Bailieborough.com

THE CASTLE LAKE

Bailieborough

The Walk:
The main entrance to the Castle Lake Forest is in Lear (turn left at the creamery on the Shercock rd). A walk around the lake perimeter will tale approx 45 minutes, with a distance covering 3km.

The longer option, by going straight on at the end of the lake, will take 1hour and 45 mins and covers 7km. (see Cavan Tourism walk routes below). The forest can also entered by the Cavan Rd.

Parking is available through the main entrance, in front of the jetty.

Start of walk from Cavan Rd entrance

Walk routes - Copyright Cavan Tourism

Wooden bridge over Lear River

Lear River

The Lake:
The Castle Lake has a 50 acre radius, covering an area of 20 hectares and in parts is over 6 metres in dept. The lake is a very popular fishing destination, containing Perch, Pike, Bream, Roach and Eel. There are numerous fishing stands around the lake.

The Castle Lake swans

One of the many fishing stands around Castle Lake and fishing Bye Laws sign

Rebel Hill:
Along the forest walk lays a stone memorial, erected to those who died in the 1798 insurrection at Rebel Hill. The local volunteers, joined by many local Presbyterians, were surrounded by the Yeomanry and around 300 were bayoneted or drowned attempting to cross the lake. At the time of the local insurrection, a total of 35,000 died throughout the country in similar insurrections.

After the insurrection there followed imprisonments, executions and evictions of anyone suspected of having an involvement or even supporting the rebellion.

Rebel Hill Memorial

The Hanging Tree:
A young boy was cutting timber for his mother on the estate but was caught by Lord Lisgar’s men and hanged to death from the Hanging Tree. In revenge, the young boy’s mother cast a spell on the Lisgars that they would never bear children, and they never did.

Legend also has it that the mother smeared the steps into the Castle House with her blood, which could never be washed away no matter how hard the steps were scrubbed.

Lucy’s Well:
The well was named after the niece of Lord Lisgar.

Lucy’s Well

The Seven Brothers Graves:
The Marist Brothers purchased the castle house in 1915. There they established their own self contained seminary, which was unsuccessful due to an embargo compelling it to operate outside the diocese, in case it would have taken from the pool of seminarians from the diocese of Kilmore. Seven of the Brothers are buried within a walled enclosure in the forest.

Entrance to the Seven Brothers Graves

The Seven Brothers Graves

The Castle House:
Bailieborough grew up around a large castle house built within the Castle Lake demesne by Scottish Planter, William Bailie. In 1610 he was given a grant of 1000 acres and under the grant’s terms he was to enclose 350 acres upon which he would build a strong house or castle. The house was described as… a vaulted castle, with a bawn 90 feet square, and two flanking towers.

In 1841 the house was sold to Colonel William Young and was later passed on to his son, John (later Lord Lisgar), a Member of Parliament and Governor General of Canada and New South Wales.

The Castle House

During the period that Colonel Young and Lord Lisgar occupied the house, many important buildings within Bailieborough were erected, including the Courthouse, the Market House, and also many of the houses now occupying the Main Street.

Little remains of the Castle House

Lady Young, a descendent of Colonel William Young, died in Cannes, France at the age of 101. She was married to Sir Cyril Young who was an engineer with a big British company. The couple were both interred by the Japanese for 3 years from 1943 to 1945. She died in 1994 and is buried along with her husband next to the Lisgars in the Church of Ireland in Bailieborough.

In 1918 the Castle House was completely destroyed by fire. It was partially rebuilt by the Marist Clankee Brothers in 1920 but sold for demolition in 1923.

A Working Forest:
The forest is owned and maintained by Coillte and tree felling and replanting is a regular occurrence. The Forestry Division (Coillte) acquired the land from the Marist Brother in the 1920’s.

Norway spruce and oak are two important species in this commercial forest. Hazel, holly and elderberry can be seen growing at lower levels of the wood. Foxglove, ferns, bluebells and snowdrops thrive in season.

Tree felling around the Castle Lake

Replanting the conifers

The Forester’s house:
Now a private residential house, the property in the forest near the Cavan Rd entrance used to be the Forester’s house, and was inhabited by Forester, Mr Cassidy.

Private Residence – previously the Forester’s house
The Gatehouse:
The remains of the foundations of the old estate gatehouse can still be seen as you enter the forest through the Cavan Rd entrance. John Brady (Jim Brady’s grandfather) lived there and after him Mick Tully occupied the house. The small lake within the forest, near the Cavan Rd entrance is known as Tully’s Lake (also known as The Blind Lake). Mick Tully was a sacristan in St Anne’s Chapel.

Cavan Rd entrance to Castle Lake – former site of old Gatehouse

Tully’s Lake

Porter’s Fort:
A large Norman ringfort which had a moat can be found opposite the pump house, at the top of the hill. Ringforts are fortified settlements that are believed to be from the early medieval period.

Porter’s Ringfort

Porter’s Ringfort moat

The Pump House:
The pump house is used to pump water to the local creamery.

Castle Lake - A seasonal View - A winter’s tale!

Over the rainbow!

Who left the tap on!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

In compiling this document Derick would like to thank the following for offering assistance along the way!

John Ed Sheanon
Jim Brady
Bailieborough Community Training
Bailieborough Development Association
www.bailieborough.com
Cavan Tourism
Coillte
www.rootsweb.com
www.wikipedia.org
www.infowing.ie

All photographs (except Castle House image) taken by Derick P. Hudson.

Walks map taken from “Cavan, The Lake Country” by Cavan Tourism, Farnham St, Cavan.

For further information please contact:
Derick P. Hudson,
C/O Bailieborough Community Training,
Bailieborough Business Centre,
Shercock Rd,
Bailieborough,
Co Cavan.
Tel: 042 9666383
Email: derick@bailieborough.com