The first Corduff Raferagh Heritage Group Ramble of 2026 took place on Sunday May 24th under a balmy blue sky. We had a lovely walk along the Bog road which separates the townlands of Carrickartagh and Fartagorman. The road gets its name from the terrain on which most of the road was built on – a bog, others call it Wards road after the Ward family who used to live on it.
Along the way many stories were told, families recalled, places and field names noted. The Keenan family were remembered, the last of the family May was laid to rest in the new graveyard in Corduff in 2009. The end of their lane was known as “Tommy’s Kesh”, the Kesh being a water crossing. Sheridan’s was a ceili house with lots of visitors popping in and out. The previous owner Mick Carragher was a carpenter, he roofed sheds and also made coffins. Dates engraved on the loft steps records that it was built in 1905, the late Paddy Hand who white washed the loft in 1975, left his name on a beam and the builders of the loft also left their names written in chalk ‘Carragher and Byrne’.
A flax dam along the road is still visible and a reminder of the hard work carried out by many for the linen industry. Reilly’s shra, a field name that immortalises one of the local family names.
Pierce Finnegan’s, divining gift was recalled and how he assisted many in finding a spring well on their property using a Y stick or a pocket watch, and pebbles to calculate the depth of the spring.
Martin Carragher’s cottage, and his uncle’s home behind it, along with Cassidy’s and Hands, all lived on a lane that looped up to the Greagnaroog road. The Tailor Connor’s field, another field name for our list which again immortalises previous land owners along this road.
At this point in the road we were heading into the townland of Greaghnaroog, the big field at the bend known as the 10 acre field has a single tree in it, and from the very old Ordnance Survey Maps from 1834, a school house is recorded in the vicinity of this tree. Poems by a Francis Connolly, Greaghnaroog, dated 1839 were discovered in 1996 which led to a search in the Dundalk Democrat for info on this scholar. “His early education was received from Master O’Reilly at Lisdoonan, but when the Master moved to Knappagh, Shercock, Francis and Jemmy would spend the winter months in Knappagh, taking their food supplies of potatoes and meal with them. Such was Francis grá for learning that he sometimes lay in the cart outside, using the moonlight to read his books.” Pat the Gael recalled his father telling the story that he sowed this 10 acre field with a fiddle, a mighty feat, not only with its size, but it’s a fair pull up and down and up and down that hill.
The last house on the road was Wards, Tommy sadly drowned on the Aghalile road in a flood in 1967, Pete moved to Drumgurra, he was better known as Pete the Nurse, Packie had a shop in Parnell Street. Jemmy who moved to Barnadonagh was a founding member of Corduff Pipe Band. Francie moved to Enagh, Magheracloone. Barney emigrated to the U.S. Their sister Mary, married Peter Agnew, Drombroagh in 1929 and their grandsons Michael and Brendan kindly filled in the gaps of the family history via the Corduff Raferagh Heritage Group Facebook page when we posted this piece on May 30th.
At the top of the road we looked down on St. Joseph’s spire in Carrickmacross, looked north eastwards towards the Cooley and Slieve Gullion mountains looking glorious in the evening sunshine. A short trek back down the road to enjoy a cuppa and have a chat brought the evening to a close.
Thank you to all for their local knowledge – Thomas, Noel, Aidan, Rosie, Pat & Joe and sincere thank you to the Courtney’s, McCabe’s and Sheridan’s for their help with parking.
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