Kirk Malew, Isle of Man

Historical Description

Kirk Malew, a parish in the S of the Isle of Man. It is traversed nearly throughout by Silver Burn, and it contains the town of Castletown and the village of Ballasalla, each of which has a post office. Acreage, 12, 865; population, 4453. South Barrule Mountain, 1564 feet high, overhangs the NW border, and Derby Haven, Castletown Bay, and Pool-vash Bay, with intermediate promontories, are on the coast. ' Rushen Abbey ruins are near Ballasalla, and a quartz block, the relic of a stone circle not long ago in tolerable preservation, is on Skybright Hill, near the parish church. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Sodor and Man; net value, £143 with residence. Patron, the Crown. The church stands 1½ mile N of Castletown, comprises nave, transept, and chancel, with a bell-turret, has some good stained glass windows, and contains many interesting monumental tablets, a Norman font, and a paten and crucifix which were in use before the Reformation. An ornamented Scandinavian cross was discovered in 1854 in the churchyard, and was removed to the museum of King William's College, near Castletown, but has since been replaced in the parish churchyard. St Mark and St Mary are separate benefices. See CASTLETOWN.