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Heritage
Picturesquely located at the foot of McGillycuddy’s Reeks it has been a
tourist destination for over two hundred years and many famous visitors have
crossed the Beaufort Bridge on the road to the Gap of Dunloe. The tourist
industry has been a major force in the development of the area.
Beaufort has a number of key sites of cultural and historic importance.
1.The most significant of these is the Ogham Stones. Seven of the eight
Ogham stones in this group were discovered in a souterrain at Coolmagort in
the nineteenth century and have been set up on this site close to Dunloe
Castle. The tallest stone is 8 feet high. There is also a prostrate slab taken
from the grounds of nearby Kilbonane church.
Ogham stones were frequently used as lintels in the construction of
underground passages. Because of their long protection from exposure, the
Dunloe inscriptions are unusually well preserved. All are of a commemorative
nature, as is usual in these monuments.
2. St. John’s Mill Dunloe was built by the landlord, Donal O’Mahony of Dunloe
Castle in 1874, as an amenity for his tenants. Unfortunately it is now in a bad
state of repair. It was a strong built four storey construction and the
machinery was worked by water power brought by sluice from the river Loe.
The big wheel is one of the largest in the country; it measures twenty-six feet
in diameter with a rim six feet wide and weights ten tons. All kinds of grain –
wheat, oats, and barley were ground there between the huge crushing stones
or querns. It proved a wonderful asset to the people not only in this parish
but all mid Kerry and even much further a field during the two Great Wars
1914 – ’18 and 1939 – ’45 when no imported wheat or flour was available. It
produced first class flour at a very cheap rate.
3. Beaufort House is a beautiful 18th century manor house set in 40 acres of
woodland overlooking the River Laune. The original building on the site was a
Short Castle, so called because it was only two stories high, built by Captain
O'Sullivan in 1641 and attacked by Cromwell's forces in 1653, the west wall
being demolished. In about 1760 the present house was built, the remaining
three walls of the castle forming the hallway. The interior was altered in 1830
and the chimney pieces and plasterwork date from this time.
4. Dunloe Castle (built 1207) and Gardens
Planted by Howard Harrington in the 1920s and 1930s. Further planting done
by the owners of Killarney Hotels Ltd. during the 1960s and since then. An
extensive collection of trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials with fine lawns,
fountains and vistas. Dunloe Castle Gardens are one of The National Gardens
of Ireland.
5. The area boasts many more historic sights including Corr Castle(built
1450), Churchtown old church ruins, Old Church ruins of St. Gobnait in
Kilgobnet, Ardraw Earthern Fort, and many Ring or Fairy Forts.