About Us / Maidir Linn

Location
Killererin, is situated in North County Galway and lies 9kms east of the town of Tuam and 38.5kms from Galway city. It is called in Irish Cill Fhir Iarainn - Church of the Iron Man. (Cill = Church, Fhir = of the man and Iarainn = Iron). Steeped in history and folklore, this parish is unique, in that there is no town or village called Killererin

The parish stretches from Cloondahamper in the North to Ballyglunin in the South and from Horseleap Cross in the East to Toghermore in the West. The village at the heart of Killererin is Barnaderg. Killererin was also known as Doolough or Dublock, and this is mentioned for taxation purposes as far back as 1306. The civil parish of Killererin is found within the following four Baronies; 10,307 acres in the Barony of Clare; 1,918 acres in the Barony of Tiaquin; 1,634 acres in the Barony of Dunmore and 674 acres in the Barony of Ballymoe .

There are 63 townlands in the civil parish, with two population centres Barnaderg and Ballyglunin and one lake namely Horseleap Lough.

There are two national schools in our parish Barnaderg National School and Cahergal N.S. Brierfield N.S. lies just outside the border on the Dangan side and many pupils from our parish attend there.

About Us
Killererin Heritage Society was founded on September 15th, 2008. Our Mission Statement is to preserve, protect and promote an awareness and appreciation for all aspects of Killererin's built, natural and cultural heritage.

The first committee included chairperson: Eileen O'Connell, Dangan; vice-chairperson: Sylvester Cassidy, R.I.P., Peak; secretary: Bina Devaney, Lissavalley; treasurer: John Tighe, Prospect and committee members Bridie Gilligan, Dangan; Miko Keane, Barnaderg; Dom and Mary Dunleavy, Barbersfort and the late Mary Geoghegan, Peak. Shortly afterwards they were joined by Marie Regan R.I.P., Ballina and Bernadette Forde, Togher.

Many members have come and gone since but from 2010 to 2024, Bernadette Forde acted as chairperson and Eileen O'Connell as secretary. The current committee is: chairperson: Mary Moran, Togher; secretary: Bernadette Forde, Togher; treasurer: Eileen O'Connell, Dangan and committee members Dom and Mary Dunleavy, Barbersfort, Mary P. Mullins, Dangan and Helen Curran, Forty Acres.

Projects
We have been involved in many worthwhile projects since our inception including:

  1. Digital mapping of Killererin Old Graveyard and erection of 2nd sign commemorating those known to be buried there but with no identifying markers.
  2. The identification and commemoration of unmarked children's burial grounds in the parish with a memorial stone erected in Church grounds.
  3. Publication of Killererin - A Parish History and other publications such as Military History, Tales of the Past by Nora Williams.
  4. Participating in and hosting a variety of exhibitions.
  5. Hosting a variety of courses, the latest a talk exploring  the 1926 Census with Martin Curley
  6. An annual Heritage Calendar and organising our annual heritage tours.

Your Contribution
The creation of this website is an opportunity for you our parishioners and neighbours and our global diaspora to make your contribution. We welcome old photos, articles, or any memories you would like to share which can be uploaded to this site.

We look forward to hearing from you.