Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
Pococke's Tour in Ireland in 1752 (Author: Richard Pococke)

entry 54

On the 25th I was at the doors of Mr. Brown and Mr. Darcy, took leave of Captain Heathcote and after dinner set out, young Mr. Simcocks accompanying me three miles to Oranmore, where a rivlet falls into the bay; two miles farther we came to Daren Bridge, and half a mile farther to Shilcollogan Bridge. I observed several large entrenchments on the mountains of Burren to the west, in the county of Clare, one of them they say was the Residence of O'Laughlin King of Burren, and on the Bay about four miles distant is the Abbey of Corcumroe, which they say is a fine ruin, and that on the graves are laid tombs of wood,


p.108

many of them being of yew, with some remains of inscriptions on them: It was anciently called St. Marie's Abbey: within a mile of Gort we passed through a village called Kiltorton. The sheep in all this stony country produce very fine wool much valued and is sent to Dublin and Cork. I was at Gort in 1749 in our Tour through Munster and Connaught: it was the estate of the Oshognusses and was forfeited; and now there is a barrack in an old Mansion house of that family built within the walls of the (in the) Castle, it is a very poor market town like a village: In my way to this place about six miles from Galway, I had a view of the house of Mr. Walter Taylor, whom I had seen in Galway, he is above four score years old, and told me had seen about 460 descended from his Father, and several great grand children; he rode lately from Dublin to Tullaghmore in one day, which cannot be less than sixty english measured miles, it is 45 computed irish miles if I do not mistake: As his passion has been to encourage a good breed of horses, so at this time he is a constant attender of all diversions in this country, relating to the improvement of that noble animal.