantation acres, of which 1850 are in Louth, 25,000 in Donegal, 68,100 in Tyrone, 254,150 in Fermanagh, and 179,600 in Monaghan. The chapter consists of a dean, archdeacon, precentor, chancellor, and the five prebendaries of Kilskerry, Findonagh, Tullycorget, Tyhallon, and Devenish. According to the registry, the ancient chapter consisted of twelve canons, of which the dean and archdeacon were two: this was altered by Bishop Montgomery, and the offices of precentor and chancellor were added; and hence it is that the archdeacon of this diocese, as the more ancient officer, ranks next the dean. The lands belonging to the see amount to 22,591 statute acres, of which 18,851 are profitable land; and the gross average annual income, as returned by the Commissioners of Ecclesiastical Inquiry, is £10,371, and the net revenue, £8686. 11. 6. There is no economy fund connected with the cathedral; it was for many years kept in repair out of a fund bequeathed for charitable purposes by Bishop Sterne, but the trustees have lately withdrawn the grant. The consistorial court of the diocese is held at Monaghan: its officers are a vicar-general, a surrogate, two registrars and a deputy, and two proctors; the registrars are keepers of the records, which consist of copies of wills from 1659 to the present time, documents relating to inductions to benefices, &c. The diocesan school is at Monaghan, and is desribed in the article on that place; and there are free schools connected with the diocese at Carrickmacross and Enniskillen. The total number of parishes in the diocese is 45, which are either rectories and vicarages, or vicarages, the rectorial tithes of which are partly appropriate to the see, and partly impropriate in lay persons. The benefices are also 45, of which, one is in the gift of the Crown, 37 in that of the Bishop, four in that of Trinity College, Dublin, one in that of the Marquess of Ely, and one in that of Sir Thomas B. Lennard, Bart.; the remaining one is a perpetual curacy, in the gift of the prebendary of Devenish. The only union is that of Currin and Drumkrin, which will be dissolved on the next avoidance. The number of churches is 61, and of glebe-houses, 38. In the R. C. divisions this diocese, as originally constituted, forms a distinct bishoprick, and is one of the eight suffragan to Armagh: it comprises 37 parochial unions or districts, containg 81 chapels served by 37 parish priests and 51 coadjutors or curates. The bishop's parish is Carrickmacross, where he resides; and the dean's, Monaghan. The parish is of great extent, and comprehends the manors of Augher, in which is the town of that name; Clogher (granted by Chas. I. to the bishop), in which is the town of Clogher; Blessingburne, in which is the town of Five-mile-town; Mount-Stewart; and part of the manor of Killyfaddy, granted to Sir Wm. Cope, and the rest of which is in the adjoining parish of Donagheavy: there are eight townlands of the manor of Clogher, called abbey lands, which are tithe-free. It contains 49,761 statue acres, according to the Ordnance survey, of which 30,000 are good arable and pasture land, 213¼ are water, and 19,761 are waste heath and bog, the greater part of which is, however, highly improvable; of its entire surface, 43,754 acres are applotted under the tithe act. The land in the vicinity of the town is remarkably fertile and well cultivated; freestone and limestone are abundant, and there are indications of coal and lead ore. Clogher is situated on a lofty eminence, in the midst of a rich and diversified country encircled by mountains, which on the south approach within one mile, and on the north within two miles of the town, and the highest of which is Knockmany. Slieve Beagh, on the sourthern border of the parish, rises to an elevation of 1254 feet above the level of the sea. Besdes the episcopal palace, the parish contains several fine residences. The deanery or glebe-house, which is about a quarter of a mile west of the cathedral, is a handwome house in a fertile and well-planted glebe. Not far distant from it is Augher Castle, the splended residence of Sir J. M. Richardson Bunbury, Bart.; Cecil, the seat of the Rev. Francis Gervais; Corick, of the Rev. Dr. Story; Killyfaddy, of R. W. Maxwell, Esq.; Blessingburne Cottage, of Col. Montgomery; Daisy-hill, of A. Millar, Esq.; Fardross, the ancient seat of A. Upton Gledstanes, Esq.; Ballimagowan, of A. Netwon, Esq.; Waring Bank, of J. McLaunahan, Esq.; and Corcreevy House, of Lieut.-Col. Dickson. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Clogher, constituting the corps of the deanery of Clogher, in the patronage of the Crown: the tithes amount to £850, and the income of the dean, including tithes and glebe, is £1374. 17. 3. The cathedral, which is dedicated to St. Macartin, and from time immemorial has been used as the parish church, was built in the ancient style of English architecture by Bishop Sterne, in 1744, at his own expense, but was remodelled in the Grecian style by Dean Bagwell, in 1818, who erected stalls for the dignitaries and a gallery for the organist and choir, also galleries in the two transepts; and about the same time the whole was newly roofed and ceiled. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners have recently made a grant of £197 for repairs. It is a large and handsome cruciform structure, with a lofty square tower rising from the west front, in which is the principal entrance: the throne, which is very beautiful, occipies the western angle of the south transept, and the whole of the interior is handsomely fitted up. There are several elegant monuments, among which are Bishop Garnett's who died in the year 1783, and Bishop Porter's, who died in 1819. The chapter-house is near the entrance, on the right. There are two chapels of ease in the parish, one at Five-mile-Town, or Blessingburne, and one at Newtown-Saville; and divine service is regularly performed every Sunday in the market-house at Augher, in several of the school-houses in distant parts of the parish, and also at Lislie during the summer. The glebe-house, or deanery, is about a quarter of a mile from the cathedral. The glebe comprises 556a. 1r. 24p. statute measure, of which 100a. 1r. 28p. are annexed to the deanery, and 455a. 3r. 36p. are leased , at a rent of £337. 15. 6½. and renewal fines amounting to £20. 7. per annum. The R. C. parish is co-extensive with that of the Established Church, and there are chapels at Aghadrummond, Escragh, and Aghentine; there are also places of worship for Presbyrerians at Longridge and Aghentine. The free school in the town is uunder the patronage of the Bishop: the master's salary is derived from the proceeds of a beqest of £420 by Bishop Garnett, which the existing bishop augments to £40 per annum. The school-house was built in 1780, by Bishop Garnett, at an expense of £300. At Beltany there is a male and female school, on Erasmus Smith's foundation, endowed with two acres of land by the Rev. F. Gervais, who, in conjunction with the trustees of that charity, built the shool-house, at an expense of £658. 19. 6. There are a semale school at Cecil, built and supported by Mrs. Gervais; and schools for both sexes at Escragh, supported by Capt. Maxwell at Five-mile-Town, supported by Col. Montgomery, and at Ballyscally, supported by J. Trimble, Esq., all under the National Board; there are also four other schools. In these schools are about 490 boys and 330 girls; and there are seventeen private schools, in which are about 540 boys and 350 girls, and thirteen Sunday schools. A dispensary is maintained in the customary manner. At lumford Glen is a deep ravine, in which a small stream of water flows through a cleft in the rock and forms a beautiful cascade. A carriage drive, edged with fine plantations, has been made to this waterfall.

Cumber, Co. Tyrone

CUMBER, UPPER, a parish, partly in the barony of STRABANE, county of TYRONE, but chiefly in that of TIRKEERAN, county of DERRY, and province of ULSTER, 7½ miles (N. E.) from Londonderry; containing, with Claudy (which has a daily penny post), 5430 inhabitants. The early history of this parish cannot be satisfactorily traced, further than that St. Patrick, having crossed the Foyle, founded several churches in this district, one of which occupied the iste of the present church of Cumber. The original name is vaiously written by early historians; the present is modern, and axquired since the taxation of Pope Nicholas in 1291. At the Reformation the rectory belonged to the abbey of Derry, and was given by Jas. I. to the bishop, as part of the abbey lands. In 1622, it appears, by the Ulster Visitation book, to have been held with Banagher. The ancient parish of Cumber was the most extensive in the diocese, until 1794, when it was divided into Upper and Lower Cumber, by order in council: the parish of Upper Cumber, according to the Ordnance survey, comprising 26,202¼ statute acres, of which 23,072¾ are in Derry, and 3129½ in Tyrone; the latter form a hilly district amid the Mounterloney mountains. In some parts, particularly on the Walworth estate, and on that of Learmont, the land, though hilly, is well cultivated; the extensive bogs are bein g worked out, and brought into cultivation. The inhabitants combine the weaving of linen cloth, with agricultural pursuits; there are several commodious and excellent bleach-greens on the Faughan water, none of which, however, are now at work. The southern parts of the parish consist cheifly of mountains, the principal of which is Sawel, the highest in the county, being 2236 feet above the level of the sea; its summit is on the boundary between two counties. These mountains afford excellent pasturage on every side; and the rivers Faughan, Glenrandle, and Dungorthin have their sources in them. There are large woods and much valuable timber in the demesne of Park-Learmont; and the plantations of Cumber, Alla, and Kilcatton greatly embellish the surrounding scenery. There are several large and elegant houses, of which the principal are Learmont, the seat of Barre Beresford, Esq.; Cumber House, of John J. Browne, Esq.; Kilcatton Hall, of Alexander Ogilby, Esq.; and Alla, of the Rev. Francis Brownlow. The living is a rectory, in the diocese of Derry, and forms the corps of a prebend in the cathedral of Derry, in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £740. The glebe, situated in Glenrandle, half a mile from the church, consists of the townlands of Alla, Gilky Hill, and Tullentraim, containing 1508 statute acres. The church is a large mordern edifice, with a small bell turret on the western gable, erected in 1757, on the site of an ancient building. In 1831, eight townlands were separated from the parish, to form part of the new district or parish of Learmont, and the rector of Upper Cumber has the alternate presentation to that perpetual cure. In the R. C. divisions the parish is partly include in the union or district of Banagher, and partly forms the head of a district, comprising also a part of that of Lower Cumber; there are chapes at Claudy and Gortscreagan, The Presbyterians have a meeting-house at Claudy, in connection with the Synod of Ulster. The parochial school, situated on the glebe lands of Alla, is well built and convenient; it is supported by the trustees of Erasmus Smith's charity, and is under the management of the rector, who has endowed it with two acres of land. Male and female schools were built and are supported by the Fishmongers' Company; and they have also excellent male and female schools at Gortilea and Killycor. There are also schools at Ballyarton, Craig, Kilcatton, and Caludy. A female school at Claudy is principally supported by Lady Catherine Brownlow, who likewise contributes to some others. A female work school at Cumber was built and is supported by Mrs. Browne and other ladies of the parish. A male and female school at Learmont is principally supportted by the Beresford family. There are also Sunday schools and a private day school. At Mulderg is a large dispensary, built and supported by the Fishmongers' Company. There are the remains of a druidical altar at Baltibrecan; and at Altaghoney were discovered, in the summer of 1835, three stone coffins, each covered with three flag stones, and in each an urn containing ashes, calcined bones, &c. The graves were two feet deep in the gravel, where 8 feet of bog had been cut off the surface; and near the coffins were two idols, carved out of solid oak, which, with the urns, are now in good preservation, in the museum of Alex. Ogilby, Esq., of Kilcatton, who has also a good collection of landscapes, groups, &c., more than 200 of which are from his own pencil.

Strabane, Co. Tyrone

STRABANE, an incorporated market and post-town (formerly a parliamentary borough), partly in the parishes of LECKPATRICK and URNEY, but chiefly in that of CAMUS JUXTA MORNE, barony of STRABANE, county of TYRONE and province of ULSTER, 12 miles (S. S. W.) from Londonderry, 14¼ (N. W. by N.) from Omagh and 107 (N. N. W.) from Dublin, on the mail coach road, and at its junction with that from Sligo, to Londonderry; containing 4700 inhabitiants. Little notice of this place occurs prior to the 14th century, when a Franciscan monastery of the third order was founded here, which flourished only for a short time and ultimately merged into the abbey of Scarvaherin. This place was formerly in the district of Munterlony, but on the formation of part of the territory of Tir Owen into the county of Tyrone in 1591 it was made the head of the barony of Strabane. It appears, however, to have been merely an inconsiderable village till the plantation of Ulster by Jas. I., who, in 1611, granted the durrounding district to the Earl of Abercorn, who previously to the year 1619, had erected a strong castle around which he built a town of 80 houses and settled 120 families, mustering together 200 armed men, for whom, in 1612, he obtained a charter of incorporation and other valuable privileges. He also erected three water mills for grinding corn and began to build a church. The town now ranks the third in the county, and promises to rival Omagh and even Dungannon. In 1641, it was besieged by Sir Phelim O'Nial, who took the castle and carried off the Countess of Abercorn and detained her as a prisoner till ransomed by the payment of a large sum of money. The Irish forces of O'Nial remained for a long time in possession of the castle till it was at length retaken by the troops under the command of Col. Dir G. Hamilton, brother of the Earl of Abercorn. In the war of the Revolution it was garrisoned for the Protestants and on the 14th of March, 1688, afforded an asylum to the inhabitants of Dungannon and its neighbourhood, when abandoned by Col. Lundy; but in the following month it fell into the hands of the enemy, and on the 18th of April, Jas. II. arrived in person at this place and passed the ford to Lifford. From Lifford he proceeded to Londonderry, but finding that city in a state much more opposed to his views than he had anticipated, he returned to the castle of Strabane, on the 20th, and received a deputation who surrendered to him the fort of Culmore. The town is situated on the river Mourne, near its confluence with the Fin, and consists of ten principal and several smaller streets; it contained 836 houses in 1831, since which time several more have been built and great improvements made, among which are the newly constructed roads to Londonderry, Newtown-Stewart, and Castlefin. The houses generally are well built and many of them are spacious and handsome, especially in such of the principal streets as are of more recent formation. Over the river Morne is a bridge which has been recently widened; and over the Foyle, by which name the united rivers Morne and Fin are called, is another, to which three arches have been added. The apearance of the town is strikingly prepossessing, and the effect is further increased by the thriving orchards attached to the houses and in the immediate neighbourhood, producing apples, pears, and cherries in abundance. The manufacture of corduroys and other cotton fabrics was formerly carried on here to a limited extent; and in the neighbourhood are several bleach greens, none of which at present are in operation. The principal trade is in grain, of which more is sold in this market than in any other in the county; great quantities are annually shipped for Liverpool, Glasgow, and other ports. The provision trade is also very extensive; more than 1000 tierces of beef, and 2000 barrels of pork, are annually cured here for the English market. There is a large ale and beer brewery of some celebrity, chiefly for the supply of the town and neighbourhood, yet considerable quantities are sent to Londonderry, Coleraine, Lifford, Donegal and other places. The chief exports are wheat, oats, barley, flax, pork, beef, butter, eggs, and poultry; and the imports timeber, iron, staves, groceries, and articles of general merchandise. The trade of the place is much facilitated by the Strabane canal, which meets the river Royle at Leck, about three miles below the town, and is naviagable for vessels of 40 tons burden. It was constructed in 1793 at an expense of £12,000, defrayed by a grant from the Commissioners of Inland Navigation, aided by the Marquess of Abercorn and brought into the town by two locks. On its banks are large ranges of warehouses and stores for grain, with wharfs and commodious quays, well adapted to the carrying on af an extensive trade. Near the town, on the river Foyle, is a salmon fishery, which belonged formerly to the corporation of Lifford, but is now the property of the Earl of Erne; great quantities of fish are annually taken. The market is on Tuesday, and is largely supplied with corn, provisions, and brown linen, and fairs are held on the first Thursday in every month, and on the 12th of May and November (O. S.) for horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs. The market house is a commodious and handsome building; and the grain and meal markets, built by the corporation in 1823 are large and well arranged, over the principal gateway are the arms of Strabane. Jas. I., in the 10th of his reign, made the town a free borough, and granted the inhabitants a charter of incorporation, by the title of the "Provost, Free Burgesses and Commonalty of the borough of Strabane," with a weekly market, two annual fairs, and the power of returning two members to the Irish parliament, holding a court of record, and other privileges. By this charter the corporation consists of a provost, twelve free burgesses, and an indefinite number of freemen, assisted by a recorder, chamberlain, two serjeants-at-mace, and other officers. The provost, who is also clerk of the market and judge of the borough court, is annually elected on the 29th of Sept. from the free burgesses by a majority of that body; if no election takes place, he continues in office till the next appointment. The free burgesses fill up vacancies as they occur from the freemen, by the provost, and a majority of their own body, and also admit freemen by favour only. The corporation continued to return two members to the Irish parliament till the union, when the borough was disfranchised. The court of record held before the provost had jurisdiction to the amount of 5 marks, but after the abolition of arrest for small sums, the business of the court declined, and it has since fallen into disuse. The corporation has no property but the tolls of the fairs and market, which are under their regulation. There is a chief constabulary police station; the quarter sessions for the county are held here in April and October; petty sessions on alternate Tuesdays and a court for the manor of Strabane, every month, at which debts to the amount of 40s. are recoverable. The church built here in 1619, by the Earl of Abercorn, has, since the parliamentary war of 1641, been the parish church of Camus juxta Morne; it has been enlarged from time to time and is now a handsome cruciform structure in the Grecian style, with a cupola, and the arms of the founder over the principal entrance. There are a spacious R. C. chapel, and two places of worship for Presbyterians, and two for Wesleyan and Primitive Methodists. A handsome school house, with apartments for the master and mistress, was erected in 1826 by the Marquess of Abercorn, who endowed it with £40 per ann.; and there is a fever hospital, with a dispensary attached. About one mile from the town, on the road to Londonderry, is a chalybeate spring, containing iron, magnesia, and sulphur, held in solution by carbonic acid gas. Of the castle, built by the Earl of Abercorn, nothing now remains; the site is occupied by a dwelling house and merchant's stores. Strabane gives the inferior titles of Baron and Viscount to the Marquess of Abercorn.

Urney, Co. Tyrone

URNEY, a parish, partly in the barony of RAPHOE, county of DONEGAL, but chiefly in that of STRABANE, county of TYRONE, and province of ULSTER, 2 miles (S. S. W.) from Strabane; containing, with the village of Claudy and part of the town of Strabane (each separately described), 7277 inhabitants. This parish, comprising 14,489½ statute acres, according to the Ordnance survry, is bounded on the north west by the county of Donegal, and is situated for the most part between the rivers Finn and Mourne, which uniting at its northern extremity form the Foyle. The greater portion of the land is remarkably fertile, and under its present improved treatment produces abundant crops of all kinds of grain; there is abundance of excellent limestone, which is extensively used both for building and agriculture; the bogs are greatly increasing in value, and the mountains afford excellent pasturage. The inhabitants combine with their rural employments, to which most attention is given, the manufacture of linen cloth; a large mill is now in progess of erection at Seeir, upon the Mourne river for the spinning of linen yarn. The produce of the soil and of the manufactories finds a ready market at Strabane, and much of the grain is sent to Derry by the river Finn, in barks of from 60 to 80 tons' burden. At the northern extremity of the parish is a bridge of twelve arches over the Foyle leading to Lifford; another near the church, over the same river, leads to Donegal; and at Bridgetown, a third of eight arches over the Mourne connects the parish with the thriving and commercial town of Strabane. It is partly within the manor of Strabane, and partly within that of Ardstraw, for the latter of which a court is held once a month at Castle Derg. The vale of Urney is among the most fertile and highly cultivated parts of the county: the houses are in general wel built, and have gardens and orchards attached to them; those of the higher classes are embellished with flourishing plantations. The principal seats are Urney Park, the residence of Lady Galbraith; Urney House, of the Rev. R. Hume; Fyfinn Lodge, of Conolly Gage, Esq.; Galany, of J. Smith, Esq.; Ballyfatton, of M. C. Hamilton, Esq.; and Castletown, of Major Semple. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Derry and in the patronage of the Bishop; the tithes amount to £700. The old glebe house having been accidentally burnt, a new one was erected in 1798 during the incumbency and at the sole expense of Dr. Fowler, the present bishop of Ossory, who did not charge his successor with any portion of the outlay. The glebe, of 236 Cunningham acres is in two portions; one on which the glebe house stands contains 83 acres on the banks of the Finn, from the inundations of which river it is protected by an embankment 12 feet high and nearly a mile long; the other, called Rabstown, is let to tenants; the entire glebe is valued in the Commissioners' books at about £300 per ann. The church, in the vale of Urney, a handsome edifice in the Grecian stule, built in 1734, underwent a thorough repair in 1809. The right of nomination to the perpetual cure of Skirts, or Derg, belongs to the incumbent of this benefice. In the R. C. divisions the parish is the head of a union or district, comprising this parish and that of Skirts. There are places of worship for Presbyterians at Somerville and Alt, the former in connection with the Synod of Ulster and the latter with the Associate or Seceding Synod. The male and female parochial schools, built on the glebe at the joint expense of the rector and parishioners, are wholly supported by the former, who also maintains a school at Alt; a female work school, also on the glebe, is supported by the rector's lady, and two schools at Sion and Tullywisker are aided by the Marquess of Abercorn: about 300 boys and 260 girls are taught in these schools. There are also two private schools, in which are 60 boys and 30 girls; and four Sunday schools. Andrew Sproule, Esq., in 1801, bequeathed £1000 to the rector and churchwardens for ever in trust for the poor of the parish, the interest of which is annually distributed in winter clothing. The Hon. and most Rev. Dr. Beresford, late Archbishop of Tuam; the Rt. Rev. Dr. Forster, late Bishop of Kilmore; and the Rt. Rev. Dr. Fowler, the present Bishop of Ferns and Ossory, were successively rectors of Urney.

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