I happened upon St Patrick’s Church in Donaghmoyne while searching for another site nearby and what a beautiful surprise it proved to be. The church here closed in 1976 and remains in a decent condition thanks to recent efforts to restore the church and rebuild the roof over the past 15 years (though these efforts seem to have stalled now). The church was built in 1827 and is a fine example of a ‘First Fruits Church’. The Board of First Fruits was established in 1711 to fund, through tithes, the building of ecclesiastical buildings for the Church of Ireland. During its existence the board enabled the building or rebuilding of 697 churches throughout Ireland. St Patrick’s appears to have been built on the site of a much earlier church as foundations beside the church would suggest. The graveyard is populated with many unusual crosses and vaults, including one vault which is open, peering into it and seeing the bones and skulls lying within certainly sent shivers down my spine! It is also believed that 18^th century Irish language poet Cathal Buí Mac Ghiolla Ghunna is buried on this site. 

GPS: 54.00263, -6.6924