next in importance to the abbey of Ballintubber.
It was founded in 1297AD by Adam Staunton a Norman Lord who had built Castlecarrol which was quite close to this abbey. It was inhabited by the Carmelites until 1412A.D. It was then transferred by order of the Pope John XXIII to the Augustinian Hermits who lived in Ballinrobe.
The abbey was suppressed during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1542 A.D. and the abbey and lands were granted to Sir Henry Lynch.

I first saw him in the town of Ballinrobe carrying an old canvas bag under his arm. He was about five feet in height and wore a blue gansey, corduroy trousers and a pair of old tattered boots. When I came to know him better I learned that he lived with his wife and child in an old tumble-down shack by the roadside.
I saw him so frequently that I know the grey dishevelled locks which always hang down over his brown eyes, his lurching walk and his red sun-tanned face. He is always smiling and shouting wildly and when he shouts he gestures ferociously and when

1. I bubble up through the messy earth on the summit of Cnoc Dubh and I come tumbling down the mountain side. I am overjoyed when I reach the level ground as I am quite dizzy after my trip down the mountain. Then I flow through Henegans land and finally I reach "Colm Loch."I go very quietly through the village but I make more noise in the rocky pools beyond. I shout at a man ploughing in the field and I gabble to the children coming from school. Then I wind my way along through the meadows.I turn a mill-wheel at Ballinrobe. It is heavy work and I am glad to get it over. I twist this way and that and flow through

I saw him first in the town of Ballinrobe with an old canvas bag under his arm. He wore an old corduroy trouser, a blue gansey and a pair of old tattered boots. When I came to know him better I learned that he lived with his wife and child in a tumble-down-shack on the road-side.I saw him so frequently that I knew the dishevelled hair which was not combed since Adam was a boy, his lurching walk and his red sun-tanned face. He was always laughing and shouting wildly, and when he shouted he gestured ferociously and when he laughed he bared his teeth and

I saw him first in Ballinrobe carrying a canvas bag under his arm. When I came to know him better I learned that he lived with his wife and child in an old tumbled-down shack on the roadside. He wears a brown jersey and an old grey tweed trousers all stained and patched and also an old pair of tattered boots.
I see him so often that I can tell it is him before he comes within a hundred yards of me, because of his disheveled hair, his grey eyes, his lurching walk and his red sun-tanned face. He is always smiling and shouting, and as he shouts

The girl and the new shoes.Long ago the women used to go barefooted and they used to carry their shoes in their hands and they put them on before they reached the town.
One day a girl going to Ballinrobe and as the custom was she had her shoes in her hand.
She had her new shoes and after a while she struck her toe against a stone and it began to bleed "Oh" said she, isnt it

Castlebar road, and was a gay sight on hunting days, the trees forming an arch overhead. By degrees the wonderful place began to lose its gaiety. The Hall changed hands, and in time about eighty or a hundred years ago was owned by a Ballinrobe family, Kenny, not wealthy enough to keep things going. This man left the place to his son who parted with it, and went to live in England.
There is now no trace of the woods. In their place stand two big villages, people of which are now owners of the land. Sheep are often seen in the Noggin House, and bathers in the river use it as a dressing room in Summer. One might wish often to have seen the place in days of its glory, and although the place is no longer famous, the names survive in the villages of Deerpark, Elmhall and Derreen.

The oldest report of a hurling match in this locality as far as can be learnt in the district was of a match at Brige Castle between the barony of Barra and the Barony of Gallen. This was about the year 1838. There were about 50 men on either side. There were no goal posts or point posts. The wooden ball was brought into each barony in turn a certain distance. The idea was to hurl it back into the opponents territory. The hurleys were made of ash. Barra won this match.
The only reports of football games go no farther back than around the years of the founding of the G.A.A. One game played between Balla and Castlebar at Lagaturin was in P.W Nally's time. As he was one of the original founders of the G.A.A. it was probably at this time the match was played. R.I.C. came from Ballinrobe and Castlebar to see if anything seditious took place. One old R.I.C. man who is 75 a Mr. Conway of Balla told me he was present. Twenty-one men played on each side. There were two posts up at each end as goal posts. In a line with them on either side were two further posts. These were the point posts. The distance between them was ten yards. The length of the field was variable according as it suited and could be from 150 to 200 yards according to

The lake still remains in front of the village but it is rapidly closing in for want of being drained and in the summer the children walk out on it bare-footed. The houses too are very old-world in appearance as no one has made any alteration in them. Tourists on their way to Ballinrobe and Lough Mask often stand to have a good look at this time-worn and old-fashioned village.
One day a young lady was passing by and she stood to have a good view of the village and she afterwards did a painting of it. And one of the inhabitants of the village is now in possession of that painting.

Near the place where I once lived there is the ruin of an old castle which was the home of Lord Clanmorris. This lord employed three priest hunters whose names were John Malloney or "Sean na Sagart" as he was more usually called, and Vahey and Dent.Those men got five pounds for every priests head they brought to the land-lord, and for a bishop's head they got ten pounds.One day Vahey travelled from the castle to Ballinrobe and through Cillcomain in search of a priest's head but it was all in vain. In the evening when he was drawing near the castle, he lay down by the side of a small bridge to rest, but he was not long there until a great multitude of rats attacked him, and try as he would, he could not get away. The land-lord having heard of the rats went to where they were and began to drive them away with a whip, but instead of going away they began to attack himself. Then he quickly returned to the castle for help but the people there were afraid to go.

The local fairs are held in towns such as Claremorris, Ballinrobe, Ballindine and elsewhere.
They were generally held in towns. The fairs were never held on hills or near cemetries castles or forts.
There was always business held at crossroads and at farmer's houses. It is done very seldom now. The fairs are usually held in streets. Toll is paid on cattle.

Hundreds of years ago a road was made between Brize Castle (about four miles from Claremorris on the Claremorris - Castlebar road). Twenty years ago this road was replaced by the Balla road.
During the Famine there was a canal cut between Ballinrobe and Kiltimagh. It was cut because food had to be sent from the River Robe. The men who worked on the canal worked from ten to twelve hours a day. They get four pence per day as wages.
A canal was cut near Milltown from a neighboring lake, a few months before the Famine, but it was never completed, and since has crumbled into ruin.

in 1356. I think this is not correct because in O'Flahertys Lar Connacht it is stated that in Elizabeth's reign Sir John Perrot gave grants of lands to Maurice De Prendergast alias Fitzgerald consisting of several townlands in the vicinity of Claremorris and it would seem that there was no Prendergast family in this region before this time. In 778 Mayo was consumed by lightning and in 878 burned and despoiled by Turgesius the Danish tyrant. Various similar visitations befell it in subsequent years while in 1380 an Act of Parliament ordained that no more Irishman should be allowed to profess here. It is said that Alfred the Great was educated in this Abbey of Mayo. Kilmolara is 2 3/4 miles from Ballinrobe on the road to Cong is situated on Lough Mask.

The town of Ballinrobe, though not large is very ancient, and was a resting place for St. Patrick as he travelled on to Aughagower, and to Croagh Patrick. There is a blessed well outside the town where St. Patrick baptised many converts. He blessed the waters there, and in sickness and in trouble, the people often had recourse to it to pray to Our Lady as it is dedicated to her.The Church also is St. Mary's, and the Presbytery where the priests live, and even the big bell in the tower is named after Mary Immaculate. History and tradition tell of the many struggles of the people for the preservation of their Catholic faith and rights. The Protestant Church had been built by the Catholic offerings but was wrested from them and given over to the State religion to which also they were compelled to pay tithes out of their poverty till Gladstone the Prime Minister obtained the Cessation of that unjust tax in 1871. He was a just man.

One day a woman was passing by a graveyard inside Ballinrobe at about six of clock. When she came near the gates of the graveyard a man walked right up to her and said. “Do I owe you anything?” the woman got such a fright that she was not able to answer him and when she looked again he was gone.
She hurried home and when she was about half an hour a boy came in and ordered a dozen and a half of bread. The woman was astonished and she asked what he wanted all the bread for, and he said for the wake. The woman said “What wake?” He said “For the wake of so and so.” Then the woman asked what time he died and he said “about half past three. The woman fainted and when she awoke she

There was a landlord in Lough Mask called Boycott. He was very cruel to his tenants and he evicted the people of the district. The people of the place refused to work for him. He was very vexed and he sent to the North for men to do his work for him.The people of this place told the workmen the condition they were in. One day they left their work and marched into Ballinrobe station and went home.The landlord had to leave Lough Mask and go to England. When the people heard that the landlord was gone they said that if he came back they would "Boycott him. He never returned to Ireland again but he put some men working on the farm and he gave them good wages.

Lord Tyrawley was the first landlord of this district and he was succeeded by Colonel Knox. Lord Tyrawley was very charitable to his tenants and to the poor of his parish. When Father Greene came to Ballinrobe the people were Catholics and were ready to build a Church if only a site could be procured. This was obtained from the protestant landlord Tyrawley and also a subscription of £50 to help to build the Church.Colonel Knox was also a very charitable landlord, and his Mrs. also was very charitable. She used to give food, clothes, and money to her tenants. Colonel Knox used get a deer killed every year and divided it among his workmen. It was Colonel Knox who divided the land into farms between the people of this district. On Novembers night he used send a bag of apples home with every workman for his children.

This district is called the district of Ballinrobe and it is in the barony of Kilmaine. Long ago there were twenty houses in Rahard and now there are thirtheen. There were seven houses which do not now exist named Glyns Malleys, O Tooles, Jennings, Mallonyes, Concannions, and Connors. All those people used to speak Irish and they knew very little English. There are now five people over seventy years in Rahard.Rahard or Rath-ard got its name because of the fort that is there. The people call it Rahard for short. There are two rivers in Rahard the Robe and the Bunnadubber.

Long ago during the time of the famine the canal near Ballinrobe was built. It was built at that time to give employment to the people of the district and also to keep the people from dying of starvation.
Their wages were sixpence a day and they had to work very hard for that price. They had (do) nothing to eat but porridge and sometimes milk. Milk was very scarce that time because the cows died of starvation as well as the people.
The government gave as much employment as to keep the people living during the time. The man that was over them was very strict and he would not allow but a half-hour for dinner. Sometimes the men got ill and the woman went out working in their places.

Two men met in Ballinrobe, one of them was from Carnalecka and the other man was from the Peale. They went in drinking. The man from the Peale said he used to see a hare in a forth and he could not shoot him. The two men made a bet and they put a cross on a sixpenny bit. When they had one half of the cross on it failed them to put the other half on the sixpence
They went home to the Peale to gether. Early next morning the two men went out with their guns and dogs. When they fired the shots they missed the hare, and they both ran home frightened. The man of the house sat at the door and he left it opened for the dogs to come in. The other man went to bed.
After a while the hare came in and sat on the hearth. "Give me a smoke Jack"