INNISKEEN

INNISKEEN, or ENNISKEEN, a parish, partly in the baronies of LOUTH and UPPER DUNDALK, county of LOUTH, and province of LEINSTER, but chiefly in the barony of FARNEY, county of MONAGHAN, and province of ULSTER, 4 miles (N.) from Louth, on the road to Castle-Blayney; containing 3698 inhabitants. According to the Ordnance survey it comprises 6l92 ¾ statute acres, of which 86 ¼ are in the barony of Louth, 1116 ½ in Upper Dundalk, and 4990 in Farney; 5534 acres are applotted under the tithe act. Here is a constabulary police station. The living is a rectory and vicarage, in the diocese of Clogher, and in the patronage of the Bishop: the tithes amount to £447. 13. 10 ¼. The glebe-house was erected by aid of a loan of £675 from the late Board of First Fruits, in 1821. The church is a neat plain structure with an ancient burial-ground, in which is a vault bearing the date 1672, built by Colonel Mac Mahon, a descendant of the corbes of Clones: the belfry is one of the ancient round towers.

In the R. C. divisions the parish is the head of a union or district, including also part of Donaghmoyne, and containing a neat chapel here and one at Drumcatton, erected on land given by F. Evans, Esq., of Mountjoy-square, Dublin, who also gave a site adjacent for a school-house. The parochial school, which is a good stone building, was erected at an expense of £200 by subscription and a grant from the Lord-Lieutenant's fund. Here are also two Sunday schools. St. Dagens is said to have founded an abbey or bishoprick here in the beginning of the sixth century, which is not mentioned later than the eleventh century, although some remains of it still exist. Here is an extensive Danish fort.