Gneeveguilla
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Gneeveguilla, ( ), officially Gneevgullia (), is a small village in the
Sliabh Luachra Sliabh Luachra (), sometimes anglicised Slieve Logher, is an upland region in Munster, Ireland. It is on the borders of counties County Cork, Cork, County Kerry, Kerry and County Limerick, Limerick, and bounded to the south by the Munster Blackw ...
region of East
County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...
,
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. It lies about east of
Killarney Killarney ( ; , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Killar ...
, close to the
County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...
/
County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...
border.


Location

Gneeveguilla is situated in a region of hills and valleys and serves a rural hinterland consisting of dairy farms, pastureland and peatland.
Townland A townland (; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a traditional small land division used in Ireland and in the Western Isles of Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of medieval Gaelic origin, predating the Norman invasion, and mo ...
s in the area include Coom (Lower and Upper), Bawnard, Gullaun, Mausrower and Lisheen. At Mausrower, there used to be a large quarry in the early part of the 20th century, the remnants of which can be seen today on the approach from the Killarney direction towards Lower Coom. Hence the junction at Lower Coom being known as the Quarry Cross.


History

In the 19th century Gneeveguilla was the scene of an event known as the 'Moving Bog'. On the night of Sunday 28 December 1896, after a prolonged period of bad weather, sleeping families were awakened by an unusual sound. When daylight broke, to their horror they realised that over of bogland was on the move in a southerly direction, taking everything before it. It followed the course of the Ownachree river into the river Flesk. The bog continued to move until New Year's Day and came to rest covering hundreds of acres of pastureland. The Moving Bog claimed the lives of 8 members of one local family. The Church of the Holy Rosary is a
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church in Gneeveguilla opened on 10 October 1937. It is one of three churches in the Rathmore Parish of the Diocese of Kerry.


Education

Gneeveguilla National School () is a Catholic, co-educational school in the center of Gneevguilla, directly across from the GAA pitch and athletics center. Two smaller primary schools, in the hinterland, previously served the local populace. One of these, Tureencahill National School closed in 2014 due to insufficient student numbers. The former school building now serves as a digital hub and centre for a local community group.


Music and culture

Several exponents of the ' Sliabh Luachra style' of traditional Irish music come from the Gneeveguilla area, including fiddler players
Julia Clifford Julia Clifford (19 June 1914 – 18 June 1997) was a fiddler and Irish traditional musician. Life Julia Murphy was born at Lisheen, Gneeveguilla, County Kerry, part of an area in west Munster known as Sliabh Luachra. Her father Bill pla ...
, Denis Murphy and Johnny and Paddy Cronin; and button accordion player Johnny O'Leary. There is a statue in the village in honour of the Sliabh Luachra seanchaí (storyteller) Éamon Kelly (1914–2001).


Sports

Gneeveguilla GAA Gneeveguilla are a Gaelic football team from County Kerry, Ireland. They play in the Kerry Intermediate Football Championship, Kerry County Football League (Division 1) and the East Kerry Senior Football Championship. The club was founded in 1 ...
is the local GAA club which plays in the
East Kerry GAA The East Kerry Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association caters for 13 Gaelic football clubs and 1 hurling club in the East Kerry division of the GAA county of Kerry. History Early years The East Kerry Board was founded in 1925 following ...
division. Gneeveguilla is home to
Ambrose O'Donovan Ambrose 'Rosie' O'Donovan (born 11 June 1962 in Gneeveguilla, County Kerry) is an Irish former sportsperson. He played Gaelic football with his local club Gneeveguilla and was a member of the Kerry senior inter-county team from 1984 until ...
, a former captain of the
Kerry senior football team The Kerry county football team represents Kerry in men's Gaelic football and is governed by Kerry GAA, the county board of the Gaelic Athletic Association. The team competes in the three major annual inter-county competitions; the All-Ireland S ...
which won the 'Centenary All-Ireland'
All-Ireland Senior Football Championship The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) () is the premier inter-county competition in Gaelic football. County (Gaelic games), County teams compete against each other and the winner is declared All-Ireland Champions. Organised by the ...
. Gneeveguilla won the Kerry Intermediate Football Championship in 2010. They then went on to win the Munster Championship and lost the All-Ireland semi-final to St. James of
County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...
, after a period of extra time. Other local sports clubs include Gneeveguilla Athletics Club. Established in 1978, it has had success at local and national levels. Quarry Park Rangers is a local
association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
(soccer) club. Founded in 1982, the club fields teams in the Kerry District Leagues. A previous soccer club, Gneeveguila FC, were crowned Premier B Champions in 1974. Gneeveguilla's basketball club was founded in 2007.


Development

In
Kerry County Council Kerry County Council () is the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authority of County Kerry, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and community, roa ...
's "South East Kerry Settlements Local Area Plan 2008–2015", a number of opportunities for the future development of Gneeveguilla were identified. The plan recommended against scattered and ribbon development, as well as environmental and pedestrian safety improvements.


Notable people

*
Julia Clifford Julia Clifford (19 June 1914 – 18 June 1997) was a fiddler and Irish traditional musician. Life Julia Murphy was born at Lisheen, Gneeveguilla, County Kerry, part of an area in west Munster known as Sliabh Luachra. Her father Bill pla ...
(1914–1997), traditional musician. *
Paddy Cronin Paddy Cronin (6 July 1925 – 15 March 2014) was an Irish fiddler. Cronin was born in Ré Buí near Gneeveguilla, County Kerry. He was taught fiddle by Padraig O'Keeffe. In 1949, Seamus Ennis recorded him on acetate disc for Radió Éir ...
(1925–2014), fiddler. * Eamon Kelly (1914–2001), actor and storyteller. * Denis Murphy (1910–1974), traditional musician. *
Liam Murphy Liam Murphy may also refer to: * Liam Murphy (Gaelic footballer), Irish Gaelic footballer for Kerry * Liam Murphy (Home and Away), fictional character played by Axle Whitehead * Liam Murphy (rugby union) (born 1988), Irish-American rugby union p ...
, Gaelic footballer. *
Ambrose O'Donovan Ambrose 'Rosie' O'Donovan (born 11 June 1962 in Gneeveguilla, County Kerry) is an Irish former sportsperson. He played Gaelic football with his local club Gneeveguilla and was a member of the Kerry senior inter-county team from 1984 until ...
(b.1962), Gaelic footballer. *
Charlie McCarthy Charlie McCarthy was a dummy partner of American ventriloquist Edgar Bergen. Charlie was part of Bergen's act as early as high school, and by 1930 was attired in a top hat, tuxedo and monocle. The character was so well known that his popularity ex ...
, Gaelic footballer. *
Aogán Ó Rathaille Aodhagán Ó RathailleVariant Irish spellings of his name include ''Aogán'' and ''Ua Rathaille'' or Egan O'Rahilly (c.1670–1726), was an Irish language poet. He is credited with creating the first fully developed Aisling. Early life It is tho ...
(c.1670–1726), poet born at Scrahanaveal near Gneeveguilla. *
Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin (174829 June 1784), anglicized as Owen Roe O'Sullivan ("Red Owen"), was an Irish poet. He is known as one of the last great Gaelic poets. A recent anthology of Irish-language poetry speaks of his "extremely musical" p ...
(1748–1782), poet.


See also

* List of towns and villages in Ireland


References

{{County Kerry Towns and villages in County Kerry