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Tuam, Galway

Historical Description

TUAM, an incorporated market and post-town (formerly a parliamentary borough), a parish, and the seat of an archdiocese, partly in the barony of DUNMORE, but chiefly in the barony of CLARE, county of GALWAY, and province of CoNNAUGHT, 16 miles (N. W.) from Galway, and 98¾ (W. by N.) from Dublin, at the junction of the mail coach roads from Ballinasloe, Dunmore, and Hollymount, to Galway and Roscommon; containing 14,367 inhabitants, of which number, 6883 are in the town. This place, called anciently Tuaim-da-Gualand, owes its origin to the foundation of a religious establishment, about the beginning of the 6th century, by St. Jarlath, son of Loga, who for some time lived in seclusion in the small monastery of Cluainfois, which he had previously founded. The church of Tuam was soon afterwards made the cathedral of a diocese, of which St. Jarlath became the first bishop, and was called Teampul-Jarlath, in honour of its founder, to whom it was subsequently dedicated. St. Jarlath is supposed to have died in 540, and long after his death his bones were discovered and deposited in a silver shrine, which was placed in a church or chapel called Temple-ne-Serin, or "the Church of the Shrine." Prior to the year 1150, Tirdelvac O'Conor, King of Ireland, founded a priory for Augustinian. Canons, which ëhe dedicated to St. John the Baptist; and in 1161 Roderic O'Conor, then King, erected a strong castle of stone here, which obtained the appellation of "the wonderful castle." The town was soon, after destroyed by an accidental fire, but was soon restored, as in 1172 a great synod was convened here by Bishop Catholicus O'Dubhai, at which three churches were consecrated. An abbey for Premonstratensian canons was founded here either in the reign of John or early in that of Hen. III., by one of the family of de Burgo, and dedicated to the Holy Trinity. In 1244 the town, with all its churches, was destroyed by fire. In 1252, when Hen. III. confirmed to Florence Mac Flin the Pope's bull for annexing the bishoprick of Enaghdune to the see of Tuam, it was on condition that he should have a portion of land within the town for the erection of a castle, in exchange for other land of equal value. The same king by letters patent granted to the archbishop a fair on the 28th of December and the seven following days. In 1356, the place was plundered and burnt by Charles Oge, son of William de Burgo.

The town, which is situated in a flat and rather low but healthy tract of land, consists of several spacious and some smaller streets, containing 1197 houses, most of which, are neatly built and several are large and of handsome appearance: it is amply supplied with water by a copious and limpid stream, which in its course turns several mills. The principal sources of recreation are a reading-room over the market-house, and a public billiard table; a newspaper is published here; races are held annually about the 1st of September on an excellent course about a mile from the town, called Gurrans Turlogh, which is in winter overflowed with water, forming a considerable lake; an unsuccessful attempt was made some years since to drain it. The grounds of the archbishop's palace are tastefully laid out, and the gardens are spacious and kept in excellent order: the mansion, though not possessing much architectural embellishment, is large and handsomely built; and around the demesne is a walk, a mile in length, thickly planted with trees and furnished with seats affording a pleasant promenade to the people of the town. The house of the R. C. archbishop also adds much to the appearance of the town. The ancient market cross, of richly sculptured stone, was a great ornament: it was erected by Turlogh O'Conor, but has been suffered to fall into decay; part of the base is still to be seen in the old meat market, and two other parts in the churchyard, of which that part of the shaft forming the cross is erected at the head of the tomb of Dr. Singe, one of the Protestant archbishops. The trade of the town, which is at present next in importance to Galway, is very considerable: it is principally for the supply of the surrounding districts. A constant intercourse with Dublin is maintained, from which the shopkeepers obtain the various articles for their home trade. There are two good inns, at which the mails and other coaches stop. An extensive brewery, belonging to Mr. Blake, produces from 4000 to 5000 barrels of malt liquor annually; attached to it are a malting concern, making about 600 quarters of malt, and some flour-mills, carried on by the sons of that gentleman: there is also a tannery, and the manufacture of coarse linens is extensive. The markets, on Wednesday and Saturday, are abundantly supplied with provisions of all kinds, and with fish from Galway and Ballina; fairs are held on May 10th, July 4th, Oct. 20th, and Dec. 15th. The market-house is a neat building, nearly in the centre of the town.

The inhabitants, received their first charter from Jas. I., who in the 11th of his reign incorporated them under the designation of "the Sovereign, Free Burgesses, and Commonalty of the Borough of Tuam." By this charter the corporation consists of a sovereign, twelve free burgesses, and an indefinite number of freemen, assisted by a recorder, treasurer, town-clerk, two serjeants-at-mace, and other officers. The sovereign, who is judge of the borough court and clerk of the market, is chosen annually from the free burgesses by a majority of that body, on the festival of St. John, and is sworn into office on that of St. Michael; the free burgesses fill up vacancies as they occur, by a majority of their body, by whom also freemen are admitted, and the officers of the corporation appointed. The charter conferred upon the corporation the privilege of returning two members to the Irish parliament, which they continued to exercise till the Union, when the borough was disfranchised. The borough court of record had jurisdiction to the amount of five marks, but since 1826 few proceedings have issued from it, and within the last few years it has been altogether discontinued. The general sessions of the peace are held here twice in the year, and petty sessions every Wednesday; a chief constabulary police force is stationed in the town. The court-house is a neat and well-arranged building: annexed to it is a small bridewell, containing two day-rooms and airing-yards, and eight cells.

The SEE of TUAM, as before noticed, was founded in the early part of the 6th century by St. Jarlath, of whose successors, who for some years after his death were styled comorbans, bishops, or archbishops of Connaught, but little is recorded, with the exception of Muredach O' Dubhai, who in 1143 convened a great synod of 12 bishops and 500 priests at this place, to devise the best means of ransoming Rory O'Conor, son of Tirdelvac, King of Ireland, who had been taken prisoner by Tiernan O'Rourk. That prelate was succeeded, in 1500, by Edan O'Hoisin, who, at the synod held in 1152 by Cardinal Paparo, was invested with the pall, and the see of Tuam became one of the four archbishopricks of Ireland. The bishopricks of Mayo, Killala, Roscommon, Clonfert, Achonry, Cluan, and Duach were at that time made suffragan to it, to which was afterwards united the see of Mayo, and in 1252 that of Enaghdune, on petition of Florence Mac Flin to Hen. III.; it was, however, frequently held separately, but, after many contests, became finally part of the see of Tuam in 1421. Edward Singe, who became archbishop in 1716, obtained an act in the first meeting of parliament after his succession, by which the quarta pars of the dues of the officiating clergy was settled upon such rectors, vicars and curates within his see as should personally discharge their respective cures, Dr. Hort, who was translated to the archbishoprick in 1742, was permitted to retain the see of Ardagh, in the province of Armagh, which he held in commendam, in lieu of the see of Kilfenora, which had been previously held with Tuam, and his successors have ever since continued to hold it; the Archbishop of Tuam is, therefore, as Bishop of Ardagh, suffragan to the Lord-Primate of all Ireland. The Archbishoprick or Ecclesiastical Province of Tuam comprehends the six dioceses of Tuam, Elphin, Clonfert, Kihnacduagh, Killala, and Achonry, comprising an estimated superficies of 2,356,750 acres, and with the exception of the county of Leitrim and small portions of the counties of Sligo, Roscommon, and Galway, includes the whole of the civil province of Connaught. and a small part of King's county in the province of Leinster. Under the provisions of the Church Temporalities act, the sees of Tuam, Killala, and Achonry have been united; those of Clonfert and Kilmacduagh have also been united and are held with Killaloe, the diocese of Elphin being still held separately; consequently, two bishops only preside over the dioceses of the province, and are suffragan to the Archbishop of Tuam. Under the same act all archiepiscopal jurisdiction will cease on the next avoidance of the archbishoprick; Tuam, with the united diocese of Ardagh and Kilmore, in the province of Armagh, will be constituted one bishoprick, and with the other dioceses of the province of Tuam, become suffragan to the Archbishop of Armagh. The diocese of Tuam is the most extensive in Ireland: it is 77 miles in length and 63 in breadth, and comprises an estimated superficies of 1,135,650 acres, of which 675,250 are in the county of Galway, 424,700 in Mayo, and 35,700 in the county of Roscommon. The lands belonging to the archiepiscopal see, or the united dioceses of Tuam and Ardagh, comprise 86,800¾ statute acres, of which 39,531½, are profitable land; and the gross annual revenue, on an average of three years ending Dec. 31st, 1831, is returned by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners as amounting to £8206. 13. 9. The chapter consists of a dean, a provost, an archdeacon, and the eight prebendaries of Kilmeen, Killabeggs, Teighsasson, Kilmoylan, Kilmainmore, Ballagh, Faldown, and Laccagh. There is one vicar choral, whose office is a corporation in itself, endowed with several plots of ground and houses in the town, with portions of the tithes of the parishes of Kilconly and Kilbannon, and with 56 acres of land, altogether producing £200. 17. per annum. The economy fund of the cathedral arises from several parcels of land in the parish, let on lease at a yearly rental of £76. 5.8½. The diocese comprises 34 benefices, of which 19 are unions of two or more parishes, and 15 are single parishes; of these, two are in the patronage of the Crown, one in that of the corporation of Galway, one in alternate patronage, and the remainder in the patronage of the archbishop or the incumbents. The total number of parishes is 90, of which 86 are rectories and the remainder perpetual curacies; there are 31 churches and 18 other buildings in which divine service is performed, and 21 glebe-houses. The cathedral, which is also the parochial church, appears to be only a portion of the original building: it has some remains of Norman character, and the arch at the entrance of the porch is of a kind of red gritty stone not found in any part of the county; it was repaired in 1688, and about 50 years since was considerably damaged by an accidental fire.

The R. C. archbishop's province comprises the diocese of Tuam, with the bishopricks of Clonfert, Achonry, Elphin, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora, Killala, and Galway: the diocese of Kilfenora is alternately suffragan to the archbishopricks of Tuam and Cashel; and on the dissolution of the R. C. wardenship of Galway, in 1831, that portion of the diocese of Tuam was formed into a separate see, the remainder constituting the diocese of Tuam, which comprises 52 parochial unions, and contains 103 chapels served by 52 parish priests and 57 coadjutors or curates. The parochial benefices of Tuam and Kilmina, each served by an administrator and several curates, constitute the mensal of the archbishop. The R. C. cathedral is a handsome cruciform structure of hewn stone, in the later English style, with a lofty western tower, and six square turrets at the angles and other parts of the building, each rising above the open parapets in an octangular form and terminating in eight octangular minarets richly crocketed; the walls are strengthened with panelled buttresses of several stages, terminating in richly crocketed pinnacles rising above the parapet, which is enriched with open tracery: the principal entrance is under the western tower through a richly moulded and gracefully pointed arch, and the entrances to the aisles are of similar design; the eastern end of the building is ornamented with a lofty oriel window of elegant design, and the whole has a very magnificent appearance. The interior is finely arranged; the ceiling is tastefully enriched with stucco and pannelled in compartments; the east window is embellished with scriptural subjects in stained glass, and the windows of the transepts and aisle are enriched with flowing tracery; the high altar of variegated marble, the tabernacle, and canopy, which were brought from Rome, are exquisitely wrought; the whole is one of the most beautiful ecclesiastical edifices in the country. Nearly £12000, raised by subscription, has been expended in its erection, and a considerable sum will be. required for its completion.

The parish comprises 13,913 statute acres, as applotted under the tithe act: the land is generally of good quality and in a state of profitable cultivation. The principal seats are Birmingham, the property of the Earl of Louth, at present uninhabited; Gardenfield, the residence of J. Kirwan, Esq.; Queensfort, of S. Leonard, Esq.; Wilfort, of W. Lindsay, Esq.; Tullinadaly, of Jas. Kirwan, Esq.; Kilclooney, of J. T. Bodkin, Esq.; and Ballygaddy, of Mr. J. Daly. The living of Tuam is a rectory and vicarage, the rectory partly appropriate to the provost and partly to the vicar choral, and partly united to parts of the rectories of Clonbern, Liskeevy, Addergoole, Belclare-Tuam, Templetogher, Crossboyne, and Dunmore, and to the rectory of Boyanagh, together constituting the corps of the deanery of Tuam, in the patronage of the Crown. The lands belonging to the deanery comprise 1629 statute acres, of which 67 are in the parish of Tuam; the whole are let at arent of £127. 9. 1., with annual renewal fines amounting to £45. 12. 3¾.; the gross value of the deanery is £680. 15. 2¾.; per annum. The vicarage, by act of council in 1789, was united to the vicarages of Belclare-Tuam, Kilbennan, Kilconla, Liskeevy, and Addergoole, and is in the patronage of the Archbishop. The tithes amount to £547. 7. 3., of which £195 is payable to the appropriators, and £379. 4. 7½. to the vicar. The glebe-house was built in 1792, at an expense of £584, and in 1813 £784 British was expended in its improvement by the then incumbent. The glebe lands of the union comprise 39 acres, valued at £63 per ann.; and the gross value of the benefice, including tithe and glebe, amounts to £741. 16. 2½. The R. C. parish is co-extensive with that of the Established Church: the parishioners attend divine service at the cathedral. A college for the instruction of young men for the R. C. priesthood, and also for general education, was founded here by the late Dr. Kelly, archbishop of the diocese, in 1814: it is supported partly by contributions of £2 per ann. from each parish priest in the diocese, and by the payments of lay boarders; it is under the superintendence of three ecclesiastical and two lay professors, and has a very extensive library: the premises, being inadequate to accommodate the number of pupils, are about to be rebuilt. A Presentation convent was erected here under the will of the late W. Burke, Esq., who bequeathed his house and a large sum of money for that purpose: there are at present only five sisters in the establishment, which was opened in 1835; attached to the building is a spacious school-room, in which poor girls are taught by the ladies of the convent. About 570 children are taught in three public schools, of which a model school under the Diocesan Society is supported by the archbishop, who contributes £35 annually and gives a house rent-free and fuel; and there are 23 private schools, in which are about 770 children, and a dispensary. Of the seven churches formerly in this parish, the only one now remaining is the cathedral church of St. Mary; but vestiges of the other six may still be traced in various parts of the town; they were "the Church of the Shrine," of the abbey of the Holy Trinity, of St. John, St. Bridget, St. Jarlath, and the old parish church, the burial-ground of which is still a favourite place of interment for the R. C. parishioners. There are also some slight remains of the ancient castle, which consisted of a strong keep, with a large court-yard defended by lofty massive walls with towers at the angles and at the gateway entrance, and was surrounded by a deep fosse, into which the waters of the adjacent river were diverted.

Transcribed from A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland, 1840 by Samuel Lewis

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