Our fourth and final Field Day of 2025 was held in the beautiful south west of County Donegal as guests of the Kilcar Heritage Committee.
St Cartha’s Old Church, Churchtown
On a day that defied the weather forecast, a large gathering of history enthusiasts was treated to stories of intrigue, bravery, and tragedy by local historian Sean O’ Beirne amidst an afternoon of glorious sunshine.
The group met at the Áisling Chill Chartha, Kilcar, before proceeding to view the 800-year-old St Cartha’s old church and graveyard overlooking the village. This was built on an earlier Christian site dating from the 6th century. Amongst its many interesting features is the graves of brothers’ Patrick and Conal Campbell who died in the great drownings at Bruckless bay where a storm took the lives of up to one hundred local fishermen on 11thFebruary 1813.
The group then proceeded to view Dún Áilann before stopping at the site of the Battle of Derrylahan that took place in 1590. This was a definitive event in the ongoing succession dispute for the leadership of the Gaelic lordship of O’ Donnell in the late 16th century.
The Aireagal Ringfort was viewed before the group visited the village of Carrick to view the site of the old Glencolumbkille Hotel (1869) and St. Columba’s Church to view the graves of Fr James Mc Dyre and well fellow historian Rev’d Canon Maguire (1870-1922), author of “A History of the Dioceses of Raphoe” amongst other works. A visit was made to the “Spaniard’s Church” (1756) on the return trip to Kilcar.
Seán O’Beirne relates the history of his native Carrick.
Our bus journey for our trip to these fascinating sites was funded by DLDC
President of the Country Donegal Historical Society, Joe Gatins, thanked everyone who had come along for what was a most enjoyable afternoon and he especially thanked local historian Sean O’ Beirne for sharing his extensive local knowledge with everyone.
Double-click on any of these snaps in this article to view in full screen.