Headford News and Community Spotlight - Lighting up Local Legend

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT 

For those who are visiting Headford this summer, and for those who live here but want to find out more about local legend, this week’s Community Spotlight will shine on an area landmark with an enigmatic past. The Ballycurrin Lighthouse.

Ballycurrin Lighthouse

It’s something most of us around here take for granted, but did you know there’s a fascinating collection of stories behind this 18^th Century lighthouse? Situated at the edge of the Galway/Mayo border, it’s a lovely hidden wonder. So hidden, in fact, that when William Wilde, Oscar Wilde’s daddy, wrote his extensive account of the area (Wilde’s Lough Corrib), he sailed right by the lighthouse and didn’t even remark on it.

Said to be the only inshore lighthouse of its kind in Europe, with a roof made out of a mill wheel (now there’s an interesting architectural choice), the Ballycurrin Lighthouse was built in 1772 by a member of the Lynch tribe. Which Lynch, though, is a matter of debate.

First, there’s the claim that Liam Lynch, a local landlord, built the lighthouse. But, the boathouse beside the lighthouse has a stone engraved with ‘Erected by Henry Lynch, Esq. A.D. 1772,’ so that supports the story about Sir Henry building the lighthouse as a marker for the Galway to Cong ferry. Timber was burned in the uppermost portion of the lighthouse to create the light that would guide the ferry to Lynch to deliver his provisions. Sir Henry was a 7^th ‘Baronet,’ an inherited title which meant that, technically, he was gentry, but literally, he had not been knighted or even received any kind of accolade. He was just a guy whose great-grandda owned a big house. This might be why he was more often referred to as ‘Harry.’

Another story involves Sir Henry’s wife. The polite version is that she had the lighthouse built so he could find his way home at night, since he was fond of visiting the pubs in Galway and Cong. In this version, Sir Henry’s wife has no name or identity of her own, poor creature.

However, in another version of the story, Sir Henry’s mistress is named. Sibella Cottle, the mother of seven of Henry’s illegitimate children, might have built the thing. She was reputed to use ‘witchcraft’ to spellbind Sir Henry to her for life. 

Oh, those wacky Georgians . . .