Kenmare (Irish: Neidín, meaning "the little nest")[8][9] is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of Ceann Mara,[8] meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. It is also a townland and civil parish.[9]
Evidence of ancient settlement in the Kenmare area includes one of the largest stone circles in the south-west of Ireland.[10] Close to the town, this stone circle shows occupation in the area going back to at least the Bronze Age (2,200–500 B.C), when it was constructed. The circle has 15 stones around the circumference with a boulder dolmen in the centre.[10]
Vikings are said to have raided the area around the town which at that time was called Ceann Mhara, which means "head of the sea" in Irish.
The three main streets that form a triangle in the centre of the town are called Main Street (originally William Street, after Sir William, 1st. Marquis of Lansdowne), Henry Street (originally Sound Road), after the son of William the 1st. Marquis and Shelbourne Street (Henry Petty became the first Earl of Shelburne). This name was also later applied to Shelbourne Road in Dublin.
The convent in the town, the Poor Clare Sisters, was founded in 1861 when five nuns including Sister Mary Frances Cusack (The Nun of Kenmare), who was also an author and publisher of many books, moved to Kenmare from their convent in Newry, County Down. Under the guidance of Mother Abbess O'Hagan in 1864 a lace-working industry was established and Kenmare lace became noted worldwide. The convent no longer exists and Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine secondary school occupies this site since 2001.
A suspension bridge, which is claimed to be the first in Ireland, over the Kenmare River was opened in 1841 and served the community till 1932 when it was replaced by a new concrete bridge.[11]
The town library is one of the Carnegie Libraries funded by Andrew Carnegie. It opened in 1918, and the architect was R.M. Butler.[14][15] The library building is now home to the Carnegie Arts Centre and theatre, hosting a local drama group and a number of travelling productions each year, as well as music and comedy nights.[16]
Holy Cross Catholic Church in Kenmare was consecrated in 1864. It was built under the guidance of Archdeacon Fr. John O'Sullivan - who is interred within the church.[17] The church has stained glass windows by O'Connor London (1863), by Caseys Dublin (1864) and by Earley Dublin (1864). The organ is by Telford & Telford(1865). Buried in the church grounds is Monsignor Francis Cremin (died 2001), who was a periitus or theological expert at Vatican II. He was a native of Kenmare and had been Professor of Canon Law and Moral Theology at St Patrick's College, Maynooth from 1949 until 1980. He was a brother of Con Cremin, an Irish diplomat, who represented Ireland in France and Germany during World War II and subsequently in Portugal, the Holy See, the United Kingdom and at the United Nations.
View of Main Street in Kenmare (between the 1880s and early 1900s)
The Church of Ireland church of St Patrick celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2008.[18] The town has been a winner in the Irish Tidy Towns Competition in 2013, 2000 and was a runner-up in 2003 and 2008.
Tourism
Carrigacappeen erratic, Kenmare, 1890s
Kenmare lies on two noted Irish tourist routes, the Ring of Kerry and the Ring of Beara, approximately 32 kilometres (20 mi) from Killarney. As a result, it is a popular tourist destination and many of the businesses in the area cater to tourists. The town is noted for its food and pubs.
Since the late 1990s the tourism industry has driven local construction work,[citation needed] with land being sold at high prices to developers wishing to build estates of holiday homes.[19] This has led to an increase in the town's population, particularly during the peak tourist season, and prompted fears among some residents that the town is becoming overdeveloped and losing much of its identity.[20]
Kenmare was home to composer Ernest John Moeran for a number of years up to his death and a local bar was named after him - but has since been renamed.[citation needed] Diplomat Con Cremin was also from Kenmare, as is senator Mark Daly. Writer Anna McPartlin grew up in Kenmare, and her 2007 novel Apart from the Crowd was set in the town.
Francis Brennan is the owner of the five-star Park Hotel in Kenmare.[21] He and his brother John, owner of the nearby Dromquinna Manor Hotel in Templenoe, are known for their TV series "At Your Service".[22]
Fair days
Due to its location at the centre of a large agricultural area, Kenmare served as the local market town. Until the establishment of an auction mart in the early 1990s, the approximately monthly fair days were a time when farmers would stand their animals in the streets for sale to visiting stock dealers. The only fair which continues to be held is that of 15 August, which coincides with the Catholic Holy Day of Obligation marking the Assumption of Mary. The day attracts crowds of locals and visitors and is the busiest day of the year in Kenmare.[23]
Transport
There are daily bus-services in summer to Killarney and in the off-season, the bus runs Monday-Friday. There is also a daily service to/from Cork in the summer months on the N71 via Bantry, Skibbereen, Clonakilty and Bandon. In mid-2023, a new service from Killarney to Skibbereen via Kenmare was announced, replacing the previous Killarney to Kenmare and Kenmare to Skibbereen services with additional journeys and extended hours.[24]
The N71 also connects Kenmare to Killarney on a mountainous and scenic part of the Ring of Kerry route via Moll's Gap and Ladies View. Alternatively one can reach Killarney via the slightly longer but more comfortable route through Kilgarvan. Kenmare also lies on the N71national secondary road south-Cork route to Glengarriff. In November 2014, the Eastern Relief Road was opened, allowing drivers from the R569 Kilgarvan Road to bypass the town centre when accessing the supermarkets and schools.
Kenmare railway station opened, in October 1893,[25] as the terminus of a branch from the Great Southern and Western Railway's Mallow–Tralee line at Headford Junction. The station closed, along with the branch, in early 1960[25] and the last passenger train ran on 1 February 1960.[26][27] The track was lifted shortly afterwards.
Services
The town has a primary and secondary school, a public library, community hospital, as well as Catholic, Church of Ireland and Methodist churches.
Kenmare Kestrels Basketball Club was founded in 2006 and competes in the Kerry Area Basketball League.
The local soccer team Inter Kenmare F.C. competes in the Kerry District League at U17, Youth & Senior Men's/Women's level and in the Kerry Schoolboys/girls League for all underage teams.
In popular culture
In the fictional Harry Potter universe, Kenmare is home to the Kenmare Kestrels, one of only thirteen Quidditch teams that play in the Quidditch League of Britain and Ireland. The team players wear emerald-green robes emblazoned with two yellow K's across the chest.[28]
The eponymous song "As I leave behind Neidín" was written by Jimmy McCarthy and recorded by Mary Black amongst others.
The town was also referenced in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Breaking the Ice". The crew aboard the spaceship answer questions received from school children who are said to be from Kenmare.
^Lee, JJ (1981). "On the accuracy of the Pre-famine Irish censuses". In Goldstrom, J. M.; Clarkson, L. A. (eds.). Irish Population, Economy, and Society: Essays in Honour of the Late K. H. Connell. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press.
^ abButt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 130. ISBN1-85260-508-1. Kenmare GS&W [..] OP 4 October 1893; CL 1 January 1960
^"Kenmare's Last Train – Amharc Éireann: Eagrán 32". ifiplayer.ie. Irish Film Institute. 18 July 2016. On the 1st of February 1960, Kenmare locals and railway workers looked on as the last train made its final journey on the tracks before the line closed
^"36 hours in Kenmare". irishtimes.com. Irish Times. 6 August 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2023. the last train out of Kenmare [was] on February 1st, 1960, at 9.30am. The railway had opened in 1893, and the Kenmare branch line was the last stop on the Great Southern and Western Railway route
