Site of Templefeenan — Fore

Levelled church site depicted as 'Site of Templefeenan' on the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map. No surface remains visible. Originally known as Teampall Fionain [Church of Fionain] which was then anglicised as Templefeenan. In 1682 Piers stated that Fore contained the ruins of three churches (WM008-097002-; WM004-035003-) one of which was called Teampall Fionain (Piers 1981, 63). This church was demolished c. 1830 (Stokes 1892, 7-8; Walsh 1957, 60). Writing in 1892 Stokes (1892, 7-8) stated that there 'were till sixty years ago the ruins of three churches at Fore, just as in Sir Henry Piers's time about 1680'. Stokes goes on to state 'that there was another church levelled to the ground in 1830, called Tempull Fionan, outside the Castlepollard gate' (Stokes 1892, 8). According to Bradley (1985, 79) the church allegedly stood outside the North Gate but the unusual curve in the townland boundary at this point may preserve the line of an enclosure and this suggests that it may have been within the wall. Nothing is known of the church apart from its name and location. The dedication to an Irish saint suggests that the site is of pre-Norman origin but Teampall dedications have been shown to be post-1200 elsewhere in Ireland (Hurley 1980, 52-65). Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien Date of upload: 21 November 2013