County
Carlow Facts/"Irish Roots" magazine
Posted by Jean Rice <jeanrice@cet.com> on Sat, 16 Jan
1999
Surname: Byrne, Nolan,
Nowlan, Kavanagh, Kelly, Neill, McDonnell, McDonald, Kinsella, Whelan, Ryan,
Brennan, Gurly, Tyndall, Keogh, Swift, Shaw, MacMurrough
Carlow with an area of 346 square miles is
one of the smallest counties in Ireland. The population of the county in 1841 was 86, 228, over the next forty
years it decreased thus, in 1861, 57,137, in 1871 to 51,650, in 1881 to 46,588, the population almost halved
in forty years. Famine played a big part in this with emigration also to blame.
The population of Carlow County from the 1991 census was 40,942, with Carlow town at 11,271. Almost triangular in shape, Carlow is surrounded by counties Kildare, Wicklow, Wexford, Kilkenny and Laois, and bounded by the River Slaney to the east and the River Barrow to the west. There are 597 townlands, and seven baronies in Carlow: Carlow, Rathvilly, Idrone East, Idrone West, Forth, St. Mullins Upper and St. Mullins Lower. With Mount Leinster at a height of 2,610 feet, looking down on the beautiful village of Borris, the county is surrounded by hills. The Barrow Valley, in all its breathtaking beauty, takes you through Carlow town, on to Leighlinbridge, Bagnalstown, Goresbridge, Graignamanagh and on to St. Mullins, famed in history, from where the river is tidal.
At the time of trading, the
boats were met there by a steamer which took them out on the early
morning tide. St. Mullins is the site of the famous monastery founded by
St. Molling, a place of great learning and holiness.
The saint is reputed to have promised that those buried in the graveyard would
go straight to Heaven.
Griffth's valuation was carried out in
Carlow in 1852. At that time the most numerous household surname in
Carlow was Byrne, with no less than 498 Byrne households in the county,
followed by Nolan/Nowland with 310.
The top names, according to the Griffith's valuation, were:
Top 10 Names in 1852 -
1. Byrne 498
2. Nolan/Nowlan 310
3. Kavanagh 176
4. Kelly 164
5. Neill 138
6. McDonnell/McDonald 136
7. Kinsella 114
8. Whelan 114
9. Ryan 111
10. Brennan 108
Myles W. Keogh, born at Orchard House,
Leighlinbridge fought in the Papal Army of Pius IX as a second
lieutenant in the Battalion of St. Patrick. He distinguished himself at
the Battle of Ancona and received two Papal medals, and had at one time become a prisoner of war. At the
outbreak of the Civil War in America, Myles joined
the US Army as a Captain at 27 years of age. He became the second in
command to General George Custer, fighting
in the Battle of the Little Big Horn when Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse wiped out
the entire cavalry regiment, leaving
nothing living except the horse of General Myles Keogh, named Commanche.
The horse was taken care of by another Irishman, Captain Nolan, never ridden or
worked again, but was kept as a living memorial
to the battle. When Commanche died 20 years later he was preserved and is
now on exhibition in the University of Kansas. All the soldiers killed at the
Battle of Custer's last stand were mutilated and scalped with the exception of
Custer and Myles Keogh. When Sitting Bull was killed in a later battle he
was found to be wearing a Papal Medal.
In Borris is the home of the MacMurrough
Kavanaghs, descendants of Diarmuid MacMurrough, King of Leinster.
One of the most notable of this family was Arthur MacMurrough Kavanagh
who was born in 1831 without arms or legs. His story is remarkable as a tale of
victory over adversity, as he managed to lead a very full life despite his
physical handicaps. He travelled extensively all over the world. He
married and fathered seven children, he was
MP for Carlow from 1866 to 1880; by means of a steel hook protruding from
his sleeve he could fish, hunt, sail and shoot and was said to have had a good
sense of humor; he died at the ripe old age, for that time, of 76.
Another famous man born at Leighlinbridge
was the scientist, John Tyndall. Tyndall, who was born and educated in the parish of Leighlinbridge was a recognized genius and
the first person to discover why the sky is blue.
The renowned playwright, George Bernard
Shaw, had strong Carlow connections through his mother's family, the Gurleys who
went back to the 1700s.
Carlow town was once described by write
Dean Swift, with this rhyme:
High
Church
Low
Steeple
Poor
Town
Proud
People