Cloonminda (Leagan Gaeilge – Cluain Mionda): The townland of Cloonminda is situated 5 kilometres north of Glenamaddy Town in north-east County Galway. The Irish word cluain means meadow. There are two different translations of Mionda. In the 1830s O’Donovan took Mionda to be the name of a person and hence translated the townland name as Minda’s Meadow. On the other hand, in the early 1900s Fr. Conway thought Mionda meant plain and he translated the townland name as ‘The meadow of the plain’. Other forms of the townland name are Cloonmenda and Clownemendagh.
Distinctive Features:
• 1840 Historic Ordnance Survey Map shows a cluster of twenty three houses lining a road perpendicular to the Glenamaddy to Williamstown Road in the centre of the townland.
• The area in the immediate vicinity of Cloonminda T-junction is known as Geata Rank. (Leagan Gaeilge – Geata Fhranc meaning Frank’s Gate).
1656-58 Down Survey: The Down Survey name of the townland is given as Clownemendagh. The landowner is given as Sir Oliver St. George who was a Catholic. The area of unprofitable land in the townland amounted to 155 plantation acres. The area of profitable land totalled 160 plantation acres. The 160 profitable plantation acres were forfeited in accordance with the Cromwellian Act of Settlement.
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 the only Catholic landholder in the townland of Cloonminda who paid the tithe (tax) levied to support the Established Church (Church of Ireland) was Malachy Keaveny. Protestant occupiers of agricultural holdings were exempt from this tax.
1838 O’Donovan’s Field Name Books: O’Donovan describes the townland as follows – “There are two portions of bog in this townland situated at the East and near the North boundaries. Centre of road from Dunmore to Kilnalag forms the S. boundary. There is nothing more, worthy of remark. The remainder of the land is tillage and pasture.”
1856 Griffith’s Valuation: The townland covers an area of 293 acres 3 roods 1 perches and the total rateable valuation of the land and buildings combined amounted to £90 15s 0d.
At the time of Griffith’s Valuation there were thirteen occupiers in the townland of Cloonminda – Gore, Keerane (3), Keane, Mannion (2), Fleming, Lyons, Keaveny and Tully (3). The landlord’s name was Sir St. George Gore.
Adjoining Townlands: The following townlands share a border with Cloonminda – Classaghroe, Gorteen (Templetogher Parish), Straid (Templetogher Parish), Liskea (Templetogher Parish), Knockauns East and Ardeevin.
Census Records: Population and Household data for the townland of Cloonminda:
| Census Years | 1841 | 1851 | 1861 | 1871 | 1881 | 1891 | 1901 | 1911 | 2011 |
| Population | 114 | 100 | 57 | 67 | 58 | 46 | 55 | 64 | 31 |
| Households | 23 | 18 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 14 |
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), Bushtwon, 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.
Quick Reference Directory of Glenamaddy folklore submissions in the Main Manuscript Collection:-
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