The man who made Jonesborough

          Gap o' the North Walking Club

           Cumann Síulóid Sléibhe Bhearna Uladh 

          By 1837 as you can see from Lewis's Topographical Dictionary below, the Jones's were gone from the Big House, and in their place was Hamilton Skelton. But the Griffiths Valuation lists show they were still the biggest landowner around in the 1860s.


          From A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland, 1837



          The burning of the village in 1798 was done by 'Seaver of the Bog' and his Killeavy Yeomanry. Jonathan Seaver lived at Heath Hall, which is the castellated building in Ballymacdermot Townland not far from Killeavy football grounds.

          Did you know .....?
          that the former Parochial House up the fine avenue in the middle of Jonesborough village was the site of a barracks? it is clearly marked on the 1864 Griffiths Valuation map as 'Old Barrack'. It may have been replaced by the building at Flurrybridge shown as 'Constabulary Barrack' (that house is still there). Anyone know the story? Could it have been military, from 1798?
           Our thanks to Ryan Morgan who dug this up:

          "Jonesborough was originally part of Ballymore Parish. An order
          church was not re-consecrated.

          permission of his Excellency the Lord Lieutenant .... There
          were chiefly from neighbouring parishes. Before his institution in 1812,
          were presented by Captain Macartney Filgate."



          My father told a story about landlord Jones although whether he is the original one or a descendant I don't know. Near Dernaroy cross, between the houses of Sean Maginness and Jack (Corney) Murphy there is a loanan leading down into Faughilotra which is known as Morgan's Pad. In my boyhoood there were still two families called Morgan on it, but once there were Morgans in every farm and house. There is a sharp bend on the lane and after that old walls on the left known as Rosie Morgan's and that was the first of them. There was once a cobbler who lived there and when Jones was out hunting one day he was caught in a bad shower of rain and his party took shelter in the house. He examined a pair of boots the cobbler was making and asked if he could make another pair for him.
          "I could", says the cobbler, "I'm the best and fastest cobbler in the country."
          "How long will it take you to make me a pair?"
          "How long will you be hunting?"
          "At least a couple of hours."
          "That'll do, they will be ready for you."
          "How much will the cost me?"
          "Not one penny", says the cobbler. "Just land - land on a long lease at a good rent. As much as I can run round in half an hour - and maybe I should have told you that I run even faster than I cobble."
          So the deal was done, the boots were ready on time and the cobbler Morgan went out onto the pad and started running towards Moyra castle, leaping ditches as he went. Then he turned left and ran along the stream that flows along the railway towards Brennan's Corner and cut across Dernaroy we know not where, but Morgans definitely had land to the north (right) of Finnegans Road, which didn't exist at the time. But he got down to the stream that separates Adavoyle from Dromintee townland and turned south for home with minutes to spare. He made it and that's why we got so many Morgans on Morgan's Pad.
          The bridge on that stream below Jack (Corney) Murphy's used to be known as Runcan's Bridge. Any explanations appreciated. The field across the road in front of Jack's is Morgan's too, and many years ago old Peter Nugent told me that a man was killed in that field during the faction fights after the fall of Parnell.