Location: Rearymore, County Laois, Ireland

Surnames/tags: One_Place_Studies Ireland Laois


Contents |
Drumnabehy Townland, Laois One Place Study
Name
- Drumnabehy Townland, Rearymore Parish, County Laois
- The Irish name for Drumnabehy is Droim na Beithe
Scope
This page holds general information pertaining to Drumnabehy Townland. I started this page focusing on Drumnabehy because it contains the farm on which my grandfather was born.
It is a work in progress and may develop in several alternative directions in the future, possibly as a One Place Study or possibly expanding it's geographical scope to include other townlands and villages in the general area.
All individual profiles for residents of Drumnabehy are linked to the category Drumnabey Townland, Rearymore Parish, County Laois. The list is currently sparse but will grow over time.
Geography
- Continent: Europe
- Country: Ireland
- Province: Leinster
- County: Laois
- Barony: Tinnahinch
- Parish: Rearymore Parish
- GPS Coordinates: 53.851, -7. 2759
- Elevation:
Drumnabehy is located in Rearymore Parish, County Laois. This is in the north of the county, within the historic Barony of Tinnahinch. It is a small townland, with an area of 0.42 square miles or approximately 266 acres.
[1]
The townland is to be found on the north side of the present-day R422 road about five kilometers west of the village of Rosenallis. The village of Clonasee is located about four kilometers further on the same road. [2]
Population
1821 Tithe Applotment Books
The 1821 Tithe Applotment Books record 13 tenants occupying Drumnabehy townland. Only the head of family is listed. The area of each plot is given in Irish acres and roods.[3]
In the following table, the A . R (Irish) column is taken from the original document. which uses Irish acres and roods. The A . R . P (Statute) column converts this value to statute acres, roods and perches in order to facilitate comparison with later records.
Plot # | Occupier | Wikitree Profile | A . R (Irish) | A . R . P (Statute) | Tithe Amount |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | James Donaghoe | | | 3£ 18s | |
2 | Owen Magher | | | 1£ 3s 4d | |
3 | James Gorman | | | 9s 4d | |
4 | John Gorman | | | 15s | |
5 | William Gorman | | | 1s 6d | |
6 | Widow Hogan | | | 1s 6d | |
7 | Thomas Thompson | | | 9d | |
8 | Edward Ward | | | 2s 3d | |
9 | Patrick Coonen | | | 1£ 18s | |
10 | William Conrahy | | | 9s 4d | |
11 | Widow Deevy | | | 4s 8d | |
12 | Patrick Lawler | | | 3s 6d | |
13 | James Lawler | | | 3s 6d |
The Wikitree Profile column will contain links to profiles of the occupiers as they are discovered or created.
1853 Griffith's Valuation
At the time of Griffith's Valuation, which was completed for this townland in 1853, it was occupied by 20 households. Of these, 18 leased the land directly from Sir Capel Molyneux, the 7th Baronet of Castle Dillon in Armagh. Two of them, Alice McEvoy and Peter Dunne, occupied houses subleased from John Poole. [4] [5]
Ref# | Occupiers | Wikitree Profile | Description | A . R . P |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Murtagh Conroy | Land | | |
2 | James Conroy | Land | ||
3 | Daniel Conroy | House, office and land | | |
4 | Edward Deevy | House and land | ||
5 | Matthew Dunne | Land | ||
6 | Richard Egan | House and land | | |
7 | Dennis Conroy | House, office and land | | |
8a | John Fitzpatrick | House and land | | |
8b | Nicholas Thompson | House and land | ||
9a | William Gorman | House, office and land | | |
9b | James Mahon | House, offices and land | ||
9c | Owen Mahon | House, offices and land | ||
9d | James Gorman | House, office and land | ||
9 | Michael Dunne | Land | ||
9e | Edward Ward | House office and land | ||
10a | Martin Dunne | House offices and land | | |
10b | Anne Golden | House, office and garden | | |
11a | John Poole | John Poole (1837-1899) | House, offices and land | |
11b | Alice McEvoy | House and garden | | |
11c | Peter Dunne | House, office and garden | |
Note that the table from Griffith's Valuation lists 11 plots, numbered 1-11 with lower-case letters to denote separate houses on a plot. Unfortunately, the only map I have been able to locate shows 10 plots.
![]() |
Griffith's Valuation - Map of Drumnabehy Townland |
Based on the information I have, my best estimate is that the Griffith's reference numbers correspond to the map as follows:
Griffith's Ref # | Map # | Notes |
---|---|---|
1 | 1 | |
2 | 2 | |
3 | 3 | Shown as 3A & 3B on map |
4 | 4 | |
5 | 5 | |
6 | - | Not on map, possibly subsumed in map area 8 |
7 | 6 | Based on size of plot |
8 | 7 | Based on size of plot |
9 | 8 | Based on size of plot |
10 | 9 | Based on size of plot and interviews |
11 | 10 | Based on size of plot and interviews |
I estimated the size of each map plot by using an enlarged print copy of the map and dividing each plot into strips. I also used information from my conversations with the current occupant on the farm at map plot #9, whom I visited in 2019. I originally believed this to be my great grandfather's farm at the time of Griffith's. However, later discussions, together with the acreage estimates lead me to conclude that my family's farm was actually map plot 10. In particular, I have received information that that farm was once the property of Isaac Poole, brother of my grandfather.
My conclusions about the smaller plots are less certain than those about the four largest ones. However, they will have to stand until a map can be found that actually matches Griffith's report.
1901 Irish Census
The 1901 Census shows eight households with a total of 29 individuals. [6] This is a significant decline in the number of households and most probably also in the number of individuals. However, at the time of writing, only the family members of John Poole have been identified.
1911 Irish Census
In the 1911 Census, the population decline continues, with seven households and 16 individuals listed. [7]
Land Ownership
Until 1910, all the land in Drumnabehy townland was owned by the Baronet Molyneux of Castle Dillon, County Armagh. The title was created in 1730 and continued until the death of the last Baronet in 1940. [8] The Molyneux family were absentee landlords with extensive properties in Ireland. By 1878, their Irish holdings totaled 16,560 acres, including 6,726 acres in Queen's County. [9]
In 1853, the year Griffith's Valuation was completed for Drumnabehy, Sir Capel Molyneux, the 7 Baronet, was the owner. According to Griffith's, he already held over 5000 acres in Queen's County and most of it was within a few miles of Drumnabehy:
Townland | Acreage |
---|---|
Afoley | 124 |
Ballymacrory | 40 |
Ballynalug | 1326 |
Coolnamony Upper | 563 |
Drumnabehy | 266 |
Tinnahinch | 2910 |
Total | 5229 |
The 7th Baronet died in 1879, leaving no male heir to assume the title. The Drumnabehy land passed to his daughter, Julia Mary Elizabeth Molyneux.
The year 1879 also marks the beginning of what are known as the "Land Wars," a period of agitation for tenants rights, which continued through the end of the century. A number of measures were passed with the intention of defusing social unrest. A Land Commission was established which could, among other things, provide loans to tenants so that they could purchase the land they farmed and even to force a compulsory sale to the Commision itself, for distribution to the tenants. This understandably placed a great deal of pressure on landowners to sell. [10] [11]
In 1910, Julia Mary Elizabeth (Molyneux) Talbot sold all her land in Drumnabehy, divided into 9 tracts, receiving a total of £2993. Most plots were sold to individuals shown in the 1901 census or their family members. A few were sold to individuals not previously seen in the townland. All nine purchases were fully funded by advances from the Land Commission, which the purchasers were required to pay off over a number of years. [12]
Purchaser | A . R . P | Price | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
John Conroy | 43 . 1 . 29 | £588 | Listed in 1901. Family remains in 1911. |
Peter Conroy | 14 . 1 . 4 | £150 | Other Conroys listed in 1901 and 1911. |
Maria Dunne | 14 . 1 .25 | £398 | Other Dunnes listed in 1901 and 1911. |
John Furlong | 10 . 0 . 18 | £69 | Not listed in either census. |
Richard Hogan | 58 . 3 . 2 | £579 | Listed in 1901 and 1911. |
Thomas Hogan | 3 . 1 . 13 | £33 | Not listed in either census. May be related to Richard Hogan. |
Charles Kelly | 7 . 2 . 13 | £88 | Not listed in either census. |
Edward Poole | 63 . 2 . 16 | £547 | Not listed in either census. May be Edward Poole, born in Capard in 1880. |
Isaac Poole | 51 . 3 . 35 | £544 | Listed in 1901 and 1911 |
Total | 267 . 1 . 35 | £2993 |
Sources
- ↑ Townlands.ie, database with images, (https://www.townlands.ie/laois/tinnahinch/rearymore/tinnahinch/drumnabehy/ : accessed 23 March 2024).
- ↑ OpenStreetMap, database with images, (https://www.openstreetmap.org/relation/4475422#map=14/53.1524/-7.4682 : accessed 23 March 2024).
- ↑ http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/reels/tab//004625712/004625712_00149.pdf
- ↑ "Griffith's Valuation 1847-1864", database with images, FindMyPast (https://search.findmypast.co.uk/record?id=IRE%2FGRIFF%2F241%2F044&parentid=IRE%2FGRIFF%2F241%2F241044%2F033%2F1 : accessed 23 March 2024), requires a free account.
- ↑ Richard Griffith, Queen's County, Barony of Tinnahinch, Union of Mountmelick : Primary Valuation of the several Tenements comprising said Barony (Dublin: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1861); imaged from “Griffith’s Valuation,” database with images, Ask About Ireland (http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/index.xml?action=searchPlace : accessed 23 March 2024), Drumnabehy, Rearymore Parish, Queen's County.
- ↑ 1901 Irish Census, National Archives of Ireland, database with images (http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/results.jsp?census_year=1901&county19011911=Queen%27s+Co.&townland=Drumnabehy&search=Search&pageSize=100 : accessed 23 March 2024).
- ↑ 1911 Irish Census, National Archives of Ireland, database with images (http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/results.jsp?census_year=1911&county19011911=Queen%27s+Co.&townland=Drumnabehy&search=Search&pageSize=100 : accessed 23 March 2024).
- ↑ "Molyneux Baronets", Wikipedia, database with images (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molyneux_baronets#Molyneux_of_Castle_Dillon,_County_Armagh_(1730) : accessed 23 March 2024).
- ↑ "The great landowners of Great Britain and Ireland", HathiTrust, database with images (https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.31175024484753&view=1up&seq=322 : accessed 23 March 2024)
- ↑ "Land War", Wikipedia, database with images, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_War : accessed 23 March 2024).
- ↑ "Land Acts (Ireland)", Wikipedia, database with images, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Acts_(Ireland) : accessed 23 March 2024).
- ↑ "Ireland, Land Commission Advances", FindMyPast, database with images (https://www.findmypast.ie/search/results?datasetname=ireland%2c+land+commission+advances%2c+1891-1920&sid=103&townland=drumnabehy : accessed 23 March 2024).
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