St Bartholomews Well — Knockenagh South

Marked on the 1840-41 and 1939 OS maps as 'St Bartholomew's Well'. Situation and Description: A circular well of clear water constructed of drystone walling, it is situated in a grove of trees. Rounds/Offerings: Rounds are still made on Saturdays before May Day, Midsummer and Michaelmas. Three rosaries are recited while making nine rounds of the well. Moss and water are applied to afflicted areas to cure sore eyes, sore throats and rheumatism. Legends: (a) The well moved when clothes were washed in it. (b) If a trout is seen in the well, a cure is certain, (c) A trout was once removed from the well in error, but was later returned. Ó Danachair (1958, 160) recorded the following details about this well; 'St Bartholomew's Well" on 1900 map. "Thubberpaurhanaun" in OSNB, ii, 344. A well of clear water surrounded by a dry-stone wall 18 inches high in a grove of trees. Rounds are still made; rags and small religious objects are left as offerings. Boxes nailed to trees contain small statues. Cures sore eyes, sore throats and rheumatism. Three rosaries are recited while making nine circuits of the well, and the water is drunk and applied to afflicted eyes or limbs; water and moss from the stones are taken away for use at home. Days of devotion are the Saturdays before May Day, Midsummer and Michaelmas. Legends: The well moved when clothes were washed in it. If a trout is seen in the well, a cure is certain. The water will not boil. The trout was once taken away in error but returned to the well'. Folklore collected from Tullamore School between 1936-37 recorded the following tradition about this well known locally as St. Batt's Well; 'There is a blessed well in the district of Coolard. The name of it is St Batt's Well. Every year people who have any disease go to that well to do the rounds for the disease. There is a trout inside in the well and anyone who sees the trout when he is doing the rounds is sure to be cured. They go there twice a year to do the rounds, the Saturday before the 1st of May and the Saturday before St. John's day. They say a rosary for every three rounds and they do nine rounds. One day a woman went to the well for a gallon of water. By mistake she brought in the trout in the gallon. She put down the water to boil, but when she went to it again to see if it was boiled it was as cold as when she put it down. She saw the trout inside in the water and she took it back again and put it into the well. At first the well was at the top of Tom Dowling's land. One day a woman came to the well and was washing clothes at it. The people say that it was on account of that the well removed. It is now farther down in Tom Dowling's land' (The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0399, Pages 163-4;https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4666571/4662916/4667202?ChapterID=4666571) Coolard School collected the following folklore about St Bartholomew's Well; 'The blessed well is situated in a thick wood near Coolard. the well is shallow and a stream of fresh water flows from it. Many people in the district visit the well three times a year, to pay rounds. They go around the well nine times and they say three rosaries. If they have not the rosaries finished when going around, they kneel by the well and finish them. When they are going home they leave money or holy pictures or pieces of cloth on the tree beside the well. Anyone having sores washes them in the water. They also take three sips of the water and also some water with them. The people living near the well use the water for household purposes. It is said that the well was situated farther up on the wood once. A woman washed clothes in it. Then it moved down to where it is at the present time' (The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0401, Pages 313-4; https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4666578/4663517). In 1938 the following folklore collected from Ballylongford School recorded the following tradition about this well; 'There is a holy well in Coolard, and many people visit it on the appointed days. They visit the well on May Eve, St John's Eve, and St Michael's Eve. They say three Rosaries at the well, and whilst saying it, they makes nine rounds. When the people visit the well they usually bring a bottle of the water with them to drink, for it is said that it cures sore throats and rheumatism. The water is not used for any other purpose, but the people drink it some times. A few years ago the Coolard people were short of water, and they began to use the well water. They put the water down on the fire to boil, and they could not get it to boil' (The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0403, Page 102;https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4666583/4663953). In 1938 another story collected from Ballylongford School recorded the following tradition; 'There is a holy well in Gunsboro in the parish of Ballybunion called "Saint Batt's Well". The people go to that well three times a year, namely the Saturday before May 1st, the Saturday before June 29th and the Saturday before September 29th' (The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0403, Page 103;https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4666583/4663954). Folklore collected from Reenturk School recorded the following tradition about this well; 'There is a holy well in Coolard and many people visited it on certain days. The same prayers are said at every well and whilst saying it they make nine rounds. When people visit the well they take a bottle of the water home with them and some moss. The water of the above well cures sore throats and rheumatism. The water of the well is never used for any domestic purpose. There was a scarcity of water and the people took the water from the blessed well. They couldn't get it to boil' (The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0403, Page 220;https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4666586/4664071). See attached photographs of St Batt's Well courtesy of Amanda Clarke. The above description is derived from C. Toal, ‘North Kerry Archaeological Survey’. Dingle. Brandon in association with FAS Training and Employment Authority (1995), no. 900. In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Revised by: Caimin O'Brien Date of revised upload: 17 May 2022