Jiving with (St) Senan: a few days in West Clare

I recently had a few very enjoyable days in West Clare with Finola of Roaringwater Journal. We were on the trail of St Senan, our sights set on holy wells and stained glass. I must first mention two excellent sources which I have relied on extensively and both are part of County Clare Heritage Office and well worth a serious browse:

The Clare Holy Well project

Clare’s Stained Glass Archives

Our main objective was Scattery Island, Inis Cathaigh, a tiny monastic settlement founded by St Senan, situated right in the middle of the mouth of the mighty Shannon. But first, and straight off the Tarbert ferry in Killimer, we were delighted to find that there were two holy wells practically on the doorstep.

St Imy’s Well, Tobar Ími and Shrine, Killimer

Killimer is named after St Imy, Cill Imi or Cill Íomaí, meaning St Imy’s church – who was St Senan’s sister. A delightful little shrine dedicated to the saint lies on the side of the road, looking very attractive and rather Greek with its whitewashed walls and blue paint trim.

The interior is as well kept as the exterior, the main feature a rather beautiful statue of St Imy herself wearing a pale blue veil. Tradition has it that after St Imy died her body came floating down on a large boulder into Burrane townland. The locals at first would not take her in but when she floated by a second time they relented and her burial place was marked by a large slab known as Leacht Íomar, Lackimer or St Emma’s Stone, as described here in the 1930s by Micheál Ó Tuama, principal of Burrane Upper National School:

St Imy’s Grave is situated about 100 yards to the east of Burrane Churchyard (which can be seen in the south-west corner of this townland and from this School) Her Grave is marked by a rude upright stone without inscription or mark of any kind. Her interment there proves that the Church was built after her death otherwise she would be interred in consecrated ground. The grave lies in a field (now the property of Mr James O’Driscoll of Burrane Lower) without wall, railing or protection of any kind which, indeed to say the least of it is a poor tribute to the piety of the parishioners who lay claim to her patronage. It is to be hoped that the local Clergy and Parishioners may in the near future see their way to honour this undoubtedly great Saint by protecting and beautifying the grave where lie the remains of our great Patroness. (SFC:050:0600)

Micheál’s hope came true for in 1946 the Legion of Mary erected the shrine which is said to be adjacent to her grave. It continues to be maintained by the Ó Driscoll family.

A holy well dedicated to the saint, Tobar Íomaigh, Tobereemy, lies close by, also maintained by the Ó Driscoll family but on private land. Sadly we were unable to find anyone to advise or direct us to the well and had to abandon our search. Fortunately Killimer Local History Group have done all the hard work and have produced an informative and comprehensive website which I have also dipped into frequently Their video of the area around St Imy’s Shrine and Well clearly shows how the monuments are placed in the land.

St Imy’s feast day is 13th August and Mass is still held here in her honour on this date as Killaloe Diocese describes:

St Imy’s Well, maintained by the O’Driscoll family in the Townland of Burrane, enjoys special attention on this feast day, August 13^th and many other occasions as well.  The waters of this well with the curative properties for aching bones are another important third presence here in this location.  We could all do with a dose of that as we get older and old age gradually encroaches! (Killaloe Diocese)

St Senan’s Holy Well & Birthplace, Molougha

There are 18 wells dedicated to St Senan in County Clare and the next well we visited in Molougha may be the most important of all for it is associated with the birthplace of the saint, and fortunately it was enroute to our accommodation at Kilrush. This is an extensive site consisting of a ruined church, an oratory, a holy well, a sacred lake and the very slab upon which St Senan was born. It feels very much in the middle of nowhere, a rutted farm track and huge views with signage pointing vaguely over the fields. Wellies on, a quick bite of restorative chocolate and we were off across the fields to first visit the holy well.

The field was hard going but the scenery, even in the gloom, was pretty amazing with long views out to the Shannon and Moneypoint Power Station: once Ireland’s largest coal generated-power station. It stopped burning coal in 2025 and the site is undergoing redevelopment under The Green Atlantic @ Moneypoint programme, central to ESB’s goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2040.

As we staggered down the fields, the well site could be glimpsed, a magnificent hawthorn tree announcing its presence.

It is enclosed by a stone wall, partly whitewashed with an attractive red metal gate. This gave us a few problems as the red had obviously been recently and vigorously painted and we couldn’t move the latch!

One of us got over and one got stuck! Finola attempted a Plan B but there seemed to be no other way to get to the well. It was worth the ungainly climb and I reported back.

The circular well is below ground, the water clear and fresh and was once renowned for its cure for horses – they were brought down here and given the water to drink. It was also considered good for cattle and for crops.

It is covered by a two-tiered wellhouse which in turn is surmounted by a cross. The first tier is box-shaped and contains a variety of statues and some rather fancy candle holders.

The second tier is larger and arched and contains a large statue of St Senan himself, his hand raised in blessing, flowers and candles surrounding him.

St Senan’s feast day is the of 8th March but this well is also visited on the 29th June (St Peter & St Paul’s feast day), Corpus Christi and 15th August.

It felt a very remote and peaceful site. I re-joined Finola who was on her way to the ruined church and graveyard, crammed with evocative vaults looking very much like thatched houses of the dead, which I suppose is exactly what they are.

One area contained a little shrine which I suspect must be part of the rounds.

We walked across more fields to the leacht or slab that is said to mark the birthplace of St Senan in 488AD. His parents were local nobility and landowners, Earchan and Congella. As Congella went into labour she clutched at a rowan bush which miraculously burst into bloom, a sure sign someone saintly was about to be born. Today the tree marking the site is a hawthorn and no les significant for that.

The birthplace is a raised platform of stones, a whitewashed shrine enclosing a plaque erected to celebrate the 500th anniversary of St Senan’s birth in 1988. It is said St Imy was also born at this place but whether at the same time or later is unclear as the date of her birth is unrecorded. Several other saints have had similarly uncomfortable arrivals. As he was born, St Hugh banged his head on a large flagstone, leaving an indent on what is now known as the Headache Stone in Rahugh, County Westmeath (others say the indents were from the saintly knees in prayer); and Eithne gave birth to St Colmcille on a stone called the Leac na Cumha the Stone of Sorrow, near Gartan, County Donegal, a stone covered in prehistoric cup marks, still much revered.

There is one other point of interest that we didn’t visit – St Senan’s Lough, apparently much diminished today and heavily overgrown. Some interesting information about it here from Killimer Local History Group again, especially relating to its curative properties:

As you turn the corner to return to Molougha graveyard and complete the loop you can catch the best view of Molougha lake. We associate Molougha Lake with St. Senan and the properties of its water are noted for their curative qualities. People in the past collected a mixture of water both from the lake and the well and used it as a cure for horses and for spraying on cabbage to prevent it being attacked by snails. The lake was much larger before the adjoining land was drained so now only a small section of the lake is visible as it is overgrown with vegetation. One of the prophesies of the 1800s foretold that poles would go over the lake carrying heat and lighting and if it took the shape of a fiddle it would signify the end was nigh! (killimerlocalhistory.com)

The lake was included in the round which was extensive and demanding and also included the well, church and leacht:

There is a ‘Blessed Well’ to the north of the Lake now very carefully kept by the neighbouring people and a few hundred yards to the north of the Lake is situated a Churchyard or burial ground which contains the ruins of an old Church now almost demolished and which was undoubtedly established by St Senan. Close to the Blessed Well is a flag held in much veneration by the natives and which is said to mark the exact Birthplace of the Saint. People come to this hallowed place principally on the 29th June (Feast of S.S. Peter & Paul) or within its octave to perform ‘Rounds’ as penance for their sins or to obtain favours or in thanksgiving for the favours received. They have to go round the Lake in bare feet no easy journey over rough and mire land once a distance of about 1½ miles then to make five rounds round the Churchyard which is overgrown with Briars & nettles (it is said no one ever gets burned or scratched) then five ‘Rounds’ of the Blessed Well & finally five rounds of the ‘Slab’ on bare knees & finish by kissing same. (SFC:073:0600)

This entry, also from the Schools’ Folklore Collection, has the 8th March as the main feast day:

St Senan’s holy well is situated in the townland of Molougha in the parish of Killimer. It is near an old church. It is built near a lake. There is a bush near and the people go around it when they do ‘Rounds’. There is a protecting wall built around it. It was built by Brian Cunningham who is living near the blessed well. Pilgrims come to this blessed well every holiday during Summer and they do ’rounds’ as penance for their sins. Some people come there with horses and give them drinks. St Senan’s feast day is kept on the 8th of March every year when people do rounds at this well they say the rosary as they go around. Pebbles are used for counting the rounds. The water is said to have many cures; it cures many diseases in cattle and it is said to be very good for crops. One day after Saint Senan was born his mother was driving cows in the place where the well now stands and she picked a blackberry. St Senan reminded her it was a wrong thing for her to eat and the well immediately sprung up.
The ’rounds’ are performed in the following way -1) The pilgrim goes five times around a bush which is near the churchyard.2) He goes into the churchyard and goes around it ten times.3) Next he goes to the well where he goes around a bush five times.4) Then he goes around a stone five times, this time he goes on his knees.5) He then goes around the lake which is about a mile in circumference.6) When he comes back to the well he goes into it and says certain prayers. By doing this the rounds are finished. (SFC:462:0629)

I wonder if that’s true about the nettles and I’m not sure what was wrong with the blackberry for generally they’re fine to eat up until St Michael’s Day, 29 September, when Satan is reputed to have peed on them in fury for being outwitted by the Archangel! You can get a great feeling of the whole site, and a glimpse of the lake, from another of Killimer Local History Group’s excellent videos.

Out trip to Scattery Island was planned for the next day but the weather was truly appalling with horizontal rain and buffeting gales and the ferry was cancelled. We decided to amuse ourselves by donning our waterproofs and heading out in search of more holy wells and some stained glass.

St Senan’s Well, Tobar Sheanáin, Tobersenan, Leadmore East

First stop of the day was an attempt to find St Senan’s Holy Well on the outskirts of Kilrush. It was absolutely lashing. The description in the Clare Holy Well Project made it sound pleasant and easy to access with signage and a path. They lied! No sign and the path, yes it was there but completely overgrown with dense brambles the size of my wrist. I had to hop into the adjacent field and skirt the path. It ended abruptly in even denser brambles and mud but I spotted an encouraging gap in the foliage, clambered through, trying not to fall flat in my face!

But it was worth the pain for an extraordinary view opened up. Nestling in a very bosky bower was a large whitewashed shrine housing an almost lifesize statue of St Senan, one arm held aloft in an odd position. I think he is about to smite the sea serpent just distinguishable at his feet – more of that when we get to Scattery island.

A memorial plaque hints at a very sad story and the reason the shrine was erected and by whom.

I couldn’t get anywhere near the well itself as the land was so waterlogged but fortunately Bishop Fintan Monahan visited five years ago when it looked very different. The feast day here is the 8th March.

Little Senan’s Church, Monmore

The next stop was a true delight, Little Senan Church, Monmore, a tiny church, now decommissioned but still open. We entered and were blown away by the truly beautiful windows depicting a host of saints, both universal and vernacular, including including St Imy and St Senan. St Imy looks peaceful and thoughtful and holds flowers in her arms. St Senan has a hand reaching down to that sea monster again.

The glass is by the Murphy-Devitt Studios and dates from the early 1960s. As we were to continually discover throughout the day, some plain and austere churches contain an often unexpected riot of fabulous and creative stained glass.

St Senan’s Well, Tobar Sheanáin, Kilkee

We continued to Kilkee which was not looking its best.

The rain continued to lash and the wind to howl but we ventured out to find another well dedicated to St Senan, now located in the middle of a housing estate. Somewhere we took the wrong turning but ended up fortuitously in Well Lane, less fortuitously it was quite a tight dead end. Nonetheless the well could be seen right in front of us, identified by its distinctive wellhouse.

It is built from cut stone in the style of an an early Christian oratory.

When the Clare Holy Well Project visited, it had a roof which has since disappeared.

Yet, there was no roof when this charming photo was taken sometime in the late 1800s by Irish photographer Robert French. It shows two well dressed young men, one wearing a deerstalker and cape and the other sporting a boater, daintily drinking cups of water seemingly handed to them by an older more rustic looking man with fine side whiskers – was he the custodian of the well? He is drinking out of a tin cup.

It seems there was a custodian of the well until at least the early 1930s. This entry in the Schools’ Folklore collection is in Irish and was collected by Máire Ní Choileáin from 65 year old shopkeeper, Seamus Ó Griobtha and is a mine of information. I have included my own rough and laborious translation (with the help of Google Translate), please forgive any mistakes:

Tá an tobar seo laistiar de’n mbaile, ar bhothar a’ Tobair. Tugtaí cuairt air i n-allod ar lá féile Sionáin ach is rí-annam a tugtar turas ann anois. Suas le dhá bhliain ó shoin biodh fear i bhfeighil an tobair agus deineadh seanachas leis na cuairteoirí agus tugadh deoch uisce doibh 7rl. Níl aoinne i bhfeighil na h-áite anois. (SFC:012:0628)

This well is behind the village, on the Well Road. In times past it used to be visited on the feast day of St Senan but visits are rarely made nowadays. Up until about two years ago, a man used to be in charge of the well and he would chat with the visitors and they were given a drink of water etc. There is no one in charge of the place now.

The wellhouse was built in 1854 by local landowner Colonel Armstrong MacDonnell in order to protect it from pollution. Unusually, it was used as the main source of drinking water for the town of Kilkee as James Frost noted in 1893:

In the town itself is a fine spring, which supplies the inhabitants with water, and is dedicated to St. Senan. (The History and Topography of the County of Clare, 1893)

Next to the well remains a large concrete tank (which I forgot to photograph as it was so wet!) which once captured the overflow from the well and this water was used as a a washing area. Nonetheless the well retained its spiritual connections to St Senan. Today there is sadly no access to the well as it has been barred and gated with a sturdy padlock.

One cure has been recorded, again by Séamus Ó Griobhta, the affliction sounding very much like a stroke:

Deir Seamus O Griobhta gur leigheasadh duine amháin ann Bean Ui Fennel í, ó’n gCairn. Tharla san breis is caogadh bliain ó shoin, agus bhí an bhean triochadh bliain ag an am. Bhi beirt leanbh aici. Bhi pairilis ar a h-aghaidh. Scannruigeadh í. Bhi taobh amhain d’a h-aghaidh craipthe i dtreo go raibh a beal as alt.Thug sí cuairt ar Tobar Sionain agus dein turas ann agus leigheasadh í.(SFC:012:0628)

Translated as:

Séamus O Griobhta says one person was cured there – Mrs fennel from An Carn. It happened more than fifty years ago and the woman was thirty years old at the time. She had two children. Her face was paralysed. She was terrified. One side of her face was twisted so that her mouth was pulled out of alignment. She visited St Senan’s Well, made a round there and was healed.

There is still water within the well today but it looked scummy and unloved.

The well itself has a much longer history and an interesting if not unusual origin story, again told by Seamus Ó Griobhta:

Seo mar a d’eirig an tobar ar dtúis- Bhí Naomh Sionáin ‘n-a seasamh ar an Duggerna lá, chaith sé cloch soir uaidh agus nuair a thuit sé ar an dtalamh do phlaosc fior-uisce anios ó’n bpoll.Tá an cloch san i ‘n-a sheasamh ‘sa bhfalla mór timcheallan tobair agus ar taobh amháin dó tá poll cruinn ( lar-line-11/2″). Níl an poll a’ dul tríd an gcloich ar fad: ar an dtaobh eile tá ceithre cinn ar an dul ceudhna. Deirtear gurbh iad sa rian meur an naoimh a fagadh ann nuair a bheir sé ar an gcloic. (ibid)

Translated as:

This is how the well originated – St Senan was standing on Scattery Island one day. He threw a large stone away from him to the east and when it hit the ground, fresh water welled up from the hole. The stone is standing in the large wall surrounding the well. On one side of it is a round hole. The hole does not go all the way through the stone. On the other side there are four of the same kind. It is said that the mark of the saint’s finger was left there when he grasped the stone.

And the stone is still embedded the wall and it’s pretty hefty! You can just see a couple of round holes on the stone, looking very much like a prehistoric cupmarks.

And the jiving reference in the title? Exhausted after along and fruitful day, we saw this sign in a hedgerow, reversed to get a better looke and skidded to a halt. For some reason it just cracked us up. Too many wells and too much stained glass perhaps.

Talking of which, it would be rude not to include a few more images of some of the wonderful glass we also encountered on this grand day out.

We did eventually make it to Scattery Island so Part 2 will be coming up shortly. Finola meanwhile is way ahead of me and has already produced two blogs:

Searching for Senan: the Life

Searching for Senan: The Places

The location of these wells can be found in the Gazetteer.