**w
HISTORICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL
NOTES.
- -
P A R T II.
Ballygowan or John's Grove.
Sheet 26, six-inch Ordnance Survey; and Sheet 176, one-inch O.S.
Barony of Fermoy. Parish of Clenor.
Ballygowan means "the town of the smith" (O'Donovan).
It consists of 403a. ir. 4p. statute. It is situated about 4^ (by road)
miles south-east of Doneraile, which is the post town.
Ellen, daughter of Philip Glover of John's Grove, married John Gregg
of Currymount, near Buttevant. She died 1818.
Glover, Ellen and John Gregg, 1781.
(Index to Marriage Licence
Bonds of Cloyne).
In 1797 Mr. Edmund Glover, of the Doneraile Yeomanry Cavalry, lived
here.
Eliza, daughter of Philip Glover of John's Grove, married Barry Gregg
of Castleview, Buttevant. , She died in 1846, and was niece to Ellen
(Glover) Gregg, above-mentioned.
Mr. Albert Nugent, who kept a pack of hounds, resided here before
Rev. Mr. Maginn. It was probably part of the Thornhill or Castle Kevin
estate of 8,000 acres.
ontl
In 1814 J
Glover, Esq., lived here (Directory of Noted Places, 1814).
an<
The Rev. Mr. Maginn was residing here in 1807, ^ lived here for many
years. He was brother to the celebrated William Maginn (see page 125, vol.
ii., Journal of the Cork Historical and Archceological Society, 1893), LL-D.
Mrs. MacAuliffe followed Mr. Maginn.
(Journal, p. 140, 1902): " I n the marriage settlement of Edmond Barry
of Dundullerick and Dunkerrow, gentleman, with Sarah Isabella Creagh,
daughter of Pierce Creagh of Rockforest Lodge, gentleman, it is stated
that Sarah Isabella Creagh has ^ 7 0 0 Irish in her own right through a
codicil to the will of her late grand-aunt, Mrs. Ann Glover of the City of
Cork, widow of John Glover of Johnsgrove, in the County of Cork, gentleman, & c , & c . "
John Glover, of family of Glover of Mount Glover, Esq., of John's
Grove, m. Miss Pole of Kinsale, but died without issue (Glover of Mount
Glover, Burke's Landed Gentry, 1863).
Mr. Timothy Watson, a farmer, resided there in 1892 and for many
years previously; his daughter, Miss Watson, now lives here (1907).
Miss Watson has been 26 years at Ballygowan. She came from Liscarroll.
•
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194
HISTORICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL NOTES.
Mr. James Byrne, J. P . , of Walls town Castle, w r i t e s : "There is a
borheen opposite the entrance g a t e t o Johnsgrove, known as 'borheen a
murder.' Tradition states that a servant girl killed three or four robbers
who were entering a house here. They passed in by a narrow window,
and the girl struck them with some deadly weapon on the head as they
entered, and then drew them out of the way."
"Passing Johnsgrove, returning from Mallow fair, George Bond Low
was fired at from a screen. His horse received the shot in the neck. For
this act, two brothers named Magrath were convicted; one was hanged
and the other transported' for life, circa 1825."
Mr. Walter B. Jones of Doneraile, a d d s : " T h e Screen at Johnsgrove
and the Ballyhoura townland and hills, were reputed the greatest nests
for outlaws in County Cork in '98, and the Government paid a secret agent
at each of these places who informed on his comrades and got blood
money therefor."
Mr. James Buckley (Council Member C. H. & A. S.) states : "Ballygowan
House is a square, two-storeyed building, and appears very comfortably
situated on the north side of the road leading from Mallow to Mitchelstown. It is backed by a quantity of large timber, and there are also some
very sightly trees scattered over the lawn.
" T h e r e is a very novel gate entrance leading from the road to the house.
It consists of two detached lodges, on the inner sides of which gates are
hung, and between which cars, & c , pass.
" T o the west of Ballygowan, about 200 yards from the present Catholic
Church of Annakissy, stands a smithy which is said to be 200 years old
at least.
In 1798 a detachment of infantry was ordered t o search the
houses in the district for arms.
A sentinel was sent to each house in
advance of the search party. The soldier who happened to be on guard
before the smithy entertained fellow feelings with the peasantry, and
said t o the blacksmith that if he wished to hide any weapons now is
the time. This was a most welcome hint to the smith, who immediately
concealed a number of pike-heads, which he had finished making, in a
stone watertrough which is used in smithies for cooling purposes. He
then covered them with " h o b , " or refuse from the forge fire. The discovery
of these weapons would have meant certain and perhaps immediate hanging
to the blacksmith.
The soldiers searched all corners of the forge and
through the roof, but overlooked the trough, and departed without finding
any unauthorised object.
About the year 1895, Joseph Hunter, the
present blacksmith at Annakissy, 'was cleaning the back of the fireplace
in the same forge and came across two pike heads. One of these he presented to me, which I gave to Colonel Grove W h i t e in 1907, and it
now hangs in the hall at Kilbyrne."
The Field Book of 1840, gives : "Ballygowan is a large and very handsome townland, variegated with groves and ornamental ground attached
to Johnsgrove House. There is a fort on the south and a cross roads on
the north-east called by the ploughland name of 'Skanakilla.' Richard
Butler of Ballygowan is mentioned." (Ord. Sur. Off. Dublin).
Mr. Buckley continues : — " A t the western side of this townland there is
about an acre covered with rock and scrub, which tradition says was an
ancient burial place,"
BALLYGOWAN ( J O H N ' S
(Photo by Co/, Grove White,
GROVE)
igo6.)
FORTWILLIA M ( BALLYGR A DY).
(Photo by Col. Grove White, August,
/goj.