Church

The National Monuments Service's description

The church in the townland of Kilmaniheen West depicted on the 1841 ed. OS 6-inch map may have been built on site of medieval church. O'Hare (2000, 81-2) recorded the following details about this church site; 'The townland name of Kilmaniheen is believed to be derived from Cill Mainchin, i.e. St Munchin's Church' (OSNB 1841 Brosna 14). King (1986, 201) records that the church was founded by Bishop Domaingen in 630 A.D. In 1302-07 the church of Kylmoginan, in the Deanery of Hacudeo, was valued at 6s. 8d. by the Papal Taxation List (Cal Docs Ire V, 297). In 1398 the Augustinian prior and convent of St Mary's Killaha had an appropriation of the vicarage of Kilmaniheen in their patronage (King 1986, 12). The site of the earlier church (or churches) of Kilmaniheen is unknown. However it is interesting to note that presence of Kilmaniheen graveyard, the site of which "has long since been built upon and all trace of it removed", was located in the north portion of the townland of Kilmaniheen West (OS Sheet/Plan/Trace: 23/08/3), (OSRNB 23, 9). A later structure is depicted on the OS first edition and entitled "church". This structure was, according to the rector, used as a school and mission house and never functioned as a church (OSRNB 23, 10). To the east of this, on the second edition of OS 6" map 24, is depicted a church belonging to the Church of Ireland (co-ords: 002 413). This church was in existence during the 1850s, at which time it was under the control of the Rev. Edward Norman (Griffith 1853, 69). The church, which had a seating capacity of about 120, was under the control of the Rev. O'Connor during the 1890's (OSRNB 24, 2). Little of the structure now survives'.

Revised by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of revised upload: 13 June 2022

References

King, J. 1986 County Kerry Past & Present. First published 1931. Mercier reprint, Cork.

OSRNB - Ordnance Survey Revision Name Books. MSS at Ordnance Survey Office, Dublin.

OSNB - Ordnance Survey Name Books. Pro-forma books arranged by Civil Parish for recording townland and other name-forms and compiled in the course of the OS 6-inch survey 1824-1841. The name books also include minor names and incidental references to antiquities. National Archives of Ireland.

Cal. doc. Ire. - Calendar of documents relating to Ireland 1171-1307, ed. H.S. Sweetman (5 vols., London, 1875-86).

O'Hare, P. 2000 Holy wells and other sites of pilgrimage within a portion of East Kerry. Journal of the Kerry Archaeological and Historical Society 29, 55-98.