placenamesKilledan
Cill Liadáin
Killedan's history links a documented seventeenth-century friary with the Taaffe and MacManus estate and the formative landscape of the poet Raftery.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Cill Liadáin · Irish · main form
- Killedan · English · main form
Place & story
The friary’s documentary trail
The Irish Franciscans place the first documentary appearance of the Killadan friary in 1645, suggesting a foundation shortly beforehand. Papal approval was sought in 1663, and a superior was appointed in 1672. The order identifies that appointment as the last firm evidence for an active Franciscan connection, although the name continued into the eighteenth century. Its account also records the later practice of celebrating Mass among the restored ruins in July. [2]
The house and its estate
Killedan House was already standing by 1838. The National Inventory describes an L-shaped two-storey farmhouse with a later projecting porch, slate roofs and associated outbuildings. University of Galway estate research traces the property through leases involving the Knox and Taaffe families. At Griffith's Valuation, Leonard Strong held the townland and James MacManus occupied the house. The same research identifies the estate as the place where Anthony Raftery grew up. [3] [4]
Lottie and Emily MacManus
The National Inventory links Killedan House with Charlotte Elizabeth, known as Lottie, MacManus and with Emily MacManus. Lottie's publications included the novel The Red Star in 1896 and White Light and Flame, her account of the literary revival and Anglo-Irish War, in 1929. Emily became matron of Guy's Hospital in London, serving from 1927 to 1946, and published her own memoir, Matron of Guy's, in 1956. [3]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Killedan. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Killadan, Mons Pietatis, County Mayo · Irish Franciscans
- Killedan House, NIAH 31307118 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- Strong and Taaffe, Killedan estate accounts · Landed Estates Database, University of Galway
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2010-01-06. How this page was prepared.