Grave Yard — Castleinch OR Inchyolaghan

According to Carrigan (1905, vol. 3, 229), 'The old Catholic Parish Church of Inchiologhan [KK023-003001-] dedicated to St. David, Bishop, (March 1st), was taken down to the ground more than two centuries ago, and a Protestant church, now in ruins, erected at the same time in its place'. The OS Letters (1839) refer to 'a modern Protestant Church and Protestant burying ground in the Townland of Castleinch' (O'Flanagan 1930, vol. 1, 266 (90)). Commins (1906, 265) mentions a, 'human figure carved in stone' S of the church which is possibly an effigial tomb (KK023-003004-). Hogan (1880-83, 48), describes how St David’s feast day, or ‘patron’ was observed on the first Sunday of March and how, the day before ‘weeds and grass’ were cleared from the graves which were dressed with fresh clay and decorated with ‘flaggers and such field flowers as the season afforded. On the feast day, ‘Prayers at the graves of relatives and pilgrimages performed round the grave-yard were continued during the greater part of the day’ (ibid.). A roughly rectangular graveyard (dims. c. 45m NW-SE; c. 35m NE-SW) with the public road, which bends at this point, running along the NW and SW sides. It is enclosed by a stone wall with an entrance in the W. Compiled by: Jean Farrelly Date of upload: 31 May 2021