St. Brigid's RC Church

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

St Brigid’s Church is located along the roadside to the west of Tullyah Road and predates the 1st edition OS map of 1834-5. Although rebuilt circa 1850, remodeled in 1932, it has undergone extensive refurbishment in recent years which has resulted in the substantial loss of historic fabric. The building has a rectangular footprint with the front, narrow gable facing north, with extensive tarmacadam, bounded by a low plaster finished wall and railing defining its curtilage from the adjoining Tullyah Road.

Constructed in a traditional way, the central arched and timber sheeted entrance doors on the front elevation are framed with a narrow, raised and elongated projecting arch surround within which is located an elevated alcove containing a figure of St Brigid. The façade culminates in projecting raised verges to gable and terminating a natural slate roof behind. Walls smooth render with masonry paint finish with plinths defined with contrasting colour.

Raised concrete verges to rear elevation with small, pitched roof extension, with contemporary flush roof light, to west denotes location of sacristy and ancillary accommodation, located behind which is positioned high boundary wall/gable affording narrow access along rear of property. All fascia boards and rainwater goods are black PVC. Side elevation facing east contains 5no. elongated arched clear-glass windows, with contrasting narrow painted surrounds, slim concrete cills, and several of which have internal acid etched depictions. West facing elevation with 2no. elongated arched clear-glass windows, with central projecting bay having reduced arched windows either side on splays. (Former Confessional booth). Walls smooth render with masonry paint finish with plinths defined with contrasting colour.

Setting:
The Church is located, to the west, parallel to the roadside and immediately south of Carrickananny Bridge. No curtilage enclosure to rear.
Roofing: Natural slate,
Walling: Painted smooth render
Windows: Timber
RWG: PVC

Historical information

St Brigid’s church was originally built c1815, rebuilt c1850 and remodelled in 1932.

St Brigid’s in Carrickananny townland, Loughgilly parish is shown on the first edition map of 1834-5 captioned ‘R.C. Chapel’, lying alongside the main route between Dundalk and Markethill. The church is not shown on Rocque’s map of 1760 or Taylor & Skinner’s map of 1777, however, due to the nature of these maps, the absence of the church is not conclusive.

Penal laws had effectively ‘fallen into disuse’ by the early 19th century, although these laws were not finally repealed until 1829. This allowed a reestablishment of the Catholic church, including its built infrastructure, where funds allowed, and the original church may date from this period (Donnelly), a newspaper article of 1914 stating that the church had been on the site for about a century. It was said in a newspaper article of 1932 that mass was celebrated in the house of a sympathetic Protestant close to the present site, prior to the building of the church.

The original church on the site is recorded in the Townland Valuation of c1837 as a slated RC Chapel with dimensions 66 feet long by 23 feet wide and 10 feet in height. The quality mark ‘C+’ given to the church indicates that it was ‘old, but in repair’. A congregation of 700 is recorded in the OS Memoirs for the church at ‘Carneckananny’ (c1838) and the priest at this time was Rev O’Toole.

Map, valuation book and field evidence demonstrates that this early church was rebuilt c1850. The building depicted on the 2nd edition map of 1860 is wider than the original building on the site, and this is confirmed by dimensions given for the church in the General Revaluation of the 1930s. The current church is also double height, compared to the original single storey building. A vestry extension to the SW was added to the church between the 2nd (1860) and 3rd (1906) map editions.

The ‘RC Chapel and yard’ were valued at £50 in Griffith’s Valuation and there were no changes in the valuation until the general revaluation of the 1930s.

The church was originally located to the north of a mill, captioned ‘corn mill’ on the first edition but which had become a ‘flax mill’ by the second edition of 1860. The mill and church, although in close proximity, appear to have co-existed harmoniously until the mill converted to steam power in 1913 and a chimney and engine were erected close to the chapel. As a consequence, dirt and smoke settled on the roof and in the grounds of the church and came in through the windows when they were open. Although the chimney was extended and a cap put on it, the problem was not abated. The priest, Rev Patrick Vallely, brought a legal action against the owner of the mill and was successful in gaining an injunction restraining the defendant from allowing dirt and smoke to issue from his mill to the detriment of the church building. The case was unusual and there was some legal disputation on whether a priest could bring such an action.

In July 1932 the church was reopened after having been closed for some time for structural improvements, repairs and renovations carried out by the priest, Rev John Lavelle. It was at this date that the Stations of the Cross and Carrara marble altar (moulded from reconstituted marble) were installed. The opening ceremony featured a sermon by the Rt Rev Dr McSherry, Bishop of Port Elizabeth, South Africa, who had been baptized at the church in 1849.

The valuer’s notebook of 1935 gives a plan and dimensions for the church and records that there was accommodation for approximately 230 people. A separate caretaker’s house/stable to the SE of the church added to the church in the late 19th century has not survived, having been demolished between 1955 and 1979.

References:
Primary Sources:

1. PRONI OS/6/2/25/1 First edition Six Inch OS map (1834-5)
2. Day, A and McWilliams, P (eds) (1990) Ordnance Survey Memoirs of Ireland: Vol 1 Parishes of County Armagh 1835-8 Belfast: Institute of Irish Studies, Queen’s University
3. PRONI OS/6/2/25/2 Second edition Six Inch OS map (1860)
4. PRONI VAL/1/B/245A-B Townland Valuation fieldbook, Parish of Loughgilly (c1838)
5. PRONI VAL/2/B/2/38A Griffith’s Valuation, Barony of Upper Orior (1863-4)
6. PRONI VAL/12/B/15/3A-E Annual Revisions Electoral Division of Belleek (1864-1929)
7. PRONI OS/6/2/25/3 Third edition Six Inch OS map (1906)
8. Frontier Sentinel, 9th May 1914
9. Irish Independent 11th July, 1932
10. Frontier Sentinel, 16th July 1932
11. PRONI VAL/3/C/2/12 First General Revaluation ED Belleek (1936-1957)
12. PRONI VAL/3/D/2/6/C/2 First General Revaluation, Valuers Binder ED Belleek (1933-1957)
13. PRONI OS/6/2/25/4 Fourth edition Six Inch OS map (1955-6)
14. Large scale OS maps, 1906, 1955, 1979 (https://shop.centremapslive.co.uk)

Secondary Sources:

15. Donnelly, C J (2004) ‘Masshouses and meetinghouses: The Archaeology of the Penal Laws in Early Modern Ireland’ International Journal of Historical Archaeology, Vol 8, No 2, pp.119-132

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

RECORD ONLY - Modest, simple church in rural setting and which predates the first edition map of 1835. However, recent refurbishment, including the extensive insertion of new windows, Upvc fascia and guttering and replacement of internal historic fabric including floor tiles, has resulted in the Church having insufficient remaining historic fabric to meet the legislative test.