Graveyard in Ballyconra

On an island (dims. c. 50m roughly N-S; c. 215m roughly E-W) in the River Nore. The land on either side of the river is wet and very low lying. On the OS ortho image it can been seen that the river channel on the S side has been filled in and incorporated into the reclaimed land to the S. According to Carrigan (1905, vol. 2, 315-17) there is a tradition of an anchorite's cell located on this natural island in the River Nore. Carrigan states that the OS incorrectly indicate the name as 'Archer's Island' when it is actually called 'Anker's Island' in reference to the anchorite who once lived there (ibid.). The upper part of the island is low and bog and the southern part is fertile and somewhat elevated, only becoming flooded when the flood waters are unusually high (ibid.). Carrigan (ibid. 316) mentions that following the anchorite's death, the island became a popular burial ground but that, 'for many years past the Nore has been sapping the bank here, and making fierce inroads on the graveyard, a considerable part of which it has already swept away. The visitor to the island cannot suppress a feeling of sadness, as he sees the bones of the anointed dead protruding from the river's bank, waiting till the next winter's flood bears them away from the holy ground wherein they had so long rested. No one has been buried here probably for many centuries. There are no monuments' [i.e. headstones or markers]. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 9 February 2016