St. Agathas Well

Marked on the 1839 and 1925 eds of the OS 6-inch map, and described as St. Agatha’s Well on both, although John O'Donovan writing c. 1840 describes it as St. Agnes' Well (O'Flanagan 1933, vol. 2, 363). It is located on a fairly level, low-lying landscape, and at the source of a small W-E stream. The area was flooded at the time of inspection, but a large slab (dims 1.18m x 0.84m) was present with a stone-lined well (D 0.7m) just to the N of it and there was a bush growing over it. It is known locally to have a cure for warts, and offerings were present until c. 1960, but it is now disused. The church site (WX045-001001-) is c. 200m to the NE. Compiled by: Michael Moore Date of upload: 23 July, 2013

St. Agathas Well is associated with St. Agatha, a Christian martyr venerated in Ireland for her healing powers, particularly in relation to women's health and protection against fire. The variation in name, St. Agnes, may reflect local confusion between the similar-sounding saints or regional dialect influences.