Ardoslough (Leagan Gaeilge – Árd ós Loch):
The townland of Ardoslough is situated about 2.5 kilometres south east of Glenamaddy Town in north-east County Galway. The Irish form of the townland name translates as ‘the height above the lake/lough’, árd meaning ‘high’ and loch meaning ‘lake, or, lough’. Other forms of the townland name listed in O’Donovan’s Field Name Books prepared in the 1830s are Ardooslough and Ardslough.
Distinctive Features:
- Glenamaddy Turlough occupies a portion of northern part of the townland of Ardoslough and Lough Lurgeen Raised Bog takes up a substantial part of the south.
- The 1840 Historic Ordnance Survey Map shows thirteen houses in the townland, two clusters of four and the remaining dwellings located a distance apart in the centre.
- Census reports show that the townland population plummeted from sixty four in 1841 to zero in 1851 as a result of the Great Famine.
1656-58 Down Survey:
The Down Survey name of the townland is given as Boynagh. The 1670 owner is given as the Protestant Archbishop of Tuam. No part of the townland was earmarked for confiscation as it was owned by a Protestant.
1823 – 1838 Tithe Applotment Books:
Surviving documentation of the Tithe Applotment Books is in poor condition making it difficult, and in some cases impossible, to decipher the names of landholders. In so far as it can be ascertained Nicholas Treacy, a Catholic landholder in the townland of Ardoslough, paid the tithe (tax) levied to support the Established Church (Church of Ireland). Protestant occupiers of agricultural holdings were exempt from this tax.
1838 O’Donovan’s Field Name Books:
O’Donovan describes the townland as follows – “The greater portion of the townland is bog and Turlough. The former situated in the S. and the latter in the N. portion. There is a small village called after the townland in the East portion. The remainder of the land is tillage and pasture.”
1856 Griffith’s Valuation:
The townland covered an area of 410 acres 3 roods 12 perches and the total rateable valuation of the land and buildings combined amounted to £48 0s 0d. The sole occupier in Ardoslough in 1856 is given as John W. Browne who was also the landlord.
Adjoining Townlands:
The following townlands share a border with Ardoslough – Carrowntober West (Kilkerrin Parish,) Carrowntober East (Kilkerrin Parish), Clondoyle Beg, Clondoyle More, Gortnagier East, Kiltullagh (Partly in Kilkerrin Parish) and Mountkelly.
Census Records:
Population and Household data for the townland of Ardoslough:
Glenamaddy and the Irish Folklore Collections:
The article posted on this website under the ‘Heritage > Folklore’ tab provides an overview of the folklore material submitted by Glenamaddy parishioners to the National Folklore Commission, now known as the Irish Folklore Collections. It also explains the background to the 1937 Schools’ Collection (Bailiúchán na Scol) project which has good representation from a parish perspective.
The Irish Folklore Collections housed in the Folklore Department of University College Dublin contain a treasure trove of folklore material, some of which is accessible online. Both the Main Manuscript Collection and the Schools’ Collection contain a considerable number of submissions from collectors and informants who resided in the parish of Glenamaddy. The quick reference directories featured in the ‘Parish > Townlands’ section of this website complement the user-friendly search features of the dúcas.ie website and are helpful in tracking Schools’ Collection submissions associated with townlands. Submissions are categorised under – School, Teacher, Language, Volume Number, Page Number, Collector, Collector’s Townland, Informant and Informant’s Townland. Where applicable, Schools’ Collection directories showing online townland-related submissions appear at the end of the following townland posts on this website – Ballinapeaka, Ballinastack, Barna, Boyounagh_More (Middletown),_Bushtown, Cashel, Classaghroe, Cloonacross, Clooncon_East, Clooncon_West, Cloonkeen, Cultiafadda, Eskeromullacaun (Esker), Felimspark, Glenamaddy, Gortaganny, Gortnagier, Kiltullagh, Knockauns, Lisheenaheltia, Loughpark, Meelick, Scotland, Shannagh_More, Stonetown and Woodfield.
Parish folklore submissions contained in the Schools’ Collection are also accessible online via the following links:-
Árd Aoibhinn National School – Part 1 – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613680
Árd Aoibhinn National School – Part 2 – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613681
Glenamaddy Girls’ National School – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613677
Glenamaddy Boys’ National School – Part 1 – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613678
Glenamaddy Boys’ National School – Part 2 – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613679
Gort na Léime National School – Part 1 – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4569061
Gort na Léime National School – Part 2 – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4569062
Lisheenaheltia Girls’ National School – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613675
Lisheenaheltia Boys’ National School – https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613676
Glenamaddy submissions which form part of the Main Manuscript Collection are not posted online but may be examined in the reading room of the Folklore Department in U.C.D., Belfield, Dublin 4. Typed versions of some of the parish contributions contained in the Main Manuscript Collection are published under the ‘Heritage > Folklore’ tab on this website.
Author: Pat Keaveny
Sources:
Townlands in County Galway
1840 Historic Ordnance Survey Map
Place Name Books of Galway
The Down Survey of Ireland
The Tithe Applotment Books, 1823-1837
Griffith Valuation – Ask About Ireland
Central Statistics Office
National Archives: Census Reports 1901/1911
Essex University: Historic Population Census Reports
Historic Environment Viewfinder
Historical Notes on the Parish of Glenamaddy. Fr Walter Conway