Carrickmore

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Carrickmore (Irish: An Charraig Mhór) is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is centrally located in the heart of the county, on an elevated site colloquially known as "The Rock". The original name of the village came from the Irish An Carraig Mhor which means "The Big Rock". It had a population of 612 in the 2001 Census. It is centrally located between Cookstown, Dungannon and Omagh.

1 History
2 Places of interest
3 Transport
4 Geography
5 Sport
6 2001 Census
7 See also
8 References
9 External Links

[edit] History

The area is steeped in history and there are many tales and legends connected with St. Colmcille and the town, including the saint's well, chair and bed which are still in existence. A wide range of historic monuments can be found in the Carrickmore area, including cairns, stone circles, standing stones and raths.

The Dean Brian Maguirc College,a second level education school, is named after Dean Brian McGurk, who was Vicar-General to St Oliver Plunkett during the Penal Times.

Carrickmore holds the annual Tyrone County Commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising and a remembrance ceremony for all republicans killed in The Troubles since 1969. The Carrickmore area formed part of the Provisional IRA East Tyrone Brigade's remit.

Two historical figures from the Clan na Gael and Irish Republican Brotherhood hailed from the Carrickmore area: Joseph McGarrity and Patrick McCartan, who helped fund the 1916 Easter Rising.

Civil rights campaigner, activist and author, the Rev. Denis Faul, became the parish priest of Termonmaguirc (also known as Termonmaguirk and Termonmcgurk) in 1998. Msgr. Faul died of cancer in a hospital in Dublin on 21 June 2006, and is buried in the cemetery of St. Colmcille's Church in the village.

[edit] Places of interest

St Colmcille's Bed, Chair and Well: Situated on the hill beside St Colmcille's Roman Catholic Church, Creggan Road.

Dunmisk Fort: Evidence of Ireland's first glass manufacturing plant. Accessed from the main Galbally to Carrickmore Road (Inishatieve Road).

Mid-Ulster Drama Festival: An important event in the town each year which attracts participants and visitors from many parts of Ireland and is hosted in the Patrician Hall.

The National Graves Monument: A memorial to republicans killed during the Anglo-Irish conflict. It is situated on the Drumnakilly road, close to the town centre.

Quinns Corner: On the corner of Main street and Creggan road, this elevated platform in the centre of the village was the setting for speeches given by many famous nationalist figures; including Tomás Mac Giolla, Liam Kelly and Bernadette Devlin. It is also the place the local GAA teams return to after winning sporting events.

[edit] Transport

Carrickmore railway station opened on 2 September 1861, but finally closed on 5 October 1959.^[1]

Bus Route 86: from Dungannon to Omagh via Dungannon, Donaghmore, Pomeroy, Carrickmore, Drumnakilly, and Omagh.

[edit] Geography

The townlands that make up the area of Carrickmore border on the parishes of Ballygawley, Beragh, Galbally, Greencastle, Kildress, Kileeshil, Pomeroy. Carrickmore also shares the parish of TermonMcGurk with Loughmacrory.

[edit] Sport

Carrickmore St. Colmcille's, Gaelic Athletic Association club, is the main sporting organisation in the village and surrounding area, producing teams in Gaelic football, Hurling, Camogie, and Irish Handball.

[edit] 2001 Census

Carrickmore is classified as a town by the NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (ie with a population between 500 and 1,000). On Census day (29 April 2001) there were 612 people living in Carrickmore. Of these:

28.3% were aged under 16 and 14.9% were aged 60 and over
47.1% of the population were male and 52.9% were female
98.0% were from a Catholic background and 1.5% were from a Protestant background
5.2% of people aged 16-74 were unemployed.

For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service