Know your Townland – Applefort/Cnoc na nÚll

This is one of the smallest townlands in the parish at a mere 30 acres. It certainly has one of the more interesting names and some information on the placename origins is given below. It probably could have justifiably have been called Baile Uí Briain because, as you will see, its sole occupiers for so long were three O’Brien families!

There appears to have been a population boom in 1861, after the Famine, which cries out for explanation, but unfortunately, this has not been given us through available records.

12.22 hectares / 0.1222 km²/0.05 square miles/30.21 acres

Applefort is adjacent Ballagh and Ballyroughan and approx. 2 miles from Quin Village

Note: In response to the famine of 1822 the government introduced a number of schemes of public works in order to give employment to the poor. When they attempted to place the cost of these schemes on the landowners, there were many disputes concerning land ownership and boundaries. No official maps or other documentation to resolve such disputes was available. To resolve this, the Boundary Commission, under Richard Griffith, was established.

The Boundary Survey commenced work in 1824, marking on the ground, the actual boundaries of every townland. Where they felt it necessary, they subdivided the pre-existing land divisions, to create smaller units. The Ordnance Survey built on the work of the Boundary Commission to produce maps of the entire country at a scale of 6” to the statute mile. This was done in County Clare during the 1830s and the maps were published in 1842. The valuations for Clare were not published until 1855 but the information contained would have been collected a bit earlier.

1901 Census:

3 households, Population 13

John & Bridget O’Brien.

Thomas & Mary Anne O’Brien, sons Michael, Patrick, Daniel, John with his father Thomas and mother Honora.

Cornelius & Margret O’Brien with his brother Jas.

1911 Census:

3 households, Population 14

John & Bridget O’Brien.

Thomas & Mary Anne O’Brien, sons Michael, Patrick, Daniel, John, daughters Mary, Ellen with his mother (Ha)Nora.

Cornelius & Margret O’Brien with his brother Jas.

Births extracted from1800’s records

Placename (Courtesy of Logainm.ie)

cnoc

English – hill

abhaill, abhlach, abhla, úll ‘apple’

English – apple-tree

Historical references to Placename

National Monuments

There are no monuments within this tiny townland, however there are four ‘Enclosures’ or ringforts surrounding it:

CL043–001, CL043–005, CL043–006, CL043–004. They are referenced here because one of these features is likely to have inspired the name of the townland.

Apples were clearly an important foodstuff in Gaelic Ireland, and as there are many references to both the fruit and the tree in the townland names of Ireland. For instance, in County Galway we have the anglicized Cappaghnanool/Ceapach na nÚll “the plot of the apples” (logainm.ie #19972) and the directly translated Apple Island/Oileán na nÚll(logainm.ie #19142).In County Cork we have Derrynanool/Doire na nÚll “the wood, grove of the apples”(logainm.ie #12842); Rossnanowl/Ros na nÚll “the wood, elevated ground of the apples” (logainm.ie #26678) in County Kilkenny; and Tomanoole/Tuaim na nÚll “the tumulus, hillock of the apples” (logainm.ie #52375) in County Wexford. Additionally we have Gortnanool/Gort na nÚll “the field of the apples” (logainm.ie #7546) and the half-translation Applefort/Cnoc na nÚll “the hill of the apples” (logainm.ie #7820) in County Clare. The unusual English form references the large ringfort on the boundary with the adjoining townland. Indeed, it is probable that the fort was the location of the apple-trees in question.

(Conchubhar Ó Crualaoich & Aindí Mac Giolla Chomhghaill) Logainm-Themes 15/8/2024.

Closing Comment

It would be remiss of this post not to mention the passing almost a year ago (March 2025) of Tommy O’Brien from Applefort, husband of the late Maureen and father to John, Deirdre, Sheila and the Quin Tidy Towns chairperson Pat O’Brien.