Míle fáilte! This is the homepage of the Annaghdown Wells Project, a project of the Annaghdown Heritage Society, which aims to record all stone-built wells in the parish of Annaghdown, together with any traditions, uses, folklore, stories, poems, etc. associated with them. We greatly appreciate any contributions of information to the project. We are grateful to the Heritage Council for their support of this project under the European Year of Cultural Heritage grant scheme.

Water has always been the source of life. In turn, wells for drawing water, the sole source before the advent of indoor plumbing, were the heart and hub of every community. When you come across these wells, what is striking is how beautiful they are, how individual and unique, how lovingly cut the stones. Though built for everyday use, they are also overlooked examples of architecture, of the melding of engineering and sculpture, which were created not by specialists from elsewhere, but by people from within each community.

Lisheenanoran

The 1898-1913 Ordnance Survey map for County Galway records upwards of 80 water wells in the parish of Annaghdown. Far from being unusual, this profusion was the norm for every parish in the country. On the map each is marked by the word ‘well’. Where clusters of rectangles depicting houses are drawn, the ‘well’ labels can be as close together as two hundred feet, incidentally demonstrating how far water could be carried before a new well had to be dug. What do these wells look like? From what we have seen, the wells are horseshoe-shaped and stone-lined, with cut stone steps leading down into them. They vary in size, and some are very deep, depending on the water table levels. Many were situated by the road for ease of access, but others were dug in fields and meadows, quiet and out of the way.

In our era of piped water, there will be younger people who have never used or even seen a water well, though the seniors of our parish keenly remember depending on them as children. Many of the wells on the OSI map have disappeared or been filled in, as they fell out of use. But a surprising amount survive and can still be seen, if you ask people in the know, and if you are willing to climb through weeds and bushes. Coming across one feels like rediscovering a hidden treasure, like your great-grandmother’s locket, long-lost, with a sepia picture inside.

Tobar a’ Bhaile, Cloonboo

Despite their clear cultural and architectural value, these monuments are not protected by the state in any way. To our knowledge, there have been no studies made of them. While some books about Irish holy wells have been published, none seem to have been written about the holy well’s poor cousin, the water well of the Irish community. As a result, little is known about the age and construction of these monuments. They could be a hundred years old or many hundreds; their technology could be sophisticated or simple. We just don’t know. In addition, the memory of these wells, both of their location and use, is fading, and if we don’t make an effort to record them, many will be lost altogether.

In recent years, one such well, known as Tobar a’ Bhaile, behind Cunniffe’s of Cloonboo, has been relocated and wonderfully restored by the Cloonboo Tidy Village committee, for everyone to see and enjoy. It is particularly appropriate that the restoration work was carried out by members of the Scully and Greaney families, whose forebears originally used and maintained the well. This restoration informs us about more than just Cunniffe’s well: oriented at the end of a lane leading from the cluster of cottages behind Regan’s, it shows us the community the well was designed to serve.

Inspired by this, the Annaghdown Heritage Society this year began a project to locate, record and map as many water wells in the parish as possible, to be entered on a database accessible via the Society’s website. In this way we hope to preserve the memory of these monuments, both for members of our own community, and for the wider world diaspora of people whose forebears hailed from Annaghdown parish. With the support of Marie Mannion, the Galway County Council Heritage Officer, we applied for, and received, support for this project from the Heritage Council, which was hugely encouraging.

In defining our project, we felt it was important to include the holy wells of the parish in addition to the drinking-water wells: Tobar Chormaic, Tobar Bhreandáin, Tobar Bhrige (whose whereabouts are a puzzle), Tobar Mhic Dhuagh in Tonagarraun, and, most beautiful of all, Dabhach Chuana in Bunatober. Where records exist of patterns (or stations) held at these holy wells, we have included this information. Unfortunately, other holy wells of the parish have not survived to the present day, such as St. Cyprian’s Well beside Cloonboo Castle.

Map and Project Database

The project database is presented in the Google map below. Each red marker denotes the site of a well. Clicking on a marker displays the information collected on that well, together with any photographs or map extracts. Clicking on a photo will present an enlarged view.

Click the button at the top right of the map to obtain a full list of wells. A map of the wells which appears on the OSI 25-inch map can also be viewed by selecting the appropriate option on this menu.

Important: Some of the wells on this map are on private land, and their inclusion here does not imply permission to access them. Permission from the landowner should be obtained before accessing any wells on private land. Annaghdown Heritage Society accepts no liability for any injury or damage incurred in accessing any of the wells listed on this website.

Interviews

Mary Potter

Seán Ó Murchadha

Heritage Week Event – August 2018

Click here for some photos of our Heritage Week event.

The Stone-Built Wells of Annaghdown Parish

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Upcoming Events