Church in Granardkill

Immediately to the S of the road, overlooking the deserted settlement (LF010-078001-) to the NE. The church of 'Granardkilly' is depicted on an early 17th-century map of Granard barony (BL, Cotton MS Augustus I.i.47). A lease dated 1611 lists 'one ruinous church’ and ‘the hospital of St Patrick, called Granard-Kille in O'Ferrall's country’ (Cal. pat. rolls Ire., Jas I, 213). This church may be the medieval parish church of Granard (Bradley et al. 1985, 19-20) (but see also LF010-055002-). Its precise location and that of the hospital (LF010-078003-) have not been identified. However, the church may have been located close to or within the graveyard (LF010-078004-) where a fragment of a round-headed window that may be from it, and which is possibly of late-12th/early 13th-century date, is incorporated into the graveyard wall, adjacent to the entrance. Other window fragments incorporated in the wall may be from the ‘R. C. Chapel’ shown on the 1837 edition of the OS 6-inch map. This church has been levelled and a small oratory, containing the font from it, now stands on its site. (Masterson 1935, 91) Compiled by: Patrick F. O'Donovan, Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 5 June 2013

The church in Granardkill was likely built in the early 17th century, as shown on a map of Granard barony, and may reflect an earlier ecclesiastical tradition. Its exact builder and dedication are not recorded, but it is significant as a historical marker of a now-deserted settlement.