Ecclesiastical Sites
Of the several actual
and possible church sites in the parish those most worth a visit today
are St. Cronan’s parish church, Inchicronan priory or "the abbey",
as it is known locally, and Kiltoola.
St. Cronan’s, on the village
main street, near the railway bridge, dates from the 1830’s. It is a
neat plain building interesting mainly for its for its fine wooden alter-back
and German stations of the cross, both early 20th century.
Of Kiltoola there is little
to say architecturally, since it is partly demolished, partly ivy-covered,
but its situation in the townland of Carrowkeel More, near the river
Fergus and Dromore Lake, is pleasant and peaceful. Inchicronan Abbey,
though not easy of access, especially in wet weather, is doubtless,
the best-known ecclesiastical site in Crusheen parish and attracts historians,
folklorists and casual browsers. It is situated at the end of the long
peninsula, which extends into Inchicronan Lake and consists of a heterogeneous
group of buildings of different dates to which a graveyard, still in
use, attaches. The transept arches and their delicate central pier are
probably the most notable features, but a careful look about will reveal
other details worth notice. For those interested in the paranormal it
is the "Island Lights" that will provide most attraction to
this place. The fame of these little blue lights, a death-warning to
certain families of the parish whose burial place is the Island graveyard,
is known internationally. Never a cause of terror, they have been seen
by many, either on their way from the Island or hovering at the house
of the family about to be bereaved. The most recent reported sighting
was in the 1970s.
Four other holy sites
of interest are the cillins at (D3), (F8), (G5) and (D0). In little
burial-places like these countrywide were interred mainly unbaptized
children but also occasionally suicides and strangers. Some of those
in Inchicronan were last used as recently as the 1940s. The cillin at
Kilvoydan South (D0) is adjacent to a holy well, as is the one recorded
in Ordance Survey maps as Kilvilly (D3). The very name Kilvilly suggests
that there was a sacred tree (bile) on the site. Whether the large beech
tree now growing there is a descendant of this bile it is not possible
to say.
Holy Wells
Hardly any of the 6 holy
wells in the parish are resorted too nowadays for cures, though a lingering
belief in their power persists. Formerly both animals ( at St. Leonard’s
well, Kilvoydan South (D0) and people (at all the others) were believed
to benefit from visits to these sites and much local lore attaches to
them.
Their present rather neglected
state is bound to improve as more and more people search for the personal
in religious belief, and the fact that everyone of these springs is
probably as old as time itself will sooner or later draw devotees back
to them again.
