One Summer in Drumgrania

ne summer we spent in Ireland we rented a country farmhouse in Drumgrania, seven miles outside of Mohill, Co. Leitrim. It was the most pleasurable of all our stays in Ireland, and we thoroughly enjoyed eating a meal from an Irish food recipe made on the peat cook stove at the farm. It was a large farmhouse with grazing cattle and haying was being done on the acres of land and fields. The drive into the property was down a long gated driveway surrounded by holly and ivy-covered stone walls.

In the middle of Co. Leitrim, the cattle farming area, we enjoyed walks down the country lanes and toured the old cemeteries looking for possible ancestors. It was a two mile walk to the nearest shop and pub but the area was so beautiful that the walk seemed short. One of the neighbors had a field of bulls that we would stop to visit with. After a while they recognized us and would come up to the fence when we called to them. The drive back to town was through the Leitrim Estate at Lough Rynn. This property was owned by the Reynolds Clan back in medieval times and was taken over by Lord Leitrim during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. There were ruins of one of the Reynolds Castles there. The Leitrim Estate was beautiful, featuring a huge stone mansion and lots of lovely plush green acreage. This property is now being converted into a hotel and golf resort.

That summer we met, and became friends with, so many of the people of the Mohill area. Thomas and Maura Casey treated us like two of their own and we had such nice visits with them and their family. Gerry and George, two friendly regulars we met in one of the pubs, were always good for some laughs. John Reynolds, restaurateur and caterer, was a big help to us with information about the Reynolds Clan and was our neighbor in Drumgrania. Jim and Phil O’Brien introduced us to some of the Reynolds family that we had not previously met and we stayed at their B & B on our most recent visit on St. Patrick’s Day 2005. Sean Clarke, hotel and pub owner, was most generous to us. Teresa Bohan, caretaker of the Leitrim Estate, where her family lived for years, has been a great and loyal friend over the years. We met Thomas McNamara and his family, all of whom had lived and worked in America, but found their way back home to Ireland.

We made so many friends that summer and have wonderful memories of that particular visit to Ireland. When we left Ireland at the end of the summer, Thomas Casey brought us to the train depot in Dromod. We were sad to leave but we boarded the Sligo to Dublin train and were on our way home. On the train we sat across from a woman and her daughter who seemed to be fascinated by us. They had brought their own lunch while we bought some egg mayonnaise sandwiches and some crisps. When we arrived in Dublin, we took a cab to the airport. We were bringing home a lot more than we had arrived with, including a yellow toaster, coffee pot and microwave. We still use the yellow dishes that we purchased for the farm. Every time we use them we remember our summer in Drumgrania.

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