View source for Kenmare

{{short description|Town in County Kerry, Ireland}}
{{About|the town in Ireland}}
{{EngvarB|date=October 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2013}}
{{Infobox settlement
|settlement_type = Town
|name = Kenmare
|native_name = {{Irish place name|Neidín}}
|native_name_lang = ga
|image_skyline = Henry Street, Kenmare.jpg
|image_caption = Henry Street, Kenmare
|pushpin_map = Ireland
|pushpin_label_position = right
|pushpin_map_caption = Location in Ireland
|coordinates = {{coord|51.8801|-9.5835|dim:1000_region:IE|display=inline,title}}
|blank_name_sec1 = Irish Grid Reference
|blank_info_sec1 = {{iem4ibx|V908709}}
|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name = Ireland
|subdivision_type1 = [[Provinces of Ireland|Province]]
|subdivision_name1 = [[Munster]]
|subdivision_type2 = [[Counties of Ireland|County]]
|subdivision_name2 = [[County Kerry]]
|unit_pref = Metric
|elevation_m =
|population_as_of = [[2022 census of Ireland|2022]]
|population = 2,566
|population_footnotes = <ref name= "tableF1015census2022" >{{cite web|url = https://data.cso.ie/table/F1015 | publisher = Central Statistics Office | work = Census 2022 | title = F1015: Population and Average Age by Sex and List of Towns (number and percentages), 2022 | date = April 2022 | accessdate = 29 June 2023 }}</ref>
|website = {{URL| Kenmare.ie}}
}}
{{Historical populations|width=22.2em|state=collapsed
|1821|605
|1831|1072
|1841|1339
|1851|1509
|1861|1200
|1871|1205
|1881|1279
|1891|1189
|1901|1122
|1911|1034
|1926|883
|1936|921
|1946|906
|1951|907
|1956|1054
|1961|1046
|1966|1113
|1971|903
|1981|1123
|1986|1130
|1991|1366
|1996|1420
|2002|1844
|2006|1701
|2011|2175
|2016|2376
|2022|2566
| footnote=<ref>{{cite web|url=http:// cso.ie/census |title=Census for post 1821 figures. |publisher=Cso.ie |access-date=24 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050309005718/http:// cso.ie/census/ |archive-date=9 March 2005 }}</ref><ref>[http:// histpop.org histpop.org] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160507023856/http:// histpop.org/ |date=7 May 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http:// nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/census |title=NISRA – Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (c) 2013 |publisher=Nisranew.nisra.gov.uk |date=27 September 2010 |access-date=24 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217095720/http:// nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/census |archive-date=17 February 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book
| last=Lee|first=JJ| author-link =J. J. Lee (historian)|editor-last=Goldstrom|editor-first=J. M.|editor2-last=Clarkson
| editor2-first=L. A.|title=Irish Population, Economy, and Society: Essays in Honour of the Late K. H. Connell
| year=1981|publisher=Clarendon Press|location=Oxford, England
| chapter=On the accuracy of the [[Great Famine (Ireland)|Pre-famine]] Irish censuses}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Mokyr | first1 = Joel
| author-link = Joel Mokyr | last2 = O Grada | first2 = Cormac
| author2-link = Cormac Ó Gráda | title = New Developments in Irish Population History, 1700–1850 | journal = The Economic History Review | volume = 37 | issue = 4
| pages = 473–488 |date=November 1984
| url = http://www3.interscience.wiley /journal/120035880/abstract | archive-url = https://archive.today/20121204160709/http://www3.interscience.wiley /journal/120035880/abstract | url-status = dead | archive-date = 2012-12-04 | doi = 10.1111/j.1468-0289.1984.tb00344.x | hdl = 10197/1406| hdl-access = free}}</ref><ref name=CSO2016>{{cite web | url = http://census.cso.ie/sapmap2016/Results.aspx?Geog_Type=ST2016&Geog_Code=2C4FF83D-CA73-48E8-A9AB-B9475194E62A | publisher = Central Statistics Office | title = Census 2016 - Small Area Population Statistics (SAPMAP Area) - Settlements - Kenmare | work = Census 2016 | access-date = 19 August 2018 | archive-date = 31 January 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210131111513/http://census.cso.ie/sapmap2016/Results.aspx?Geog_Type=ST2016&Geog_Code=2C4FF83D-CA73-48E8-A9AB-B9475194E62A | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref name= "tableF1015census2022" />
}}
'''Kenmare''' ({{lga|Neidín|the little nest}})<ref name= "Irish" >{{cite book | title = Collins Irish Gem Dictionary | place = Great Britain | publisher = HarperCollins Publishers | year = 2006 | isbn = 0-00-719160-X }}</ref><ref name= "logainm" >{{cite web|url=http://logainm.ie/1373201.aspx |title=Irish Placenames Database – Kenmare entry |access-date=24 August 2013}}</ref> is a small town in the south of [[County Kerry]], Ireland. The name Kenmare is the [[Anglicisation|anglicised]] form of ''Ceann Mara'',<ref name= "Irish" /> meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. It is also a [[townland]] and [[Civil parishes in Ireland|civil parish]].<ref name= "logainm" />

==Location==
Kenmare is located at the head of [[Kenmare River | Kenmare Bay]] (where it reaches the farthest inland), sometimes called the Kenmare River, where the Roughty River (''An Ruachtach'') flows into the sea, and at the junction of the [[Iveragh Peninsula]] and the [[Beara Peninsula]]. It is also located near the [[MacGillycuddy's Reeks]], [[Mangerton Mountain]] and [[Caha Mountains]] and is a popular [[hillwalking]] destination. Nearby towns and villages are [[Tuosist]], [[Ardgroom]], [[Glengarriff]], [[Kilgarvan]], [[Killarney]], [[Templenoe]] and [[Sneem]].

Kenmare is in the [[Kerry (Dáil constituency)|Kerry]] constituency of [[Dáil Éireann]].

==History==
Evidence of ancient settlement in the Kenmare area includes one of the largest [[stone circle]]s in the south-west of Ireland.<ref name= "megalithomania" >{{cite web|url=http:// megalithomania /show/site/700 |title='The Druids' Circle': Stone Circle – Kenmare |publisher=Megalithomania |date=11 August 2002 |access-date=24 August 2013}}</ref> Close to the town, this stone circle shows occupation in the area going back to at least the Bronze Age (2,200–500 B.C), when it was constructed. The circle has 15 stones around the circumference with a boulder dolmen in the centre.<ref name= "megalithomania" />

[[Vikings]] are said to have raided the area around the town which at that time was called ''Ceann Mhara'', which means "head of the sea" in Irish.

The entire area was granted to the English economist and scientist [[William Petty|Sir William Petty]] by [[Oliver Cromwell]] as part payment for completing the mapping of Ireland, the [[Down Survey]] in 1656. He laid out the modern town circa 1670. Before him, a previous surveyor of Ireland, [[Sir Valentine Browne]] (1510-1589), ancestor of the [[Earl of Kenmare]], was granted some lands in [[County Kerry]] during the resulting plantation, the [[Plantation of Munster|Munster Plantation]].

The three main streets that form a triangle in the centre of the town are called Main Street (originally William Street, after Sir William, 1st. Marquis of Lansdowne), Henry Street (originally Sound Road), after the son of William the 1st. Marquis and Shelbourne Street (Henry Petty became the first [[Earl of Shelburne]]). This name was also later applied to [[Shelbourne Road]] in Dublin.

[[File:Kenmare mass Famine grave.jpg|thumb|Mass [[Great Famine (Ireland)|famine]] grave for Kenmare victims]]

The convent in the town, the [[Order of Poor Ladies|Poor Clare Sisters]], was founded in 1861 when five nuns including Sister Mary Frances Cusack (The Nun of Kenmare), who was also an author and publisher of many books, moved to Kenmare from their convent in [[Newry]], [[County Down]]. Under the guidance of Mother Abbess O'Hagan in 1864 a [[lace]]-working industry was established and [[Kenmare lace]] became noted worldwide. The convent no longer exists and Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine secondary school occupies this site since 2001.

A suspension bridge, which is claimed to be the first in Ireland, over the Kenmare River was opened in 1841 and served the community till 1932 when it was replaced by a new concrete bridge.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kenmare /information/history/kenmare-suspension-bridge/ |title=Article of the Kenmare Suspension Bridge}}</ref>

During and after the [[Irish Civil War|Civil War]] (1922-1923), there were a number of incidents in Kenmare, including the [[Executions during the Irish Civil War#Unofficial killing|killing of O'Connor brothers in September 1922]] by the [[Anti-Treaty IRA]],<ref name= "doyle" >{{cite book|url =https://books.google /books?id=mcXdStg4ppQC&q=kenmare+civil+war+o%27connor&pg=PA171 | publisher = Mercier Press | date = 2008 | title = The Civil War in Kerry | author = Tom Doyle | pages = 167–170, 228–229 | isbn = 9781856355902 }}</ref> and the brutal assault against the allegedly [[Unionism in Ireland|Unionist]] daughters of a local doctor by three [[Dublin Guard]] officers led by [[Paddy Daly]] in 1923 (which is sometimes referred to as the '[[Kenmare incident]]').<ref>{{cite book|url = https://books.google /books?id=BvphAgAAQBAJ&q=%22Kenmare+incident%22+1923&pg=PA85 |title = Afterimage of the Revolution: Cumann Na NGaedheal and Irish Politics, 1922–1932 | publisher = University of Wisconsin Press |author = Jason Knirck | date = 2014 | isbn = 9780299295837 | page = 85 }}</ref> Kenmare was briefly held by the Anti-Treaty IRA, during the [[Irish Civil War]], before being successfully retaken by the [[Irish Army]] in December 1922.<ref name= "doyle" />

The town library is one of the [[Carnegie library|Carnegie Libraries]] funded by [[Andrew Carnegie]]. It opened in 1918, and the architect was R.M. Butler.<ref>{{cite web|url=http:// librarycouncil.ie/documents/AnTaisceCatalogue3.pdf |title=Catalogue of the Photographic Exhibition of Irish Carnegie Libraries |publisher=Librarycouncil.ie |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726213327/http:// librarycouncil.ie/documents/AnTaisceCatalogue3.pdf |archive-date=26 July 2011 }}</ref><ref>[http:// kenmare /history/carnegie_history.html Article from Kenmare Historical Society] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513012708/http:// kenmare /history/carnegie_history.html |date=13 May 2008 }}</ref> The library building is now home to the Carnegie Arts Centre and theatre, hosting a local drama group and a number of travelling productions each year, as well as music and comedy nights.<ref>[http:// carnegieartskenmare.ie/ Carnegie Arts Centre in Kenmare Co. Kerry: Drama, Music, Film, Dance and More<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

Holy Cross Catholic Church in Kenmare was consecrated in 1864. It was built under the guidance of Archdeacon Fr. John O'Sullivan - who is interred within the church.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kenmareparish /holy-cross-church-150/ |publisher=Kenmareparish |title=Churches}}</ref> The church has stained glass windows by O'Connor London (1863), by Caseys Dublin (1864) and by Earley Dublin (1864). The organ is by Telford & Telford(1865). Buried in the church grounds is Monsignor [[Francis Cremin]] (died 2001), who was a periitus or theological expert at Vatican II. He was a native of Kenmare and had been Professor of Canon Law and Moral Theology at St Patrick's College, Maynooth from 1949 until 1980. He was a brother of Con Cremin, an Irish diplomat, who represented Ireland in France and Germany during World War II and subsequently in Portugal, the Holy See, the United Kingdom and at the United Nations.

[[File:Main Street Kenmare Ireland between 1880 and 1914.jpg|thumb|View of Main Street in Kenmare (between the 1880s and early 1900s)]]
The [[Church of Ireland]] church of St Patrick celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2008.<ref>Church of Ireland Gazette, page 3, 3 October 2008</ref> The town has been a winner in the [[Irish Tidy Towns Competition]] in 2013, 2000 and was a runner-up in 2003 and 2008.

==Tourism==
[[File:Patiently waiting for the fall?.jpg|thumb|Carrigacappeen erratic, Kenmare, 1890s]]
Kenmare lies on two noted Irish tourist routes, the [[Ring of Kerry]] and the [[Beara Peninsula|Ring of Beara]], approximately {{convert|32|km|mi}} from [[Killarney]]. As a result, it is a popular tourist destination and many of the businesses in the area cater to tourists. The town is noted for its food and pubs.

Since the late 1990s the tourism industry has driven local construction work,{{Citation needed|date=June 2011}} with land being sold at high prices to [[real estate developer|developers]] wishing to build [[housing estate|estates]] of [[vacation rental|holiday homes]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/2006/02/02/story752748628.asp |title=€11.5m land sale expected as Kenmare prices rocket |work=Irish Examiner |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929110332/http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/2006/02/02/story752748628.asp |archive-date=29 September 2007 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> This has led to an increase in the town's population, particularly during the peak tourist season, and prompted fears among some residents that the town is becoming overdeveloped and losing much of its identity.<ref>[http:// independent-marketing.ie/kerryman/stories.php3?ca=40&si=1499155&issue_id=13218&printer=1 Fast-changing times for Kenmare]{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} ''The Kerryman'' (registration required)</ref>

== Notable people ==
{{See also|Category:People from Kenmare}}

[[File:Wheels, Kenmare - geograph.org.uk - 287425.jpg|thumb|Horse and cart in Kenmare.]]
Inter-county [[Gaelic football]]ers [[Mickey O'Sullivan|Mickey 'Ned' O'Sullivan]], [[Stephen O'Brien (Kerry Gaelic footballer)|Stephen O'Brien]] and [[Paul O'Connor (Gaelic footballer)|Paul O'Connor]] are from the Kenmare area, while [[Pat Spillane]] is from nearby [[Templenoe]]. Kenmare is also the home of Irish Olympic [[Slalom skiing|slalom skier]] [[Thos Foley]].

Kenmare was home to composer [[Ernest John Moeran]] for a number of years up to his death and a local bar was named after him - but has since been renamed.{{citation needed|date=January 2018}} Diplomat [[Con Cremin]] was also from Kenmare, as is senator [[Mark Daly (politician)|Mark Daly]]. Writer [[Anna McPartlin]] grew up in Kenmare, and her 2007 novel ''Apart from the Crowd'' was set in the town.

[[Francis Brennan (hotelier)|Francis Brennan]] is the owner of the five-star Park Hotel in Kenmare.<ref>{{cite news|url=http:// independent.ie/lifestyle/jobs-careers/waking-hours-francis-brennan-1496569.html|title=Waking Hours: Francis Brennan|date=12 October 2008|access-date=23 January 2012|work=Sunday Independent|publisher=Independent News & Media}}</ref> He and his brother John, owner of the nearby Dromquinna Manor Hotel in Templenoe, are known for their TV series "At Your Service".<ref>{{cite news| url=http:// rte.ie/tv/programmes/atyourservice.html | work=RTÉ News | title=At Your Service}}</ref>

==Fair days==
Due to its location at the centre of a large agricultural area, Kenmare served as the local [[market town]]. Until the establishment of an auction [[Market (place)|mart]] in the early 1990s, the approximately monthly ''[[fair|fair days]]'' were a time when farmers would ''stand'' their animals in the streets for sale to visiting stock dealers. The only fair which continues to be held is that of 15 August, which coincides with the Catholic [[Holy Day of Obligation]] marking the [[Assumption of Mary]]. The day attracts crowds of locals and visitors and is the busiest day of the year in Kenmare.<ref>{{cite web |url=http:// neidin.net/fairday/index.html |title=The 15th of August Fair day in Kenmare, County Kerry Ireland |publisher=Neidin.net |access-date=24 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029184640/http://neidin.net/fairday/index.html |archive-date=29 October 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

==Transport==

There are daily bus-services in summer to [[Killarney]] and in the off-season, the bus runs Monday-Friday. There is also a daily service to/from [[Cork (city)|Cork]] in the summer months on the [[N71 road (Ireland)|N71]] via [[Bantry]], [[Skibbereen]], [[Clonakilty]] and [[Bandon, County Cork|Bandon]]. In mid-2023, a new service from Killarney to Skibbereen via Kenmare was announced, replacing the previous Killarney to Kenmare and Kenmare to Skibbereen services with additional journeys and extended hours.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Collins |first=Proinsias |date=2023-06-21 |title=Bus Éireann announces improved services and timetables on Route 270, Killarney to Skibbereen |url=https:// transportforireland.ie/news/bus-eireann-announces-improved-services-and-timetables-on-route-270-killarney-to-skibbereen/ |access-date=2023-06-27 |website=Transport for Ireland |language=en-US}}</ref>

The N71 also connects Kenmare to Killarney on a mountainous and scenic part of the Ring of Kerry route via [[Moll's Gap]] and [[Ladies View]]. Alternatively one can reach Killarney via the slightly longer but more comfortable route through [[Kilgarvan]]. Kenmare also lies on the [[N71 road (Ireland)|N71]] [[national secondary road]] south-[[Cork (city)|Cork]] route to [[Glengarriff]]. In November 2014, the Eastern Relief Road was opened, allowing drivers from the [[R569 road (Ireland)|R569]] Kilgarvan Road to bypass the town centre when accessing the supermarkets and schools.

Kenmare railway station opened, in October 1893,<ref name= "butt" >{{cite book| first=R.V.J.| last=Butt| title=The Directory of Railway Stations| publisher=Patrick Stephens Ltd| year=1995| isbn=1-85260-508-1|page =130 | quote = Kenmare GS&W [..] OP 4 October 1893; CL 1 January 1960 }}</ref> as the terminus of a branch from the [[Great Southern and Western Railway]]'s [[Mallow–Tralee line]] at Headford Junction. The station closed, along with the branch, in early 1960<ref name= "butt" /> and the last passenger train ran on 1 February 1960.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kenmare's Last Train – Amharc Éireann: Eagrán 32 |url=https://ifiplayer.ie/amharc-eireann-kenmares-last-train/ |date=18 July 2016 | publisher = Irish Film Institute | website = ifiplayer.ie | quote = On the 1st of February 1960, Kenmare locals and railway workers looked on as the last train made its final journey on the tracks before the line closed }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = https:// irishtimes /life-style/2022/08/06/36-hours-in-kenmare-id-describe-it-as-the-opposite-of-killarney-people-are-still-very-friendly-here-it-is-all-business-in-killarney/ | publisher = Irish Times | website = irishtimes | title = 36 hours in Kenmare | date = 6 August 2023 | accessdate = 8 March 2023 | quote = the last train out of Kenmare [was] on February 1st, 1960, at 9.30am. The railway had opened in 1893, and the Kenmare branch line was the last stop on the Great Southern and Western Railway route }}</ref> The track was lifted shortly afterwards.

==Services==
The town has a primary and secondary school, a public library, community hospital, as well as Catholic, Church of Ireland and Methodist churches.

==Sports==
The GAA club, [[Kenmare Shamrocks GAA Club|Kenmare Shamrocks]], competes in [[Kerry GAA]] competitions. [[George Mayberry]] from Kenmare participated in the [[1908 Summer Olympics]].

Kenmare Kestrels Basketball Club was founded in 2006 and competes in the Kerry Area Basketball League.

The local soccer team Inter Kenmare F.C. competes in the [[Kerry District League]] at U17, Youth & Senior Men's/Women's level and in the Kerry Schoolboys/girls League for all underage teams.

Overlooking [[Kenmare River|Kenmare Bay]] and adjacent to the Park Hotel is the 18 hole, Kenmare Golf Club.<ref>{{cite web |title=Homepage |url=https://kenmaregolfclub / |website=Kenmare Golf Club |access-date=6 June 2024}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
In the fictional [[Harry Potter universe|''Harry Potter'' universe]], Kenmare is home to the ''Kenmare Kestrels'', one of only thirteen Quidditch teams that play in the [[Quidditch]] League of Britain and Ireland. The team players wear emerald-green robes emblazoned with two yellow K's across the chest.<ref>{{cite book |first=Kennilworthy|last=Whisp|title=Quidditch Through the Ages|title-link=Quidditch Through the Ages|year=2001 |publisher=WhizzHard Books|pages=31–46|isbn=1-55192-454-4}}</ref>

The eponymous song '' "As I leave behind Neidín" '' was written by [[Jimmy McCarthy]] and recorded by [[Mary Black]] amongst others.

The town was also referenced in the ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise]]'' episode "[[Breaking the Ice (Star Trek: Enterprise)|Breaking the Ice]]". The crew aboard the spaceship answer questions received from school children who are said to be from Kenmare.

==See also==
* [[List of towns and villages in the Republic of Ireland|List of towns and villages in Ireland]]
* [[Market Houses in the Republic of Ireland|Market Houses in Ireland]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikivoyage}}
* {{Official website|http:// kenmare.ie/ }}
* [http:// kenmarelace.ie/ Kenmare Lace]

{{County Kerry}}
{{Tidy Towns (Ireland)}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Kenmare| ]]
[[Category:Towns and villages in County Kerry]]
[[Category:Townlands of County Kerry]]
[[Category:Civil parishes of County Kerry]]