Castle - unclassified

The National Monuments Service's description

No surface remains visible of Ballinafid Castle. According to Mrs Harvey Kelly of Clanhugh there is a tradition of a castle in the Ballynafid area’ (ASI Field Report 24/08/1983). The precise location of this castle has not been identified. The medieval castle is depicted as a tower house type structure on the 1659 Down Survey parish map of Leny standing on the lands of 'Richard Delamarr' an 'Irish Papist' (NLI, MS 723-4). The castle was located between Lough Owel and a smaller lake depicted as 'Logh Laghen' on the Down Survey map placing it in the present townland of Clanhugh Demesne in the area around Clanhugh Lodge. On the Down Survey map of Corkaree barony the castle is shown standing close to he shoreline of Lough Owel and the townland boundary with Kilpatrick. The house marked as 'Clanhugh Lodge' on the 1837 ed. OS 6-inch map is roughly located in the same area where Ballynafid Castle is depicted on the Down Survey maps. The castle is described in the Down Survey map as a 'fair Castle by the Lough side with a Orchard' (WM011-077001-). The terrier of the Down Survey parish map of Leny recorded that ‘there are in this parish six castles vizt. at Rathbennett (WM011-060----), Farrow (WM011-055----) Cullanhue (WM011-007----) Ballinafid each one & at Ballinilack two castles (WM006-048----/-049----)’ (ibid.).

Compiled by: Frank Coyne and Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 23 August 2017

References

NLI, MS 723-4 - National Library of Ireland, The parish maps of the Down Survey for the County of Westmeath, attested by W. Petty, in 1659. Copied by Daniel O'Brien. A set of 67 maps with accompanying terriers in two volumes, 1786-7. Dublin.