KILRONAN, a parish, in the barony of BOYLE,
county of ROSCOMMON, and province of CONNAUGHT,
9 miles (N.) from Carrick-on-Shannon; containing, with
the town of Keadue (which is described under its own
head), 6940 inhabitants. This parish contains the iron
and coal works of Arigna, which are described in the
article on the county, and comprises about 14,200
acres, of which 200 are woodland, 6000 arable, 4000
pasture, 2000 bog, and 2000 mountain and waste land.
It is bounded on the east by Lough Allen, which is the
first great expansion of the river Shannon, and about
six miles from its source; this beautiful sheet of water is
6½ miles in length by 2½ in breadth, but is considerably
narrower towards its southern extremity. On each
side are steep and barren mountains, which render it
liable to storms and gusts of wind; and within its
limits are O'Reilly's island, which has been lately
planted, and the small island of Inse, which is described
in the article on Innismagrath. Beneath the mountains
on the south is Lough Meelagh, near which is some
charming scenery; and here is also Lough Skean. The
village of Lough End consists of straggling houses, the
inhabitants of which are principally engaged in the collieries,
or the sandstone and limestone quarries. The
principal seats are Castle Tenison, the residence of Col.
Tenison; Alderford, of T. McDermott Roe, Esq.; Greyfield,
of Hugh O'Donnell, Esq.; Mount Allen, of Hugh
McTiernan, Esq.; and Knockranny, of J. C. Dodwell,
Esq. The living is a vicarage, in the diocese of Ardagh,
and in the patronage of the Bishop: the rectory
is impropriate in W. Mulloy, Esq. The tithes amount
to £260, which is equally divided between the impropriator
and the vicar. The glebe-house was erected by
aid of a gift of £400, and a loan of £328, from the
late Board of First Fruits, in 1816; the glebe comprises
30 acres, subject to a rent of £10. The church is a
neat building with a spire, towards the erection of
which the same Board gave £500, in 1788. The R. C.
parish is co-extensive with that of the Established
Church, and has a chapel at Keadue and one at Arigna,
which was erected by the Mining Company. There are
four public schools, one of which is aided by Col. Tenison,
another is supported by Miss Tenison, and one
is aided by Mr. Dingnan; in these schools about 250
children are educated. There are three private schools,
in which about 150 are educated, and a Sunday school.
At Keadue there is a dispensary. The ancient church
is in ruins; the burial-ground is still much used. In it
are interred the remains of Carolan, the last and one
of the most celebrated of the Irish bards, who died at
Alderford, the seat of the McDermott Roes, in 1738.
There is a circular-headed portal in the walls of the old
church, ornamented with carved cylinders. Near it are
a celebrated well and cromlech.