St Senan’s old church & Village

23 St Senan’s Graveyard & old church

A Roman Catholic church stood on this site from 1813 to 1980. It was a beautiful stone church in the shape of a cross with a large stain glass window at the entrance. The stain glass window was relocated to the new church, as was the bell and original church foundation stone.

Church attendance records show that Spanish sailors came to mass when they were docked in Doonbeg Bay.

Records from 1507 recount the time the Spaniards took great quantities of fish on this part of the Irish coast. Traces of the original Milesian colony (native Irish), and the subsequent mixing with Spanish mariners and traders, may still be found in the complexion, eyes, countenance, and grave deportment of many families here.
It was not infrequent for navy officers and others arriving here occasionally, to exclaim “Espagnol” on seeing one of our own.

“It is a singular fact in corroboration of the foregoing conjecture, that the cut of the boatmen’s coat is precisely the same on the River Shannon and on the Spanish coast of South America” – This was observed with astonishment by an officer of the 37th regiment, who had been long quartered at Kilrush, and in Trinidad.

St Senan’s Old Church Doonbeg

Question

Can you sketch what the church used to look like?

Question

Can you find where the priests are buried?