The Dennigans of Tomiskey
Some years ago, the author produced a brief study
of the story of the Dennigans of Tomiskey. This work was short and lacking in
much detail.
During the course of 2009, in conversation with Tony and Mary Jo Dennigan, the
author found that much interesting research into the family history had already
been undertaken by Tony’s cousins from Cork and England. At the same time, Tony
requested a small piece of research into a rumour that his grandfather, Laurence
Dennigan, had been buried in Abbeyshrule.
Spurred on by these, and with Christmas 2009 in mind, a more detailed study of
the family history was undertaken.
This work is intended to complement the research undertaken by Tony’s cousins,
hopefully filling in some gaps, and addressing some minor errors found. It is
hoped it will be of use to anybody interested in the Dennigan origins.
This study looks at the Dennigan
family of Tomiskey, County Longford. Tomiskey townland lies within the Civil
Parish of Mohill, Co. Leitrim, and the Roman Catholic Parish of Bornacoola, Co.
Leitrim but is actually located in County Longford.1
Its location can be described, in present-day
terms, as the last townland in Longford on the Dublin-Sligo road. According to
Griffith’s Primary Valuation of Ireland, there were almost 274 Statute acres in
Tomiskey in the 1850s.2
It is bounded to the west by the River Shannon,
and contains some bog to the east.
There have been Dennigans in Tomiskey since late in the 19th
Century. As shall be shown later, they owe their presence there to the marriage
of Laurence Dennigan to Anne Clyne. Anne inherited land in Tomiskey to which she
and her husband moved. According to family tradition, the Dennigan family
lived in Middleton3
in Killashee, Co. Longford, before that. The current dwelling house, which is
close to the Dublin-Sligo road, was build in or around 1924. Before then, the
family lived on another site on the current farm.4
The present dwelling house is indicated by a red arrow on the aerial view (Page
3), while the original one is indicated by the blue arrow.
1 Mohill Civil Parish and Bornacoola Roman Catholic Parishes are both mostly in County Leitrim, but contain some townlands from County Longford.
2 Richard Griffith, Primary Valuation of the Tenements of Ireland. Co. Longford details published 1854. Accessed on www.irishorigins.com (subscription site)
3 Sometimes spelled and pronounced as Middletown.
4 Oral Information from Tony Dennigan, Tomiskey, Co Longford