Transcript A Link with a famous Musician Turlough O’Carolan

Bekan
A Window Into a Rural Parish
in East Mayo
Where is Bekan?
Bekan parish is situated in East Mayo about midway
between the towns of Claremorris and Ballyhaunis.
Beacan: Saint or Legend?
According to local tradition, St.Béacán was born about a
mile west of the centre of Bekan Village.
The old church gable standing in the cemetry is believed
locally to be the remains of a monastic settlement founded by
St.Béacán
. A circular mound of stones topped by an iron cross just
outside the main cemetry wall is said to mark his grave
The 9th July was supposed to be the Saint’s Feast Day.
(See article by Tom Waldron on Mayo Abbey)
http://www.mayoalive.com/Mag0896/Fndlings.htm
Prehistorical Bekan
This is the megalithic
wedge tomb at the
highest point of the
parish.
These tombs were in use
as far back as 3,500
years ago.
This was restored in
1983 by students from
Galway University
under the direction of
Dr. Etienne Rynne.
The site was officially
handed back to the
state.
A Recently Discovered Wedge Tomb
Rev.Fr.Michael Comer R.I.P.
standing on the mound of stones
now identified as a megalithic
tomb in his native Larganboy
Situated on lands
belonging to the Forde
family of Larganboy,
this mound of stones
has been identified as
a wedge shaped gallery
grave.
It is West facing, as is
the Greenwood tomb
and may date from
around the same
period.
Old Bekan
This is the earliest map of
Bekan from Sir William Petty’s
atlas, called Hiberniae
Delineatio, which was
published in 1685.
The present townland names
of Cloonacurry, Brackloon,
Reisk, Derrymore,
Treenrevaugh and
Cloonbulban, among others
are readily recognisable on the
map.
Compare this with the next
map of 1894 which shows the
boundaries of the Catholic
parish.
Island Ogham Stone
One of the finest examples of a
celtic standing stone in the
country.
This Ogham stone stands on
lands owned by the Kelly
Family about two miles from
Ballyhaunis on the Knock
road.
There is an inscription on the
stone which translates as
Cunalegi avi Qunacanos
(Cuna Legi grandson of Quna
Canos).
According to some experts,
there appears to be a hollow
chamber at the base of the
stone.
Links with the ancient Celtic gods
Manannan Mac Lir - (The Other World Lord or
Mythical Mariner) is famed in County Mayo as a
magician in late folklore. He lived in the Castle
of Mannin in the Parish of Bekan which is
about half an hour from Castlebar. The term Mac
Lir means son of the sea rather than son of Lir
as in the Children of Lir. His horse, which
features prominently in the sculpture on the Mall,
was known as Enbhar (which means water
foam) and indeed Manannan is described as "a
rider of the maned sea". His link with water is
also apparent in that two of his daughters Glina
and Monoge gave their names to two lakes in
County Mayo. Manannan is also known as
Oribsiu which is believed to be the word from
which Lough Corrib is derived. When he died he
was buried in Connaught and a new lake is
reputed to have burst open over his grave. It is
intriguing to speculate that this lake was in fact
Mannin Lake which, ironically, was drained away
in the 1960s as part of the Moy drainage
scheme. Is his grave to be found in the
swampland which now marks the old Mannin
Lake?
(The above is the text of an article from the
Castlebar.ie website on the fountain in the mall.)
Ancient Dwellings
Bekan Lake
Crannog
This is Bekan Lake. In the centre of the picture is a little island,
overgrown with trees and coarse grass. This is widely believed to
be the remains of a crannóg (lake dwelling). These came into use
during the Iron Age but continued to be inhabited well into
medieval times.
An ancient dug-out canoe, which was probably used to access the
island is embedded in the mud at the bottom of the lake.
The remains of several crannóga have also been identified in the
local Mannin and Island lakes.
A Unique Musical Instrument
In August 1791, a strange and unusual musical
instrument was found in the Bekan bog. It
was made of wood and was bound with a
bronze ribbon from end to end.
The instrument is thought to be unique and, as
no similar instrument appears to exist, it
has been titled the ‘Mayophone’. It is a
hollow wooden tube, measuring about
two metres in length.
Simon O’Dwyer of Prehistoric Music Ireland,
after carrying out extensive research, has
reconstructed a new model. Along with a
wide variety of Bronze Age and Iron Age
horns the Mayophone was demonstreted in
Bekan School on the 30th Jan. 2004.
The original is currently in the crypt of the
National Museum. It has been established
that it’s age is at least 1,300 years.
Simon O’ Dwyer with the Mayophone in Bekan N.S.
Bekan Old Monastery?
Is this the remains of a monastic settlement founded by the
legendary St.Bekan? Local folklore holds that it is, but there is
no hard evidence to support this. It may be the ruins of an old
church dating back to around the 14th or 15th Century.
“To hell or to Connacht”
Oliver Cromwell
The statement above was
attributed to Oliver
Cromwell. All of the existing
Catholic landholders had to
be west of the Shannon by
May of 1654 or risk death.
The effects of the
Cromwellian settlement were
felt in Bekan Parish.The
Crean family and others
received land in the parish.
1649 Fr.Walter Fulgentius
Jordan 0.S.A. was killed by
Cromwellian soldiers while
saying mass at Redpark in the
village of Cloontumper.
A Bekan Song
Plaincstidh Béacáin
This song probably dates back to around the mid 18th Century.
The Frank Burke mentioned in the song was most likely a
member of a family of minor Catholic gentry who owned
Spotfield Estate down to the end of the 18th Century
Triallaimis siar go Contae Mhuigheo
Mar a ‘bhfuil an fear óg sin ‘tá I mBéacán
Frainc de Burc, an t-ógfhir suairc
Let us go over to Co. Mayo
To the young man who lives in Bekan;
Is ailne ar mhaise’s ar bhreáthacht;
Frank Burke, that young gay blade,
A leaca gheal nua is deise snua
Paragon of beauty and excellence:
Is a shúile gorma gan aon smál,
With his bright flawless cheeks
Níl aon fhear clúiteach sa domahn
Nach aige ‘tá a rún is a chéadghrá
And shining blue eyes’
Not a man of renown in all the earth
But gladly admits him to his
confidence and friendship
The translation is by Prof.Nollaig O Muraile
A Link with a famous Musician
Turlough O’Carolan
A noted visitor to the Bekan area in the
18th Century was the famous blind
harper Carolan. He was a caller at the
home of Captain Gerald Dillon, whose
family owned Mannin House. At one
time.Captain Dillon had a tune named
after him.The following is a short article
on O’Carolan
(source: Enc.Britannica)
O'Carolan Turlough, also called Terence
Carolan (born 1670, near Nobber, County
Meath, Ireland, died March 25th, 1738,
Alderford, County Roscommon), one of the
last Irish harpist-composers and the only one
whose songs survive in both words and music
in significant number (about 220 are extant).
The son of an iron founder, O'Carolan became
blind from smallpox at the age of 18. He was
befriended by Mrs. MacDermott Roe, the wife
of his father's employer, who apprenticed
him to a harper and supported him for the
three years of his training, then gave him
money, a guide, and a horse. As an itinerant
harper, he traveled widely in Ireland.
Although never considered a master
performer, he was highly regarded as a
composer of songs and improvised verse. His
tunes appeared widely in 18th-century
collections.
Mannin House
The Man who gave a new word to
the English language
Captain Charles
Cunningham Boycott
Following a protest by tenant farm
labourers against Lord Erne’s
English agent Captain Charles
Boycott of Lough Mask House in
1880, the phrase and the practice
known as ‘boycotting’ began.
Boycott had purchased 95 acres of land
in Kildara, Tulrahan in the parish
of Bekan in 1879 for £1,125.He
paid £525 to the Bank of Ireland
and took a mortgage of £600 on the
rest.
After Boycott finally had to leave
Ireland, he still liked to return
occasionally to Kildara on
holidays.
Following his death in 1897, the lands
were sold to meet his debts and
Boycott’s last link with Bekan was
broken.
Bekan Old School 1889
The picture shows the OPW plans
of Bekan National School, built in
1889.
The plans indicate that the school
was intended to serve the needs of
300 pupils.
This school was closed in 1969,
following a strike, in which the
parents withdrew the children from
the school in protest at the
condition of the school. It was later
renovated and now serves as a
community centre
The present school was opened in
1969. It was extended and
refurbished between 1994 and 1996
Local
Placenames
Ballinphuill~
The townland of
the hole
Ballinvilla~ The
townland of the
large or sacred
tree
Ballinastócach ~
The townland of
the youths
Belisker ~ The
mouth of the
esker
Bracklagh ~ The
Speckled place
Brackloon ~ The
speckled meadow
Carrowkeel ~
The narrow
quarter
Carrowmore ~
The big quarter
Cloona curry ~
The moory
meadow
Cloonbulbaun ~
The meadow of
the beak
Cluanlara ~ The
meadow of the
mare
Gurrane ~ The
little angle or
corner
Kilbeg ~ The
small wood
Cullentragh ~
The holly
bearing place
Derrylahan ~
The wide wood
Keebagh ~ The
lumpish place
Kilknock ~ The
wood of the hill
Killmannin ~
Mannin’s church
Larganboy ~ The
yellow hillside
Lassiny ~ The
forts or
enclosures
Liosban ~ The
white fort
Lissaniskea ~
The fort or
enclosure of the
water
Loughanboy ~
The little yellow
lake or pond
Reisk ~ The
marshy place
Skaghard ~ The
high bush or
whitethorn
Map of Bekan showing the
boundaries of both civil parish
and the older Catholic parish
The area inside the continuous
line shows the boundaries of the
Catholic parish as drawn in
1894.The broken line shows the
area which does not correspond
to the Catholic parish.
The area inside the broken line
(upper right) shows the part of
the parish which was transferred
from Bekan in 1894.
The part on the bottom between
the broken and continuous lines
was transferred from the parish
of Annagh (Ballyhaunis) to
Bekan.
Religious Matters
The only remaining part of the
old church in Bekan is the
entrance shown in the picture.
The church was built around 1835
and demolished around 1934. The
site for the church was given by
the Burke family.The remains of
four parish priests are buried on
the site.
The sketch shows the church of
St.Margaret Mary Alacoque
which was built in the 1930’s by
Fr. Charles White P.P> to replace
the old church.
It was renovated in 1968 by the P.P.
Fr. Thomas McEllin and the
shrine to Our Lady of Fatima, on
the left, was erected by his
brother , Fr.Ned McEllin, who
succeeded him.
Politics
Dr.T.J. O’Connell
(1882_1969)
Míchéal Ó Cléirigh from
Logboy, pictured ‘on the
run’ about 1921
•.He was born in 1897 in
the village of
Cuslough.As a young
man, he became involved
in the activities of the
Irish Volunteers and
took the anti-treaty side
during the civil war after
the 1916 Rising
•.He was elected a
Fianna Fáil T.D. for
Mayo and served from
1927 – 44.
•Born in the village of
Falmore.
Michael Dalgan Lyons.
•Trained as a primary teacher
in St.Patrick’s Training
College.
•Born in Greenwood
Michael Lyons was
elected a Fine Gael T.D.
for East Mayo in 1965.
•Served as General Secretary
of the INTO from 1916 – 48.
•He served from 1965 to
1969.
•Was elected to the Dáil in
1922 as a Labour T.D. for Co.
Galway.
•Served as leader of the Irish
Labour Party from 1927 – 32,
during which time he also
served as a T.D. for his native
South Mayo.
Where time stands still!
Is this the last remaining authentic, inhabited thatched cottage in Co. Mayo?
Its present inhabitant claims that it is! It is certainly the last in the parish of
Bekan. This beautifully preserved cottage is the home of Paddy Fanning and is
a wonderful living link with the past. Stepping inside is like stepping back over
a hundred years in time. Indeed, Paddy claims that the house has stood since
before the 1840’s.
The violin, hanging beside the fireplace, is evidence of Paddy’s great love of
music. It is one of many instruments which he still has after many years
involvement in music.
Like many more of his peers, Paddy Fanning was forced to join the mass
immigration of the 1940’s and 50’s. He spent much of his time in London where
he met musicians from other parts of Ireland. They played in the Irish clubs
and at Irish weddings and social gatherings during the 50’s.
A Noted Bekan Theologian
Rev. Dr.Enda McDonagh.
Rev. Dr. Enda McDonagh
Maynooth College
Born in Bekan in 1930.
Studied for the priesthood in
Maynooth College.
Appointed professor of Moral
Theology and Canon Law at the
age of 28. He held the post for 35
years, from 1958 to 1995.
Subsequently appointed Director
of Postgraduate Studies and
Dean of the Faculty of Theology
at Maynooth.
He is the author of many books
and has countless specialised
articles in Theology to his credit.
Larganboy Wedge Tomb
Where
to look
Thatched Cottage
Island Ogham Stone
Greenwood Wedge Tomb
Bekan Church
Bekan Lake Crannog
Bekan Cemetry
The map shows the
location of some of
the main features
mentioned in this
presentation.
Kildara,Tulrahan