What is recorded here

St Laghteens Well vanished from its muddy Cork roadside after a young woman washed her garments or feet there, an act local tradition claims offended St Lachtaín. The water did not merely dry up; it uprooted and reappeared at Garryadeen, leaving behind only a damp patch and a warning about purity. Maps marked the empty site for decades, preserving the memory of a well proud enough to leave rather than be dirty.

Marked 'site of' on 1842, 1904 and 1939 OS 6-inch maps. On W side of N-S road. Muddy patch indicates site. According to Hartnett (1939, 198), local tradition that well removed itself to Garryadeen (CO051-089----) because an unclean act, offensive to St Lachtaín, was committed here:- a young woman washed her garments or feet in the well. The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Cork. Volume 3: Mid Cork' (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1997). In certain instances the entries have been revised and updated in the light of recent research. Date of upload/revision: 14 January 2009 Images provided by and copyright of Amanda Clarke 2016-2022 https://holywellscorkandkerry.com/

St Laghteens Well is associated with Saint Laghteen, a lesser-known early Irish saint, and was traditionally believed to have healing properties. Local folklore suggests the well moved to Garryadeen, reflecting a common tradition of holy wells 'relocating' to new sites, often linked to miraculous or supernatural events.

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