Deserted Village, Slievemore, Achill
The Deserted Village at Slievemore on Achill Island is made up of about 100 stone cottages. It is thought that the village's last full-time residents left during the Famine years.
Courtesy of John McNamaraDeserted Village, Slievemore, Achill
Courtesy of John McNamara
Courtesy of John McNamara
Deserted Village, Slievemore, Achill
The Deserted Village at Slievemore on Achill Island is made up of about 100 stone cottages. It is thought that the village's last full-time residents left during the Famine years.
Courtesy of John McNamaraThe Deserted Village at Slievemore on Achill consists of about 100 stone cottages. Archaeological evidence suggests that there has been human settlement in the area for thousands of years.
The first Ordnance survey of Achill Island in 1838 showed the village at Slievemore to be occupied. Less than twenty years later, following the ravages of the Great Famine, a traveller to the island described the village as deserted.
Remains of Cottage, Slievemore, Achill
Courtesy of John McNamara
Courtesy of John McNamara
The houses are rectangular in shape with dry stone walls. In the past they had thatched roofs. The majority of the houses are windowless and have only one doorway. Some of the cottages have two doorways, one at either end of the house.
Cottages at Slievemore, Achill
This photograph shows the typical layout of the cottages at Slievemore. A large room at the northern end of the cottage with a much smaller room at the soutern end.
Courtesy of John McNamaraCottages at Slievemore, Achill
Courtesy of John McNamara
Courtesy of John McNamara
Cottages at Slievemore, Achill
This photograph shows the typical layout of the cottages at Slievemore. A large room at the northern end of the cottage with a much smaller room at the soutern end.
Courtesy of John McNamaraAfter the village was abandoned it was still used as a 'booley' in the summer months. A booley village is one which is occupied for only part of the year. The villagers from Pollagh and Dooagh would take their cattle to graze on the rich mountain side pastures of Slievemore during the summer months. They stayed in the old cottages, returning to their villages for the winter. It is thought that this practice continued up until the 1940s.These days, another group of people like to come and spend the summer at the Deserted Village. A team of archaeologists has been coming to the site for a number of years. They carry out archaeological digs and try to find out new information on how life was lived in the past.