Derrylin
Coordinates: 54°11′46″N 7°34′17″W / 54.1962°N 7.5715°W
Derrylin (from Irish: Doire Loinn, meaning "oakgrove of the blackbirds")[1][2] is a village and townland in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is on the A509 road between Enniskillen and the border with County Cavan (the N3 road to Dublin). It had a population of 624 in the 2011 census and is situated within Fermanagh and Omagh district.
History
The village has several historical features, including the Callowhill graveyard with headstones dating back to the 17th century. Upper Lough Erne is east of the village, and west is the peak of Slieve Rushen. To the northeast is the limestone hill known as Knockninny Rock (from which the R.C. Parish and the Civil Barony takes its name).
Corratrasna Castle
On the southern slope of Knockninny Hill, about a mile and a half north of Derrylin village, can be seen the ruins of Corratrasna Castle (or Corratrasna House), a relatively small fortified house that was probably built around 1611, at the start of the Plantation of Ulster.[3][4] The 'castle' was probably built for a branch of the Balfour family, a Scottish settler family who were based at Castle Balfour in nearby Lisnaskea.[5] However, there is a local tradition that claims the 'castle' was built around 1611 for Brian Maguire, a member of the Clan Mac Uidhir (or Maguire dynasty), Gaelic Lords of Fermanagh.[6]
Another local tradition, recorded by the Irish Office of the Ordnance Survey in the 1830s, states that the 'castle' may have been built for Dr William Bedell, who served as the Church of Ireland Bishop of Kilmore in the 1630s and early 1640s.[7] The ruins of the fortified house now sit in a small field, directly behind a modern farmhouse, just off a sideroad in the townland of Corratrasna, quite near Knockninny Methodist Church.[8]
The Troubles
Transport
Derrylin is a stop on the Donegal-Enniskillen-Cavan-Dublin Airport-Dublin Bus Éireann Expressway route 30. There is a coach in each direction every two hours during the day as well as an overnight journey.[9] Services operate daily including Sundays. Ulsterbus route 58 from Enniskillen to Belturbet via Kinawley also serves Derrylin several times a day Mondays to Saturdays.[10]
Economy
Derrylin is the hometown of former billionaire Seán Quinn who headed up an industrial empire concentrating on building products, glass bottle manufacture and insurance. However a disastrous bet on a dodgy share option led to his downfall and the loss of his business. The building products enterprise is now run by Aventas and the insurance by Liberty. Hotels and other assets were also lost although court proceedings are currently underway to sort out the tangle. The business appears to be trading successfully and employs about 2000 people locally. Other local businesses include the famous Irish Slush drinks manufacturers www.slush.ie, McCaffrey Quarries, Teemore Engineering, Steel Solutions, Signs Express and a range of small family run businesses.
Education
Derrylin is home to St Aidan's High School and St Ninnidh's Primary School and Kindertee Community Playgroup.
References
- ↑ "Placenames Database of Ireland". Logainm.ie. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
- ↑ Archived June 2, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ Rowan, Alistair, The Buildings of Ireland: North West Ulster (popularly known as the Pevsner Guide to North West Ulster), pps 226-227. Yale, London, 2003.
- ↑ Wilsdon, Bill, Plantation Castles on the Erne, pps 166-168. The History Press Ireland, Dublin, 2010.
- ↑ Rowan, Alistair, The Buildings of Ireland: North West Ulster, p. 226. Yale, London, 2003.
- ↑ Wilsdon, Bill, Plantation Castles on the Erne, p. 166. The History Press Ireland, Dublin, 2010.
- ↑ Wilsdon, Bill, Plantation Castles on the Erne, p. 166. The History Press Ireland, Dublin, 2010.
- ↑ Wilsdon, Bill, Plantation Castles on the Erne, p. 166. The History Press Ireland, Dublin, 2010.
- ↑ "Bus Éireann : Table No.30 : Dublin - Airport - Cavan - Dinegal" (PDF). buseireann.ie. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
- ↑ "Timetables". Translink. 2013-06-28. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
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