placenamesKesh
An Chéis
Kesh, commonly written Keash locally, sits below its famous hill and caves; its community history is also recorded in the parish church, school and sporting grounds.
The name
A reliable full-name meaning has not been established here. The recorded Irish and English forms are given without an unsupported translation.
Recorded forms
- An Chéis · Irish · main form · validated name
- Kesh · English · main form
- Keash · English · main form · local name
Place & story
Reading the church’s fabric
Archaeologist Martin A. Timoney examined several kinds of evidence for Saint Kevin’s Church in Keash. A date cut into a window sill and an inscription in the porch glass both identify 1809 as its building year. Timoney compared these with maps and documentary references before accepting that date. His account also records extensive repairs begun in 1977 after dry rot was discovered, followed by the church’s official reopening in April 1980. [2]
From local rivals to Eastern Harps
Keash and Gurteen joined to form Eastern Harps in spring 1973, following earlier experiments in combined teams. The club’s own history credits Keash schoolteacher John Higgins with helping negotiate the merger and serving as its first chairman. A permanent playing field in Keash opened in 1990 with a Sligo–Mayo challenge match. Named for former Keash footballer Father Kevin Brehony, the ground gave the amalgamated club an enduring local base. [3]
The school’s anniversary collection
Keash National School marked its sixtieth anniversary in 2025 with plans to display old photographs and roll books at an April open day. Current pupils had interviewed former pupils for a video recording of school memories. The occasion also introduced new modular accommodation. The announced programme linked expansion of the school with the preservation of its own history, using pupils’ questions and earlier generations’ recollections to document changes in village education. [4]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Kesh. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- On St Kevin’s R.C. Church, Keash, County Sligo, The Corran Herald 42,2009/2010,pp 17–19 · Martin A. Timoney / Ballymote Heritage Group
- Eastern Harps GAA History,1973–2011 · Eastern Harps GAA
- Keash National School celebrating its 60 thanniversary with a trip down memory lane,8 April 2025 · Sligo Champion
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.