placenamesFerns
Fearna
Saint Edan’s Cathedral combines a nineteenth-century rebuilding with later woodwork, stained glass and memorial sculpture.
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
- Fearna · Irish · main form · non-validated name
- Ferns · English · main form
Place & story
Rebuilding and restoration
The architectural inventory dates the present cathedral’s principal rebuilding to 1816–17, with Board of First Fruits support, on the site of its medieval predecessor. James Franklin Fuller directed further work in 1901–02. The Irish Architectural Archive records a new chancel arch, renewed seating and tiling, roof treatment and stalls for the dean and chapter. Webster of Gorey was the builder, and the cathedral reopened on 20 November 1902. [2] [3]
Artists within the building
The cathedral’s furnishings record several generations of craftsmanship. Some timberwork was reclaimed from Saint Canice’s Cathedral in Kilkenny. The Jervis-White memorial window was supplied in 1902 by Heaton, Butler and Bayne, while the Gibson memorial window of 1931 came from An Túr Gloine to Catherine O’Brien’s design. The inventory also identifies wall monuments signed by John Smyth and Joseph Robinson Kirk. These works give individual makers a visible place within the parish’s architectural history. [2]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Civil parish
- County
- Wexford
- Barony
- Gorey
- Barony
- Scarawalsh
- Coordinates
- 52.59592, -6.49252
- Mapped area
- 40.52 km²
- Logainm ID
- 2547 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Ferns. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Saint Edan’s Cathedral, NIAH15612001 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- Ferns cathedral: works6804 · Irish Architectural Archive, Dictionary of Irish Architects
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.