Toomour Church (in Ruins)

In undulating pasture, on a low rise c. 40m NE of a road; in the E side of Toomour graveyard (SL040-140004-). The ruin of a rectangular church (ext. 20.1m E-W; 7.16m N-S), the W end of which has been reduced to low sod-covered foundations. The standing walls are built of random-rubble limestone with dressed-stone quoins. In the centre of the E gable is a splayed and lintelled window embrasure, the single light of which has a pointed arch and is rebated and chamfered on its external edge. The upper portion of the internal face of this wall is beginning to collapse. Near the centre of the S wall (L 11.78m) is a small lintelled window embrasure with a square-headed light. A gap (Wth 1.8m) near the E end of this wall may mark the position of a window ope. The W wall (L 9.9m) contains no window or doorway opes. According to M. A. Timoney (2002b, 57), the W end of the church contained a room to house the resident cleric. The interior is covered by scrub overgrowth. These are the remains of the medieval parish church of Toomour. A section of Bóthar an Corann (SL033-145----) lies c. 400m to SW. There is a local tradition that St Patrick threw a stone from here and a spring rose from where it fell at the holy well (SL040-138----) (pers. comm. M. A. Timoney). The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Sligo' compiled by Ursula Egan, Elizabeth Byrne, Mary Sleeman with Sheila Ronan and Connie Murphy (Dublin Stationery Office, 2005). Date of upload: 18 January 2008