Coolroghaun

 

Coolroghaun Fort

Carmel O'Rourke

Coolroghaun

Civil Parish of Kilbegnet

Cúil Ruacháin, Broughan’s back or hill

Coolroghaun is situated on the eastern side of Kilbegnet parish, joining the parish of Dunammon. Coolroghaun is located in the Barony of Ballymoe, County Roscommon.

The Down Survey Map provides no available information on the townland of Coolroghaun. Accessed: 13 February 2020

O’Donovan’s Field Name Books notes that in the east of Coolroghaun there is 2 portions of bog land. In the north an orchard can be found, and a Danish Fort is within 2¼ chains of the east boundary. The rest of Coolroghaun consists of tillage and pasture.

Census 1841-1851

According to the 1851 census, Coolroghaun is made up of 110 acres, 0 roods and 28 perches. In 1841, there was a population totaling 68 people, 31 of which were male and 37 were female. By 1851, the population had decreased to 47 people, 23 were male and 24 were female. There were 6 houses in 1851, all of which were occupied. The poor law valuation paid was £38-0-0.

Griffith’s Valuation 1847-1864

According to Griffith’s Valuation, St. George Caulfield rented tenements to Patrick Kenny, Michael Byrne, John Shiel, Patrick Shiel and Patrick Byrne. Patrick Kenny paid a total of £17-10-0 for 20 acres, 2 roods and 38 perches of house, office and land and another lot of land measuring 1 acre, 3 roods and 0 perches. Michael Byrne paid £5-0-0 for 4 acres, 3 roods and 22 perches of house and land. Hugh Ryan rented 5 acres, 0 roods and 32 perches of house, office and land from John Shiel. Hugh paid £2-10-0. John Shiel rented from St. George Caulfield and paid £10-0-0 for 18 acres, 3 roods and 4 perches of house and land. Patrick Shiel paid £34-10-0 for 56 acres, 0 roods and 20 perches of house, office and land. Patrick Byrne paid £0-5-0 for 0 acres, 2 roods and 10 perches of a house (with no value) and garden. St. George Caulfield kept 2 acres, 0 roods and 22 perches of bog in fee for £0-5-0. The total annual valuation of rateable property was £70-0-0.

Census 1901

The were a total of 5 houses in Coolroghaun in 1901. The heads of the households were as follows: James Caughlan, Thomas Kenny, Bridget Burns, Thomas Nolan and John Vesey. The population of Coolroghaun was 30 people, 13 of which were male and 17 were female. All residents were Roman Catholic. All families in Coolroghaun were from County Galway except the Burns’ family who recorded County Roscommon as their place of birth.

All the houses had walls made using permanent material and roofs constructed using perishable material, except John Vesey’s house. John’s house walls and roof were made using perishable material. All houses were listed as private dwellings. The census forms were collected on the 15^th of April and showed there were a total of 11 farm steadings, comprising 2 stables, 1 coach house, 4 cow houses, 2 piggeries, 1 barn and 1 shed.

James Caughlan (70) lived with his wife Mary (50) and their 3 unmarried children, Pat (17), Maggie (15) and Sarah (9). Both James and Pat worked as agricultural labourers. Maggie and Sarah were scholars. All members of the family could read and write, except James who could not read. No language is listed for any family member, suggesting they spoke English only. The Caughlan family lived in a 2^nd class house with 3 front windows and 3 rooms. John Shiel of Kilbegnet owned the land on which the house was situated along with 1 cow house and 1 piggery.

Thomas Kenny (36) was a married farmer. He lived with his wife Jane (34), their 4 unmarried sons, Gerald (10), Arthur (8), Geoffrey (6) and Thomas (2) and servant Bridget Dillion (14). The 3 eldest sons were scholars, while Bridget worked as a general domestic servant for the family. All members of the household could read and write, except Geoffrey who could read only and Thomas who was too young to read or write at the time of the census. Each person in the household spoke English only. The family occupied a 2^nd class dwelling with 4 front windows and 5 rooms. Thomas owned the land on which his house was located along with 2 stables, 1 coach house, 2 cow houses, 1 barn and 1 shed.

Bridget Burns (70) was a widow. She lived with her unmarried daughter Mary (40), married daughter Ellen Keegan (38), son-in-law Pat Keegan (45) as well as her 3 grandsons, James (21), John (7) and Thomas (2) and 5 granddaughters, Mary (16), Margt [sic] (14), Kate (12), Anne (10) and Agnes (4).

Bridget was a farmer, while her daughter Mary was a housekeeper. Pat recorded his occupation as farmer’s son and Ellen was a farmer’s daughter. James worked as a sub-postman, while Mary Margt, Kate, Anne and John were scholars. All members of the family could read and write, except the 2 youngest children. While Bridget spoke Irish and English, the rest of the family members spoke English only. Each family member was born in County Roscommon. The family lived in a 2^nd class house with 3 front windows and 3 rooms. Bridget owned the land on which her house was situated along with 1 cow house.

Thomas Nolan (38) was an unmarried agricultural labourer. Thomas lived with his sister Celia (28) and his widowed mother Bridget (78). While Thomas and his mother could read and write, Celia could read only. No language was recorded for any family member, suggesting they spoke English only. The Nolan family lived in a 3^rd class house that had 2 front windows and 2 rooms. John Shiel of Kilbegnet owned the land on which the house was situated.

John Vesey (48) lived with his wife Bridget (48) and their daughter Mary (5). John worked as an agricultural labourer. John could read and write, as well as speak Irish and English. Bridget could also read and write, but she spoke English only. Mary could not read at the time of the census. The family lived in a 3^rd class house with 2 front windows and 2 rooms. John Shiel owned the land on which the house was situated along with 1 piggery.

1911 Census

There were 4 houses in Coolroghaun in 1911. The was a total population of 30 people, 16 were male and 14 were female. The heads of the households were Thomas Kenny, Patrick Keegan, John Crean and Mary Coughlan. All residents were Roman Catholic, and all were born in County Roscommon. Each house was listed as a private dwelling. Each house had walls made of permanent material and a roof made of perishable material, except the house of John Crean. John Crean’s house walls and roof were constructed using permanent material. The census forms were collected on the 11^th of April. There was a total of 22 farm steadings, consisting of 5 stables, 1 coach house, 4 cow houses, 3 calf houses, 3 piggeries, 3 fowl houses, 1 barn and 1 shed.

Thomas Kenny (45) lived with his wife of 25 years Jane (49), their 5 unmarried sons, Gerald (20), Geoffrey (16), Thomas (12), John (6) and William (3) and their 2 unmarried daughters, Jane (9) and Evellian (8). Thomas and Jane had 9 children, 8 of whom were living in 1911. Thomas worked as a farmer and Gerald listed his occupation as a farmer’s son. The other children were scholars, except William who was too young at the time. All members of the family spoke Irish and English, except William. There was no language listed for any member of the family, suggesting they spoke English only. The family listed their place of birth as County Roscommon. The Kenny family occupied a 2^nd class house with 4 front windows and 4 rooms. Thomas owned the land on which his house was situated along with 2 stables, 1 coach house, 1 cow house, 1 calf house, 1 fowl house, 1 barn and 1 shed.

Patrick Keegan (60) was a married farmer. He lived with his wife Ellen (60), his aunt Mary Burns (70), his 3 sons, James (34), John (16) and Thomas (11) and daughter Agnis (14). Patrick and Ellen had been married 35 years and had 11 children, 10 of whom were living in 1911. James was an auxiliary postman and John was a farmer’s son. Thomas and Agnis were both scholars. All members of the family could read and write, as well as speak Irish and English. The family listed County Roscommon as their place of birth. The family lived in a 2^nd class house with 3 front windows and 3 rooms. Patrick owned the land the house was situated on as well as 1 cow house, 1 calf house and 1 piggery.

John Crean (65) lived with his wife Margaret (57), their 2 unmarried daughters, Bridget (29) and Hannah Mary (24), their 2 unmarried sons, Michael (22) and Henry (17) and their granddaughter Mary Delia Courley (5). There was a visitor on the night of the census, Jane A. Long (40) who was a widow. John and Margaret had been married 35 years and had 11 children, 9 of whom were living in 1911. John worked as a coachman, while Hannah worked in millinery sales. Both Michael and Henry were farm labourers. All members of the household could read and write. Each member of the household spoke English only. The family listed their place of birth as County Roscommon. The family lived in a 1^st class house with 7 front windows and 8 rooms. Both the walls and the roof of the house were made of permanent material. John Shiel owned the land on which the house was situated as well as 3 stables, 1 cow house, 1 calf house, 1 piggery and 1 fowl house.

Mary Coughlan (65) was a widowed farmer. She lived with her 3 unmarried sons, James (35), Michael (30) and Patrick (27) and her 2 unmarried daughters Maggie (28) and Sarah (18). James and Patrick were agricultural labourers, while Michael worked as a carpenter. Maggie and Sarah were farmer’s daughters. All members of the family could read and write, except Mary who could read only. No language was listed for any family member, suggesting they spoke English only. The family was born in County Roscommon. The family lived in a 2^nd class house that had 3 front windows and 3 rooms. Mary owned the land on which her house was situated along with 1 cow house, 1 calf house, 1 piggery and 1 fowl house.