Togher Churches 03 - The Teampalleen

 Example Illustration of the Little Temple

 The other Church of antiquity in Togher was originally located at the now present day entrance to Matthews Hill with its adjoining graveyard across the road being demolished in 1983 for the construction of 3 Bungalows ( Local rumour has it that strange goings on of a supernatural bent were reported by the new occupiers ). The Teampalleen - ( Little Temple? ) - as it was known was built in the 12th Century by the Normans being constructed of cut limestone blocks. Quite why this Church and its close relation in Killeenreendowney were allowed to decay is subject to conjecture. Certainly the re-conquest of Ireland in the 17th Century played a major part in their demise.

Old photo of heavily overgrown 
Teampalleen graveyard with headstones

It is recorded that a road was put through the Church and Graveyard possibly 16th Century , forever separating them. This would suggest a possible timeline for the emergence of the Woulfe Family as a major landowner in the region on whose lands the Teampalleen was then situated. The Church grew out of use but the Graveyard continued as a burial place right up until the 17th Century , eventually too falling out of official use , albeit up to the middle of the 20th Century becoming the last resting place of unbaptised babies and waifs and strays. Construction work in the late 1990s near the location of the ancient church found carved blocks but an excavation permit was refused.

 Modern day Location of Teampalleen : 

Graveyard was in situ on Left side of road ; 
Church was in situ on Right side of road

Togher Churches 02 - Killeenreendowney

The first ancient Church lay in the vicinity of Killeenreendowney and is thought to have pre-dated Patrician Missionaries , which in theory could suggest its origins as being circa 3rd to 4th Century - the Townlands name Cill Ri An Domnaich anglicised as " Little Church of the King of Sunday " - betraying its early Celtic lineage. The land it was situated on was probably gifted by the Uí Mhic Ceir tribe firstly to Druids for erection of sacred shrines and then to the fledgling Christian Religion. Unfortunately its whereabouts are unknown , due to the fact that the structure may have been composed of wood and therefor returned to nature owning to negligence. Other sources hint that the arrival of the Vikings in the future City of Cork circa the 9th Century may have seen this structure put to the sword and fire , the theory being that it contained priceless relics which would have been carried off as booty by the Invaders. Yet another train of thought indicates that the Ostmen of the 10th Century would have pilfered same and if constructed of stone , for same to be removed to aid in shoring up quay sides.

 Artists example illustration of what the 

Church may have looked like if composed of wood

Yet it is not disputed that the Church and its immediate surroundings was viewed as the hub of Christianity for the whole of Cork and its environs at the time. However it can be conjectured that the constant attacks saw the little Church fall into disrepair and out of use. Rather poignantly a Sraid or Town is mentioned in documents from the 1550s , which would be consistent with Church land attracting commerce and people. It is recorded that the ruins of a Church were discovered near Friars Walk in Killeenreendowney East in the 16th Century complete with relics and coins and religious paraphernalia ; it is thought however that this was a later Church and not related. In conclusion , the entire region was synonymous with organised religion stretching back over the course of 1,300 years!

Scenario showing Viking or Ostmen attack on Church
 if composed of stone which may be unlikely

A likely location for the Church if indeed sited in Killeenreendowney West would be between Boston Park and Ardmanning Avenue , which would place it at 29 Metres above sea level - the highest point in the region , which seems likely as it was the practice of Early Christian Missionaries to not only build on and/or convert former Pagan places of worship , but also to command high locations. This would make sense latitude wise as the structure could easily be viewed by travellers in its immediate surroundings which all dip below this height on both sides , North and South. The aerial photo below shows the likely spot. An old dirt track which connected Togher Road and Pouladuff Road known as The Passage and extant up to the 1950s could possibly have traversed the old location.

Possible site of the 

Little Church of the King of Sunday

Togher Churches 01 - Way Of The Cross

 Togher Church 2014

It's now been over 40 years since Togher Church or The Church Of The Way Of The Cross was built in 1972 as the 7th in a series of " Rosary " Churches by the late Bishop Lucey. This effectively made smaller parishes out of the existing older St Finbarr's and other Parishes which had originally been Civil Parishes before Emancipation in 1829. The land in Lehenaghmore which was owned by the S.M.A. was donated free of charge to the Developers Messrs O'Sheas Ltd whilst the Architect was Mr. J.R. Boyd Barrett. Work initially began in 1970 and was finalised in July 1972 at a cost of £147,000. It must be stated that the land was signed over as early as 1963 for just such a purpose. Great praise must also go to the people of Togher who contributed so much towards the project through door collections , raffles and various money raising schemes. Prior to the new Church , many locals used their native Church by the Lough or the Church Of Ease at Wilton via the footbridge over the Glasheen River depending on length of journey to be undertaken. But this was not Togher's first Church! see below

 Evening Echo 1971 Report 01

 Evening Echo 1971 Report 02

Evening Echo circa 1972

Building in progress

Local man Marshall C. Hutton

 Blessing of Cross inside partially completed 

building circa 1971

Official opening of Church in 1972

Crane tracks still in situ during blessing 1972

First ever Mass in the new Togher Church 1972!

Togher Choir outside Church in 1973

Eucharistic Procession 1973

Entrance into Togher Church circa 1972 near the

 Liberty Stream at Togher Cross before it was 

piped and arched over in 1986

Repairing the Church roof in 2013

While there is no historical evidence of a Mass Rock in the general Togher area , it can not be dismissed out of hand. Such gatherings at the time were often held in wooded regions for concealment purposes so may have been undertaken , the term " Mass Rock " being a catchall phrase to indicate any meetings of the kind. However , the Church of the Way of the Cross is not the first Church in Togher , the region having a long history of Churches to which it can lay claim. Sadly , they are now confined to the History books , being long obliterated by Man and Time. At least two are known to have existed ; one at Killeenreendowney and the other on Matthews Hill , Lehenaghmore. The blog will feature extensive articles on these older Churches in the near future. To conclude , Togher is also home to many other faiths , including Mormons , Jews and Muslims , many of whom have their own places of worship in Togher. This will also be expanded on in future posts. An interesting footnote is that the Protestant community of Togher have their own Parish of Frankfield ( established 1838 ) which includes Lehenagh Beg and Lehenagh More.

Fr. Laurence Carr SMA & 

Fr. Joseph Donnelly SMA 

handing over the Doughcloyne site 

in 1963

Togher originally lay in the parish of St. Finbarr’s South until 1890, when it formed part of the newly created parish of St. Finbarr’s West, better known as The Lough Parish. In 1963, Dean Murphy, P.P. of the Lough Parish , began looking for a site for a new church in the Togher area due to the ever expanding population and the prospect of future housing schemes. Fr. Craven, the Provincial of the SMA , offered the Dean a five acre site on the Togher road.  This site, forming part of the SMA site in the Doughcloyne area was transferred to the Parish, free of charge, for the future church in 1966.

 Denis O'Connor R.I.P.

Below is a full list of Parish Priests who served in Togher from its inception up to the present. However , special mention must be made of Fr. O'Connor , who lived at 112 Togher Square ( He recalled that there were 124 Children in the little square! ) for a while during the early 1970s , moving in on 20th January 1970 until 1973 whilst the Priests Houses were being built. Although he was never Parish Priest , he acted as its Caretaker during its formative years and had a special place in the hearts of children in the locality , not least because of his act of visiting households in the nearby area with a suitcase full of chocolate bars free gratis. He was appointed to Togher ( not then an independant Parish of the Lough ) in 1970 as Curate and began celebrating Mass in St. Finbarrs Hurling & Football Club whilst also setting up meetings in the Old National School ( now Community Centre ) to organise fund raising activities. People were also asked to donate part of their wages to help finance the project which was paid in full before opening in 1972. Fr. Denis O'Connor finally left Togher in 1977.

Parish Priests

Michael Daly 1977 - 1980

Seán Mac Cárthaigh 1980 - 1981
Vincent Hodnett 1981 - 1982 ( Acting P.P. for 9 Months )

John Shorten 1982 - 1992

Michael Riordan 1992 - 2011

 Robert Brophy 2011 - to date

Local man T. Lucey by wall of Liberty Stream 

circa 1920s where Church would be built