common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

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kbarlow
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common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by kbarlow » Thu Oct 27, 2016 12:36 am

There appear to be several townlands in the Tithe Applotment Books with "Common" as part of their title. The history of these "commons" is quite complex, as indicated by a reading of several historical works relating to land holding in Ireland and Clare. It would appear that Cromwell's "settlement" disturbed quite radically how the common land was used and eventually led to claims and boundaries and the naming of commons as townlands.

It would be great if any listers can add their knowledge about the commons, so we can build a better picture of their history.

Kerry

Paddy Casey
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Re: common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by Paddy Casey » Thu Oct 27, 2016 12:02 pm

Thanks Sheila and Kerry for raising this topic. It caught my eye particularly because I had been interested in the Clare townland of Moyrhee Commons which, I had been told, was a place where anyone could settle and which therefore became a haven for the dispossessed and low-income families. The geography of the area supports that idea because it is mainly non-fertile karst which would be unlikely to appeal to someone, e.g a landlord, wanting to own land as an investment.

At http://www.from-ireland.net/brehon-laws ... g-to-land/ I read: "Five ways of holding Land....Fifth.-The non-arable or waste land-mountain, forest, bog, &c.-was Commons-land. This was not appropriated by individuals; but every free man had a right to use it for grazing, (see chapter xxiii, vol, II, p. 282). for procuring fuel, or for the chase. There was no need of subdividing the commons by fences, for the cattle grazed over it without distinction....."

In an explanation of Griffith's Valuation terms at http://www.findmypast.com/articles/grif ... n-of-terms I read "Some land in Ireland was still legally common land (or commons). These were generally medieval rights allowing common use of specific lands, usually waste ground. By the mid-nineteenth century most common land had been enclosed under parliamentary legislation, or had become the freehold property of squatters".

These scraps until a scholar steps up with a fuller explanation.

Paddy

Sduddy
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Re: common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by Sduddy » Tue Nov 01, 2016 10:49 am

Yesterday I was reading (once again) ‘Landscape and Settlement in the townland of Drinagh – Part III’, by Martin Barry, in The Other Clare Vol. 39 (2015), and saw that he mentions ‘coitsin’ (p.16): “Similiarly, a ten acre plot of ground in the southern section of the townland is still called the ‘coitsin’, the designation usually applied to land held in common [reference: P.V. Joyce, Irish names of places (2 vols, Dublin, 1995) ii, p. 479]. If this landholding arrangement was in place it may initially have been an informal one between various families in the townland. By 1844 however each plot in the townland had been clearly defined.”

Ruan Commons, Toonagh Commons, and others, are further examples of the above, but Griffith's shows that in some cases land continued to be held in common. Ballymacrogan, East in Ruan has one plot (3 acres +) which is let to the tenants of the townland.

Also there was a part of Moyree Commons where very poor people settled, and looking at the map I can see that the most of plot 79 is not marked off - this is an area of limestone crag - an outcrop of Burren landscape.

Sheila

Sduddy
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Re: common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by Sduddy » Tue Nov 01, 2016 12:12 pm

I am zoning in on Moyree Commons (Griffith's) - which may be a bit of an exception rather than a rule - and a bit too particular for the general topic of commonage.
I am looking at Moyrhee Commons, (Muckannagh DED), in the 1901 census, and I'm noticing that form B.1 (buildings) shows twelve (out of 24) houses, are not owned by anyone and are designated "Commonage". Two are 2nd class houses (with two, or three, windows in front), eight are 3rd class (one or two rooms), and two are 4th class (one room and no windows). I think the word "commonage" supports what Paddy heard from the people around.

In 1911 (the townland is now spelled "Moyree Commons" and the D.E.D. is spelled "Muckanagh"), there is no mention of commonage.

Sheila

Sduddy
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Re: common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by Sduddy » Thu Nov 03, 2016 1:37 pm

Among the digital books available on clarelibrary.ie, is “Digest of evidence taken before Her Majesty's Commissioners of inquiry into the state of the law and practice in respect to the occupation of land in Ireland – Part II” .
See the link to digital books under “Research support” in the Genealogy section and scroll to the category: Social and Economic History – Ireland: http://www.archive.org/stream/digestevi ... 6/mode/2up

Richard Griffith’s instructions to the surveyors are quoted, including a couple (on pg. 735) on how land held in common was to be treated:

“14. In many districts it frequently happens that several persons are tenants of one townland, or one large farm, who hold in rundale, or in common. In this case it will not be necessary to survey the different patches of land occupied by each of the tenants, as a townland or large farm, under such circumstances, must be treated as one tenement; but the surveyor is to ascertain from the occupants generally, what proportion, or fraction of the entire farm is held by each individual, and enter such portion in his field book, together with the Christian name and surname of the tenant.

15. Where a townland is let in several distinct farms, and has a tract of mountain or pasture attached, which is grazed in common, such portion must be marked as a separate tenement, and the surveyor, as in the case of a rundale townland, is to ascertain the names of all the persons who hold it, and enter them in his book, annexing to each name, the portion, or fraction of the whole of the division which that portion holds.

Richard Griffith, Commissioner of Valuation, General Valuation Office, Dublin, 26th October, 1844.”

It appears from this that there was an acknowledgement that some land was held in common. However, it seems the surveyors were instructed to put to the people, who used the land, to decide what fraction of it each one held ( I assume that they would be liable for rates accordingly). This was, literally, a fracturing of the commonage.

I’m not sure if this adds anything to the discussion, but giving it anyway.

Sheila

kbarlow
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Re: common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by kbarlow » Tue Nov 08, 2016 7:40 am

HI Sheila and Paddy - these comments are really useful. I note that my ancestor Michael Hehir, in Griffiths Valuation, was listed against 364 acres at Commons South, yet the following year I found in the re-valuations he was in a small "house & garden" (less than 1 acre) and 3 others were listed against the 364 acres!! Sheila's last post helps make some sense of this. My surmise is that Michael Hehir, as a remnant of the original O'Hehir clan leaders who held vast swathes of this part of Clare prior to Cromwell, would have retained some rights to the commons.

I recently visited the area known as Commons South in 1850's and it is certainly "rocky pasture"!!

I am in touch with another person with Hehir ancestors who come from Ruan and I note several of them were at Mheree Commons in the Tithe Books. By Griffiths Valuation there is only 1 Hehir left on those (Moyree) Commons.

Kerry

Sduddy
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Re: common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by Sduddy » Sun Dec 18, 2016 2:06 pm

The East Clare Heritage Journal “Sliabh Aughty”, No. 16, 2016 edition (eastclareheritage@eircom.net) is in the shops and I’ve been reading ‘Looking for the Booley: Did Derryoober have a King?’, by Dr. Christy Cuniffe. In the course of speaking about Booleying* in Derryoober, Cuniffe says, “ In the past livestock were removed to the commonage for the summer months to facilitate the planting of root and cereal crops in the infields near the clachan or village settlement. This farming system known as rundale consisted of a village centred communal cluster settlement with small fields adjacent to the settlement and open commonage at a remove from the settlement”. Dr. Cuniffe takes the townland of Derryoober as his case study. Derryoober is not in Co. Clare – it’s in Woodford, Co. Galway – the Sliabh Aughty upland region is almost evenly split between South East Galway and North East Clare – but it’s possible this rundale system was also practiced in Corlea Commons North and Corlea Commons South in Feakle parish. That area is under State Forestry now, so finding traces of human settlement would be nigh impossible, but some local knowledge may have survived. I would be interested to hear how commonage operated in those townlands. Did it become confined to the farmers living in there?
Griffith’s Valuation shows Corlea Commons North as one large plot (433 acres) owned (in fee) by Michael John Molony and described as Herd’s house and land and cottier’s houses. The 1842 ordnance survey map (used for Griffith’s Valuation) does not show any houses – the explanation may be the houses were valued at less than 5s and so were not marked (surveyors were instructed not to mark houses valued at less than 5s). The later (about 1890?) 25” ordnance survey map shows some houses, and there were five households in that townland at the time of the 1901 census.

Sheila

*Booleying is the practice, which still occurs in many places in Europe, of moving livestock to the uplands during the Summer months, and is termed transhumance. In the Burren area it was different - the cattle were brought up for the Winter.

kbarlow
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Re: common land (labelled cotteen in the Down Survey maps)

Post by kbarlow » Fri Dec 30, 2016 11:14 pm

More on the "commons" - from McInerney, L [(2014) Clerical and learned lineages of Medieval Co Clare - a survey of the fifteenth-century papal registers, Four Courts Press, Dublin] we learn that Termonkilleneboy is one of about thirty monastic termon lands in the Diocese of Killaloe prior to the seventeenth century. These had been controlled by coarb and erenagh lineages (hereditory farmers and wardens of church or monastic lands) prior to the Cromwellian period and the termon at Killinaboy consisted of around 800 (Irish) acres . McInerney lists twenty one places where this land was situated, with the one nearest the Killinaboy church being Munamaleen, now the townland of Monanaleen (adjacent to the townlands of Commons North & Commons South).

Kerry

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