The Red Well, Tobar Dearg: a moving well

Having  come down off Mushera Mór of course the sun came out and fuelled by a large bowl of soup we felt able to explore another well. What an unexpected delight this was.

The Red Well, Tobar Dearg, Toberderg

Rather intriguingly, it sounded as though the Red Well, Tobar Dearg, was on two sides of the road:

There is a holy well in this locality ‘An Tobar Dearg’. It is situated in the townland of Derryroe about two miles from Rusheen Catholic Church, and there is a portion of it on either side of the public road, on the northern side and the southern side.

We wend our way down tiny country roads, a tractor the only other vehicle passed. We parked in a layby near what we hoped was the well site and sure enough there was a small copse with two little metal gates topped with crosses, on each side of the road.

We explored the southern side first ( on the left) having glimpsed a statue of the BVM, blue amongst the trees.

This is a wonderful tranquil spot encircled by mature trees and beautifully maintained. The stone built well lies in the centre, just below ground level and approached by two steps, a rather wonky metal rail to the left affording some assistance when attempting to get to the water.

The first step or slab has a cross deeply inscribed onto it. A plank above the well holds a pristine glass cup, ready for pilgrims. The water remains fresh, clear and abundant.

Nearby a large stone niche holds a statue of the BVM, adorned with offerings and rosaries and some rather jolly lanterns.

In front of the niche is another cross-covered slab, a small stone for the inscribing still in place.

It seems we had come to the wrong side of the road first for to pay rounds a pilgrim should start at the northern section of the site for this is where the well originated. It is a North Cork well after all and they are very fond of moving.

Many years ago a drunken man was coming home from a fair in Macroom, at a very late hour. When passing the well, he disrespected it and the following day it was found inside the fence on the opposite side, but the rounds are paid where the well was first.

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Another account from the Schools’ Folklore Collection describes a man putting dirt into the well and causing it to move. And yet another puts the wells removal down to an English soldier upsetting it. All accounts are quite clear that rounds have to be paid first on the northern site where the well was originally, and then they continue on to the southern side where the well is now.

The northern side is also nicely kept, walled and gated and inside are many shrubs and trees.  There are few offerings, just a small crucifix hidden amongst the foliage.

Rounds were generally paid on Good Friday, Easter Saturday and Palm Sunday but could also be paid on two successive Sundays and the intervening Friday. Rounds were as follows:

There are three stations and each person goes around three times and says the I believe in God, and then they say Our Fathers, seven Hail Marys and seven Glory Be to the Fathers at each station. Then they go to the other side of the road and say the rosary beside the well. Then they drink some of the water and some people take it home to drink, or to rub on any affected part.

Ibid

The water was considered especially effective for the cure of rheumatism:

Some years ago an old man lived near Moanflugh Cross. He was troubled by the rheumatism. He was advised to pay a round at the Red Well in the parish of Aghina. One night he dreamed he was on the road to the holy well and seeing a little spring on the roadside he knelt down and prayed and was cured. He told his dreams to his neighbours. On the following Sunday he went to pray at the Red Well. On the road he saw the spot of his dream. He cleaned away the soil in the form of a well. He performed a round at this little well and was cured. This well is to be seen yet at the roadside.  (The man was named Richard Butler, I knew him later when he lived at Massytown, Macroom. He does not appear to have any rheumatism).

A rather confusing account, is this another explanation for the well moving for there seems to have already been a well in existence? We did have an explore to see if there was any sign of a well on this side of the road, and just outsider the wall was a definite wet area – was this where the spring originated?

The water was also considered useful for curing toothache, and of course the water would never boil.

It is said that this water was once used for boiling potatoes by a servant girl who was a stranger to the district but the water never boiled. The woman of the houses asked her where she got the water, and she said at the well. Then she ordered her to put it back again, and the girl did so.

A cure was considered more likely if a pilgrim heard thunder, or encountered the guardian spirit – a frog. Sadly all was quiet during our visit.

The name of the well is said to have been derived either from the colour of the surrounding soil or the tinge of the water. I can’t say that either looked particularly red on our visit. The well is also sometimes referred to as St Berriherts Well – the neighbouring townland is called Kilberrihert and includes a ringfort, souterrain and burial ground.

Across the field lies an imposing standing stone (CO060-106002) once one of  pair, and a ring barrow ( CO060-106001) , though that wasn’t obvious. From the standing stone you can look back and see what a special side the Red Well occupies.

On the other side of road there is a fulacht fia (CO060-108) – another example of a common pairing of well and fulachta fia in North Cork.

Tobar Dearg revisited July 2023: Being in the area, we decided to visit the well to see how it was doing. We were delighted to find Gerry (apologies if I have your name wrong!) hard at work tidying the location.

We stopped for a chat and Gerry gave me some interesting information. He explained that he believed that St Gobnait was patron saint of the well, something I had not heard before. He said his elderly mother would frequently visit to pray to the saint. Here, he explained, St Gobnait saw three white deer. I am now going to have to reconsider the blogs on St Gobnait’s peregrination!

Gerry confirmed how the rounds should be paid. The pilgrim starts at the original site of the well across the road. Prayers, in sets of sevens, are said in front of the well, and then at each corner of the site. Although the well has gone, it is marked with a small fir tree and the earth still looks dampish.

A stone, deeply scored with a cross, lies in front of it.

The pilgrim then crosses the road and says a Rosary in front of the relocated well.

Gerry bemoaned the cold wind whistling across the valley but everywhere was looking lovely. The statue of the BVM was freshly painted and there was a new shrine in a silver painted container. Chairs and a bench, dedicated to a much beloved priest, were also new additions.

What a very pleasant encounter and before we left Derryroe we decided to explore a few more of the monuments marked on the OS maps. This is an incredibly rich area dotted with standing stones, megalithic monuments and ringforts, all under the watchful eye of Kilberrihert, a long rather mysterious looking hill – St Berrihert being another possible patron of the site.

We visited a pair of gallans, saw a neatly enclosed cilleen (behind the curious horse) and clambered up to see a megalithic tomb, all the time gasping at the huge views. The whump whump of the wind turbines added a certain something to the experience.

The highlight was the unexpected discovery of a cross slab. Again, a delightful encounter this time with Jeremiah who led me across his farmyard to inspect the stone. I was stunned!

The stone was large and inscribed with a simple Greek cross enclosed by two circles – other crosses had been etched upon it by pilgrims. What amazed me most was the pair of rather dinky bullauns at its base – obviously the kneeprints of a saint!

Jeremiah told me that the tradition in his family was that it was a Mass rock and his family treated it with great respect. He showed me where a stile was built into the wall, the original access. The Archaeological Inventory for County Cork describes how the stone lies on the outskirts of what might be an early ecclesiastical enclosure and reports that local knowledge describes it as marking the grave of a priest who was murdered during Penal Times. The bullaun stones are explained as the imprints left by people who came to pray at the spot.

Two wonderful encounters and a mass of monuments.

The location of this well can be found in the Gazetteer.

Many thanks to Gerry, and Jeremiah for their time and information.