Ordnance Survey Letters by John O'Donovan and Eugene Curry, 1839

Parish of Killard (a)

The Parish of Killard, in the south west extremity of the Barony of Ibricken and Co. of Clare, is bounded on the north by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Kilrush, south west by Kilfeeragh, east by Kilmacdooan and north east by Kilmurry Parish. See Name Book.

The name of this Parish is of ecclesiastical origin and means nothing more than the Church on the Height (Cill-Árd). We have met with no historical reference to this place unless the following from the Irish Calendar may have reference to it: “Flann Chille Áird (Flann of Killard) 14th March.“

They have no Patron Saint in this Parish, but there is a Holy Well near the Church called Tobar-Chruthnoir-an-Domhain, i.e., the Well of the Creator of the World. This Well is still much frequented by persons afflicted with soreness of the eyes.

The ruined old Church of Killard stands in Killard Townland to which it gave name, measuring sixty three feet in length and fourteen feet four inches in breadth, both gables remaining to the full height and of the north wall five feet remains attached to the west gable and thirty four feet to the east gable, and of the south twelve feet remains joined to the west gable and twenty one feet to the east gable. There is a quadrangular topped belfry in good preservation on the west gable and a quadrangular window underneath at the height of eight feet from the ground, measuring four feet in height and two and a half feet in breadth on the inside, two feet eight inches high and eight inches wide on the outside. There is a broken window in the south side eight feet from the west end. There is another quadrangular window in the same side within four feet four inches of the east gable, measuring three feet in height and two feet eleven inches in breadth on the inside, two feet five inches high, four inches wide at top and five at bottom on the outside. There is a window in the east gable measuring five feet in height and two and a half feet in breadth on the inside, where it is built up with brown grit cut stone as far as the springing of the arch, which is a rectilineally pointed one, composed of two green thin flags unlike any of the stones immediately around them. On the outside it is semicircular at top, measuring one foot nine inches in height and ten inches in breadth, looking very old as does the entire of this gable and the parts of the side walls that attach to it, being built up of large blocks of stones irregularly placed. The side walls are about ten feet high and two and a half thick, the west gable appearing more modern than the other parts. There is a large and much frequented burying ground attached to the ruin.