Kenmare
Encyclopedia
Kenmare is a small town
(population 1701 - CSO 2006) in the south of County Kerry
, Ireland
. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of Ceann Mara meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay.
and the Beara Peninsula
. The traditional Irish name of the bay was Inbhear Scéine from the Celtic
inver
, which is recorded in the 11th Century narrative Lebor Gabála Érenn
as the arrival point of the mythological
Irish ancestor Partholón
. It is also located near the Macgillycuddy's Reeks
, Mangerton Mountain
and Caha Mountains
and is a popular hillwalking
destination.
in 2007, is from Kenmare. Nearby towns and villages are Tuosist
, Ardgroom
, Glengarriff
, Kilgarvan
, Killarney
, Templenoe
and Sneem
.
scientist, Sir William Petty
by Oliver Cromwell
as part payment for completing the mapping of Ireland, the Down Survey
in 1656. He laid out the modern town circa 1670. Like William Petty
, a previous surveyor of Ireland (1584), Sir Valentine Browne, ancestor of the Earl of Kenmare
was granted some lands in County Kerry
during the resulting plantation, the Munster Plantation.
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.
However, the area has more ancient roots. One of the largest stone circle
s in the south-west of Ireland is close to the town, and shows occupation in the area going back to 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.
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 convent in the town, the Poor Clare Sisters
, was founded in 1861 when five nuns including Sister Mary Frances Cusack, 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.
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.
The town is noted for winning the Irish Tidy Towns Competition
in 2000 and being a runner-up in 2003 and 2008. The Catholic Church in the town contains stained glass from Franz Mayer & Co.
and a hand carved Bath Stone
chancel and side altars.
The town library is one of the Carnegie Libraries
funded by Andrew Carnegie
. It opened in 1918, and the architect was R.M. Butler.
The Church of Ireland
church of St Patrick celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2008.
The Catholic church in the town is called "The Holy cross".
and the Ring of Beara
, approximately 32 kilometres (19.9 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. Kenmare boasts a range of restaurants and traditional pubs.
Since the late 1990s the tourism industry has driven local construction work, with land being sold at high prices to developers wishing to build estates
of holiday homes
. 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.
Ernest John Moeran
for a number of years up to his death and a local bar is named after him. Gaelic football
er Mickey 'Ned' O'Sullivan is from the town, while another footballer, Pat Spillane
, comes from nearby Templenoe
. Current Kerry GAA
player Paul O'Connor
hails from Kenmare. Kenmare is also the home of Irish Olympic
slalom skier
Thos Foley
. Diplomat Con Cremin
was also from Kenmare. NY construction magnate Patrick Harrington was also from Kenmare. Anna McPartlin
grew up in Kenmare; in 2007 she wrote the novel Apart from the Crowd, with a setting in Kenmare.
Big Bertha
(1945-1993) was a Guinness World Record breaking cow who lived in the area: she was both the oldest recorded cow and the one with the greatest number of offspring.
. 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 August 15, 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.
. There is also a daily service to/from Cork
in the summer months on the N71
via Bantry
and Clonakilty
. The N71 also connects Kenmare to Killarney on a mountainous and scenic part of the Ring of Kerry route via Molls Gap and Ladies View. Alternatively one can reach Killarney via the longer but more comfortable route through Kilgarvan
. Kenmare also lies on the N70
national secondary road
south-Cork
route to Glengarriff
.
Kenmare railway station opened on 4 September 1893 and finally closed on 1 February 1960.
, competes in Kerry GAA
competitions. George Mayberry
from Kenmare participated in the 1908 Summer Olympics
.
Kenmare Kestrels Basketball Club was founded in 2006 and competes in the Kerry Area Basketball League.
Kenmare is the home of 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.
Kenmare was also mentioned in a Star Trek Enterprise episode "Breaking the Ice" in which the crew answer questions from children in a fictional school located in the town.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
(population 1701 - CSO 2006) in the south of County Kerry
County Kerry
Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of Ceann Mara meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay.
Location
Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare Bay (where it reaches the farthest inland), sometimes called the Kenmare River, where the Roughty River (An Ruachtach) flows into the sea, and at the junction of the Iveragh PeninsulaIveragh Peninsula
The Iveragh Peninsula is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the Macgillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula...
and the Beara Peninsula
Beara Peninsula
The Beara Peninsula is a peninsula on the south-west coast of Ireland, bounded between the Kenmare "river" to the north side and Bantry Bay to the south. It has two mountain ranges running down its centre: the Caha Mountains and the Slieve Miskish Mountains...
. The traditional Irish name of the bay was Inbhear Scéine from the Celtic
Insular Celtic languages
Insular Celtic languages are those Celtic languages that originated in the British Isles, in contrast to the Continental Celtic languages of mainland Europe and Anatolia. All surviving Celtic languages are from the Insular Celtic group; the Continental Celtic languages are extinct...
inver
Aber and Inver as place-name elements
Aber and Inver are common elements in place-names of Celtic origin. Both mean "confluence of waters" or "river mouth". Their distribution reflects the geographical influence of the Brythonic and Goidelic language groups respectively.-Aber:...
, which is recorded in the 11th Century narrative Lebor Gabála Érenn
Lebor Gabála Érenn
Lebor Gabála Érenn is the Middle Irish title of a loose collection of poems and prose narratives recounting the mythical origins and history of the Irish from the creation of the world down to the Middle Ages...
as the arrival point of the mythological
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
Irish ancestor Partholón
Partholón
Partholón, in medieval Irish historical tradition, was the leader of the second group of people to settle in Ireland, supposedly first to arrive after the biblical Flood. They arrived in 2680 BC according to the chronology of the Annals of the Four Masters, 2061 BC according to Geoffrey Keating's...
. It is also located near the Macgillycuddy's Reeks
Macgillycuddy's Reeks
MacGillycuddy's Reeks is a mountain range in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland. Stretching slightly over , it includes the highest peaks in Ireland and the only peaks on the island that are over . The highest of these is Corrán Tuathail or Carrauntoohil , followed by Binn Chaorach and Cathair na...
, Mangerton Mountain
Mangerton Mountain
Mangerton or Mangerton Mountain is a mountain in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland. At a height of 839 m it is the tallest of the Mangerton range and 25th tallest in Ireland...
and Caha Mountains
Caha Mountains
The Caha Mountains are a range of low sandstone mountains situated on the Beara peninsula in south-west County Cork, in the Ireland. The highest peak is Hungry Hill, 685m tall.-See also:*List of mountains in Ireland...
and is a popular hillwalking
Hillwalking
In the British Isles, the terms hillwalking or fellwalking are commonly used to describe the recreational outdoor activity of walking on hills and mountains, often with the intention of visiting their summits...
destination.
Politics
It forms part of the Kerry South electoral constituency. Mark Daly, elected a member of Seanad ÉireannSeanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas , which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann . It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members Senators or Seanadóirí . Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by...
in 2007, is from Kenmare. Nearby towns and villages are Tuosist
Tuosist
Tuosist is a parish in the far south of County Kerry, Ireland. It shares the Béara Peninsula with the neighbouring parishes of County Cork, and the Caha Mountains form the county border. The nearest town is Kenmare...
, Ardgroom
Ardgroom
Ardgroom is a village on the Beara peninsula in County Cork, Ireland. Its name refers to two gravelly hills deposited by a glacier, Dromárd and Drombeg. It lies to the northwest of Glenbeg Lough, overlooking the Kenmare River estuary. It sits between the coast and the Slieve Miskish Mountains. The...
, Glengarriff
Glengarriff
Glengarriff is a village of approximately 800 people on the N71 national secondary road in the south-west region of County Cork, Ireland. Known internationally as a tourism venue, it boasts many natural attractions...
, Kilgarvan
Kilgarvan
-History:Kilgarvan was the site of the Battle of Callan in 1261 which reduced Norman power in Ireland for almost 300 years. The battle site is located in the townland of Callan ....
, Killarney
Killarney
Killarney is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is located north of the MacGillicuddy Reeks, on the northeastern shore of the Lough Lein/Leane which are part of Killarney National Park. The town and its surrounding region are home to St...
, Templenoe
Templenoe
Templenoe is a settlement in County Kerry, Ireland. It is situated four miles from Kenmare, on the N70 road to Sneem, which forms part of the Ring of Kerry....
and Sneem
Sneem
Sneem is a town situated on the Iveragh Peninsula in County Kerry in the southwest of Ireland. It lies on the estuary of the River Sneem. National route N70 runs through the town....
.
History
The entire area was granted to the EnglishEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
scientist, Sir William Petty
William Petty
Sir William Petty FRS was an English economist, scientist and philosopher. He first became prominent serving Oliver Cromwell and Commonwealth in Ireland. He developed efficient methods to survey the land that was to be confiscated and given to Cromwell's soldiers...
by Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
as part payment for completing the mapping of Ireland, the Down Survey
Down Survey
The Down Survey, also known as the Civil Survey, refers to the mapping of Ireland carried out by William Petty, English scientist in 1655 and 1656....
in 1656. He laid out the modern town circa 1670. Like William Petty
William Petty
Sir William Petty FRS was an English economist, scientist and philosopher. He first became prominent serving Oliver Cromwell and Commonwealth in Ireland. He developed efficient methods to survey the land that was to be confiscated and given to Cromwell's soldiers...
, a previous surveyor of Ireland (1584), Sir Valentine Browne, ancestor of the Earl of Kenmare
Earl of Kenmare
The title of Earl of Kenmare was created in the Peerage of Ireland in 1801. It became extinct upon the death of the 7th Earl in 1952.All of the Earls bore the subsidiary titles of Viscount Castlerosse , Viscount Kenmare , and Baron Castlerosse in the Peerage of Ireland...
was granted some lands in County Kerry
County Kerry
Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
during the resulting plantation, the Munster Plantation.
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
Earl of Shelburne
Earl of Shelburne is a title that has been created two times while the title of Baron Shelburne has been created three times. The Shelburne title was created for the first time in the Peerage of Ireland in 1688 when Elizabeth, Lady Petty, was made Baroness Shelburne. She was the wife of the noted...
). This name was also later applied to Shelbourne Road in Dublin.
However, the area has more ancient roots. One of the largest stone circle
Stone circle
A stone circle is a monument of standing stones arranged in a circle. Such monuments have been constructed across the world throughout history for many different reasons....
s in the south-west of Ireland is close to the town, and shows occupation in the area going back to 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.
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 convent in the town, the Poor Clare Sisters
Order of Poor Ladies
The Poor Clares also known as the Order of Saint Clare, the Order of Poor Ladies, the Poor Clare Sisters, the Clarisse, the Minoresses, the Franciscan Clarist Congregation, and the Second Order of St. Francis, , comprise several orders of nuns in the Catholic Church...
, was founded in 1861 when five nuns including Sister Mary Frances Cusack, who was also an author and publisher of many books, moved to Kenmare from their convent in Newry
Newry
Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
. Under the guidance of Mother Abbess O'Hagan in 1864 a lace
Lace
Lace is an openwork fabric, patterned with open holes in the work, made by machine or by hand. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric. Lace-making is an ancient craft. True lace was...
-working industry was established and Kenmare Lace
Kenmare lace
Kenmare Lace is a hand made needlepoint lace originally made in Kenmare, Ireland. In the 19th century, sisters of the Poor Clare convent introduced needlepoint lace to the women and girls of the locality. It was a response to the poverty that followed the Great Famine...
became noted worldwide.
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.
The town is noted for winning the Irish Tidy Towns Competition
Irish Tidy Towns Competition
Tidy Towns is an annual competition, first held in 1958, organised by the Irish Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in order to honour the tidiest and most attractive cities, towns and villages in the Republic of Ireland...
in 2000 and being a runner-up in 2003 and 2008. The Catholic Church in the town contains stained glass from Franz Mayer & Co.
Franz Mayer & Co.
Franz Mayer & Co. is a famous German stained glass design and manufacturing company, based in Munich, Germany, that has been active throughout most of the world for over 150 years...
and a hand carved Bath Stone
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an Oolitic Limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England, its warm, honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of Bath, England its distinctive appearance...
chancel and side altars.
The town library is one of the Carnegie Libraries
Carnegie library
A Carnegie library is a library built with money donated by Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. 2,509 Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929, including some belonging to public and university library systems...
funded by Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
. It opened in 1918, and the architect was R.M. Butler.
The Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
church of St Patrick celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2008.
The Catholic church in the town is called "The Holy cross".
Tourism
Kenmare lies on two noted Irish tourist routes, the Ring of KerryRing of Kerry
The Ring of Kerry is a tourist trail in County Kerry, south-western Ireland. The route covers the 179 km circular road , starting from Killarney, heading around the Iveragh Peninsula and passing through Kenmare, Sneem, Waterville, Cahersiveen and Killorglin...
and the Ring of Beara
Beara Peninsula
The Beara Peninsula is a peninsula on the south-west coast of Ireland, bounded between the Kenmare "river" to the north side and Bantry Bay to the south. It has two mountain ranges running down its centre: the Caha Mountains and the Slieve Miskish Mountains...
, approximately 32 kilometres (19.9 mi) from Killarney
Killarney
Killarney is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is located north of the MacGillicuddy Reeks, on the northeastern shore of the Lough Lein/Leane which are part of Killarney National Park. The town and its surrounding region are home to St...
. As a result it is a popular tourist
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
destination and many of the businesses in the area cater to tourists. The town is noted for its food and pubs. Kenmare boasts a range of restaurants and traditional pubs.
Since the late 1990s the tourism industry has driven local construction work, with land being sold at high prices to developers wishing to build estates
Housing estate
A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance...
of holiday homes
Vacation rental
Vacation rental is the renting out of a furnished apartment or house on a temporary basis to tourists as an alternative to a hotel. The term vacation rental is mainly used in the US. In Europe the term villa rental or villa holiday is preferred for rentals of detached houses in warm climates...
. 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.
Noted residents
Kenmare was home to English composerComposer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Ernest John Moeran
Ernest John Moeran
Ernest John Moeran was an English composer who had strong associations with Ireland .-Early life:...
for a number of years up to his death and a local bar is named after him. Gaelic football
Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
er Mickey 'Ned' O'Sullivan is from the town, while another footballer, Pat Spillane
Pat Spillane
Patrick Gerard Spillane , better known as Pat Spillane, is a retired Gaelic footballer and well known Irish sports pundit. He played Gaelic football with his local club Templenoe and was a member of the Kerry senior inter-county team from 1975 until 1991...
, comes from nearby Templenoe
Templenoe
Templenoe is a settlement in County Kerry, Ireland. It is situated four miles from Kenmare, on the N70 road to Sneem, which forms part of the Ring of Kerry....
. Current Kerry GAA
Kerry GAA
The Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kerry...
player Paul O'Connor
Paul O'Connor
Paul O'Connor is an Irish Gaelic footballer with the Kenmare GAA club and Kerry county team.-Playing career:Paul O'Connor was Kerry's forward in the 2004 and 2005 All-Ireland Minor Football Championship, scoring 6 points in the 2004 final which Kerry lost to Tyrone. The following year, he was...
hails from Kenmare. Kenmare is also the home of Irish Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
slalom skier
Slalom skiing
Slalom is an alpine skiing discipline, involving skiing between poles spaced much closer together than in Giant Slalom, Super-G or Downhill, thereby causing quicker and shorter turns.- Origins :...
Thos Foley
Thos Foley
Thos Foley from Kenmare in County Kerry, Ireland, is a men's slalom skier. He currently lives and trains in the village of Verbier in Switzerland....
. Diplomat Con Cremin
Con Cremin
Con Cremin was an Irish diplomat born in Kenmare, County Kerry .One of four children, Cremin was born to a family that operated a drapery business. His brother, Francis Cremin, became a leading academic canon lawyer who framed a number of key church documents. He was educated at St...
was also from Kenmare. NY construction magnate Patrick Harrington was also from Kenmare. Anna McPartlin
Anna McPartlin
Anna McPartlin is an Irish novelist. Her novel Pack Up the Moon was her debut feature.-Biography:Anna McPartlin was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1972. As a teenager she grew up with her aunt and uncle as a fosterling in Kenmare, County Kerry. She studied marketing before working as a stand-up...
grew up in Kenmare; in 2007 she wrote the novel Apart from the Crowd, with a setting in Kenmare.
Big Bertha
Big Bertha (cow)
Big Bertha was a cow who held two Guinness World Records: she was the oldest cow recorded, dying just three months short of her 49th birthday, and she also held the record for lifetime breeding, having produced 39 calves...
(1945-1993) was a Guinness World Record breaking cow who lived in the area: she was both the oldest recorded cow and the one with the greatest number of offspring.
Fair days
Due to its location at the centre of a large agricultural area, Kenmare served as the local market townMarket town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
. Until the establishment of an auction mart
Market
A market is one of many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social relations and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers...
in the early 1990s, the approximately monthly fair days
Fair
A fair or fayre is a gathering of people to display or trade produce or other goods, to parade or display animals and often to enjoy associated carnival or funfair entertainment. It is normally of the essence of a fair that it is temporary; some last only an afternoon while others may ten weeks. ...
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 August 15, which coincides with the Catholic Holy Day of Obligation
Holy Day of Obligation
In the Catholic Church, Holy Days of Obligation or Holidays of Obligation, less commonly called Feasts of Precept, are the days on which, as of the Code of Canon Law states,-Eastern Catholic Churches:...
marking the Assumption of Mary
Assumption of Mary
According to the belief of Christians of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, and parts of the Anglican Communion and Continuing Anglicanism, the Assumption of Mary was the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her life...
. The day attracts crowds of locals and visitors and is the busiest day of the year in Kenmare.
Transport
There are daily bus-services to KillarneyKillarney
Killarney is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is located north of the MacGillicuddy Reeks, on the northeastern shore of the Lough Lein/Leane which are part of Killarney National Park. The town and its surrounding region are home to St...
. There is also a daily service to/from Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
in the summer months on the N71
N71 road (Ireland)
-Road standard:The road is mostly relatively poor single carriageway, with better sections towards the Cork end of the route. There are wide sections with climbing/passing lanes, including a very rare configuration with a passing lane on both sides, and a dual carriageway section approaching...
via Bantry
Bantry
Bantry is a town on the coast of County Cork, Ireland. It lies on the N71 national secondary road at the head of Bantry Bay, a deep-water gulf extending for 30 km to the west...
and Clonakilty
Clonakilty
Clonakilty , often referred to by locals simply as Clon, is a small town on the N71 national secondary road in West County Cork, Ireland, approximately 45 minutes away by road to the west of Cork City. The town is on the southern coast of the island, and is surrounded by hilly country devoted...
. The N71 also connects Kenmare to Killarney on a mountainous and scenic part of the Ring of Kerry route via Molls Gap and Ladies View. Alternatively one can reach Killarney via the longer but more comfortable route through Kilgarvan
Kilgarvan
-History:Kilgarvan was the site of the Battle of Callan in 1261 which reduced Norman power in Ireland for almost 300 years. The battle site is located in the townland of Callan ....
. Kenmare also lies on the N70
N70 road (Ireland)
The N70 road is a national secondary road in Ireland. It comprises most of the Ring of Kerry.-Route: – Sneem – Castlecove – Caherdaniel – Waterville – Cahersiveen – Killorglin – – Milltown – Castlemaine – – Tralee.-See also:*Roads...
national secondary road
National secondary road
A national secondary road is a category of road in Ireland. These roads form an important part of the national route network, but are secondary to the main arterial routes which are classified as national primary roads. National secondary roads are designated with route numbers higher than those...
south-Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
route to Glengarriff
Glengarriff
Glengarriff is a village of approximately 800 people on the N71 national secondary road in the south-west region of County Cork, Ireland. Known internationally as a tourism venue, it boasts many natural attractions...
.
Kenmare railway station opened on 4 September 1893 and finally closed on 1 February 1960.
Services
The town has a primary and secondary school, community hospital and Catholic and Church of Ireland churches.Sports
The GAA club, Kenmare ShamrocksKenmare GAA
Kenmare GAA is a Gaelic Athletic Association club from Kenmare in County Kerry.The club competes as a joint divisional side with other clubs from the Kenmare area like Templenoe GAA in the county championship and as an individual club in other competitions.-History:The Kenmare Athletic Club was...
, competes in Kerry GAA
Kerry GAA
The Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kerry...
competitions. George Mayberry
George Mayberry
George Mahoney Mayberry was an Irish track and field athlete who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.He was born in Kenmare and died in Frant....
from Kenmare participated in the 1908 Summer Olympics
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
.
Kenmare Kestrels Basketball Club was founded in 2006 and competes in the Kerry Area Basketball League.
Use in popular culture
In the fictional Harry Potter universeHarry Potter universe
The fictional universe of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series of fantasy novels comprises two separate and distinct societies: the wizarding world and the Muggle world...
Kenmare is the home of the Kenmare Kestrels, one of only thirteen Quidditch teams that play in the Quidditch
Quidditch
Quidditch is a fictional sport developed by British author J. K. Rowling for the Harry Potter series of novels. It is described as an extremely rough, but very popular, semi-contact sport, played by wizards and witches around the world...
League of Britain and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The team players wear emerald-green robes emblazoned with two yellow K’s across the chest.
Kenmare was also mentioned in a Star Trek Enterprise episode "Breaking the Ice" in which the crew answer questions from children in a fictional school located in the town.
See also
- List of towns and villages in Ireland
- Market Houses in IrelandMarket Houses in the Republic of IrelandMarket houses are a notable feature of many Irish towns with varying styles of architecture, size and ornamentation making for a most interesting feature of the streetscape. Originally there were three, four or even five bays on the ground floor which were an open arcade. An upper floor was...