Cartron / An Cartún

Cartron / An Cartún

Compiled by Paul Greaney

Overview

Irish name: An Cartún

English name: Cartron

Meaning: the cartron (an Anglo-Norman word for a quarter of land)

Area: 137 acres, 3 roods and 19 perches

Field names in this townland: Lally’s Field (by the roadside at the western end of Greaney’s land).

Information from O’Donovan’s Field Name Books

Names: Cartron (B. S. Sketch Map), Cartron (Barony Map), Cartroon (Cahill, Esq., Annaghdown), Cartron (County Map), Cartoon (High Constable 1838), Cartroon (Local), Cartrón (Local), Cartron (Rector of Annaghdown).

Description: Michael Browne, Esq. Moyne, Proprietor. All is in tillage. The road from Galway to Shrule passes through the South end of this townland.

Situation: It is situated 1/2 mile East of Annaghdown Church. Bounded North by Ardgainine. South by [Unable to read]. East by Sleevefin and West by Aughlageen.

Population Statistics

1841: 12 houses, 65 people (32 male, 33 female)

1851: 12 houses (incl. 1 vacant), 54 people (26 male, 28 female)

1861: 12 houses, 61 people (36 male, 25 female)

1871: 11 houses (incl. 1 vacant), 56 people (31 male, 25 female)

1881: 9 houses, 44 people (24 male, 20 female)

1891: 8 houses, 34 people (18 male, 16 female)

1901: 7 houses, 37 people (19 male, 18 female)

1911: 6 houses, 30 people (18 male, 12 female)

2011: 11 houses (incl. 1 vacant), 29 people (14 male, 15 female)

1821 Tithe Applotment Books

The Tithe Applotment Books record M Brown Esq. as proprietor of the townland, holding 42 acres and 2 roods directly. The remaining portions of 21 acres, 19 acres, and 2 acres, 2 roods were held jointly by Richd [Richard] Flynn, Ulick Burke & partners.

1840 Griffith’s House Books & 1855 Griffith’s Valuation

The December 1853 house book for Cartron records Nicholas O’Brien, Sibby Craven, Michael Malley, John Hessian, William Allen, and Michael Costello as occupiers of houses, while Hugh Malley, John Fahey (sic.), and Harry Burke each held a house and offices.

Griffith’s Valuation records seven houses in Cartron. The landlord Michael Browne held a cottier’s house and 31 acres, 13 perches of land in fee. Nicholas O’Brien, Michael Malley, and John Hession each held a house with land, while Hugh Malley, John Fahy, and Henry Burke each held a house, office and land.

Sale in Encumbered Estates Court, 1855

The townland of Cartron was offered for sale by auction, alongside the townlands of Kilgill, Carrownrooaun, and several other lots in counties Galway and Roscommon, at the Land Judges Court on 4 December 1855, in the matter of the Estate of Michael J. Browne, Esq., of Moyne. Cartron has the following tenants listed in the sale catalogue:

1. Hugh Meally held held 8 acres, 1 rood and 30 perches at a yearly rent of £2-15s-6d, as a tenant from year to year.

2. & 2a. John Fahy held 27 acres and 2 perches at an annual rent of £8-6s-6d, and a further 15 acres and 36 perches at a rent of £4-13s-9d. The first of these was held from year to year, determinable annually on 1 May, whilst the second was a tenancy under the Court of Chancery for seven years from 25 March 1853, or pending the cause of Greville against Browne, and would terminate on the sale of the land in the Land Judges Court.

3. & 3a. Henry Burke held 13 acres, 2 roods and 2 perches at an annual rent of £4-3s-3d, and a further 8 acres and 1 rood at an annual rent fo £2-15s-6d. The first of these was held from year to year, determinable annually on 1 May, whilst the second was a tenancy under the Court of Chancery under the same terms as John Fahy’s tenancy at 2a above.

4. John Hessian held 13 acres, 1 rood and 13 perches at an annual rent of £4-3s-3d, as a tenant from year to year, determinable on 1 May each year.

5. Patrick Feeny held 17 acres and 1 rood at an annual rent of £5-6s-6d as a tenant under the Court of Chancery for seven years under the same terms as John Fahy’s tenancy at 2a above.

6. Nicholas O’Brien held 2 acres, 1 rood and 30 perches at an annual rent of £1-2s-6d, as a tenant under the Court of Chancery for seven years from 1 May 1851, under the same terms as John Fahy’s tenancy at 2a above.

7. Sabina Meally held 1 rood at an annual rent of 5s. as a tenant under the Court of Chancery for seven years from 29 September 1851, under the same terms as John Fahy’s tenancy at 2a above.

8. James Kilkelly held 14 acres, 1 rood and 36 perches at an annual rent of £4-9s-5d as a tenant under the Court of Chancery for seven years from 1 November 1853, under the same terms as John Fahy’s tenancy at 2a above.

9. Thady Shaughnessy held 17 acres, 2 roods and 30 perches at an annual rent of £5-9s-0d as a tenant under the Court of Chancery for seven years from 1 November 1853.

The Gale Days for denominations 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8 and 9 were 1 May and 1 November, while those for denominations 2a, 3a, 5, and 7 were 25 March (Lady Day) and 29 September (Michaelmas), two of the four Quarter Days.

1871-1901 Deaths

1901 Census

The 1901 Census of Ireland records the following 7 houses in Cartron:

1. Hugh Melia (79), farmer, his wife Bridget (70) [née Allen], their son John (38), farmer, daughter-in-law Mary (38) [née Duggan], and grandson Hubert (2).
2. William Melia (70), farmer, his wife Kate (65) [née Burke], their son William (40), farmer’s son, daughter-in-law Ellen (30) [née Crowe], and grandchildren Martin (9), Honor (7), Julia (5), scholars, and John (3), and Michael (2 months).
3. John Fahy (80), farmer, widower, his son Patrick (46), farmer’s son, daughter-in-law Mary (40) [née Greaney], and grandchildren John (15), Michael (14), Mary (12), Winnie (11), Margaret (9), Delia (5), scholars, and Patrick (2).
4. John Burke (50), farmer, his wife Julia (40) [née Burke], and children Mary (16), farmer’s daughter, Margaret (10), Patrick (7), both scholars, Michael (3), and Bridget (2 months).
5. Thomas Costelloe (60), farmer and shoemaker, his wife Honor (65) [née Glynn], and daughter Mary (26), farmer’s daughter.
6. Malachy Loughlan (60), fiddler, and his wife Mary (80).
7. Andrew Burke (60), farmer, widower.

Four houses were of the second class with thatched roofs and three front windows, with the exception of one which had four front windows. Three houses were of the third class, two having two front windows and one having one front window. One house was of the fourth class, having one room and no front windows. Each of the other houses had between two and four rooms each. All houses had walls of stone and roofs of thatch.

All inhabitants were recorded as having been born in County Galway, and there were no residents of the townland who spoke only Irish.

1911 Census

The 1911 Census of Ireland records six households in Cartron. The house of Malachy Loughlan is no longer present; Malachy died in Cartron on 16 January 1904, while his wife Mary died in Tuam Workhouse a few weeks later on 8 February 1904.

1. Patrick Fahy (55), farmer; his wife Mary (49) [née Greaney], married for 27 years with 9 children born alive and 6 living; and their children Winnifred [struck through, presumably because she had married and left the household in 1909], John Tom (19), [“John” is struck through], farmer’s son, Maggie (18), Delia (15), and Patrick (12), scholar.

2. Thomas Costello (73), farmer, single, and his sister Mary (37), single. [There appears to have been information on Thomas’s marriage entered and erased on the original form].

3. John Burke (69); his wife Julia (59) [née Burke], married 30 years with 8 children born alive and 8 living; and children Marget (19), Pat (17), farmer’s son, and Michael (13), scholar.

4. William Melia (50), farmer; his wife Ellen (46) [née Crowe], married 22 years with 8 children born alive and 8 living; children Martin (19), Norah (15), Julia (14), scholar, Michael (10), scholar, John (12), scholar, Thomas (8), scholar, Anthony (5), scholar, and Hubert (2).

5. Andy Burke (75), farmer, widower.

6. Bridget Melia (83) [née Allen], farmer, widow, married 50 years with 5 children born alive and 4 living; her son John (50), farmer’s son; daughter-in-law Mary (50) [née Duggan], married 19 years with 5 children born alive and 2 living; grandsons Hubert (12), and John (8), scholars.

Four houses were of the second class, one of these having four front windows and the remainder having three. The remaining two houses were both of the third class, each having two front windows. All six houses had between two and four rooms, and were constructed with stone walls and thatched roofs.

Each holding had a cow-house and a piggery, while one had a fowl-house, three had a barn, three had a cart-house, one had a calf-house. Two holdings had a stable and a further holding had two stables.

All inhabitants were recorded as having been born in Galway, and there were no monoglot Irish speakers recorded in the townland.

Note: Information in squared brackets has been added by the author and does not appear in the original record.