Ennistymon, Co. Clare - Home of Cloudforest Four

Taking its name from ‘Inis Diamain’ (generally translated as ‘Diamain’s River Meadow’) Ennistymon is located on the River Cullenagh. With a rich history and picturesque surroundings, Ennistymon is a charming town located on the west coast of Ireland in County Clare. 

There is a narrow street close to the bridge over the River Cullenagh, which is known to be the oldest part of the town. The River Cullenagh eventually joins up with the River Derry. This combined stream becomes the River Inagh and runs towards the Atlantic Ocean. The town has developed around this old bridge over the years. The earliest recorded mention of Ennistymon comes from The Moland Survey of 1703 which states:

"The Farm of Inishtimond is 30 miles distant from Limerick, from Ennis 13 and 17 from Kilrush, it is a manor and has on it a good castle and a house joyning to it 2 stories high and in good repair, stable and other convenient outhouses, with a small garden, a corn mill worth about 5 per annum and 7 or 8 cabins."

The town had only three cabins within it in 1775. However, by 1810 this had grown to 120 cabins. By 1824, the population had grown to 1,500. A workhouse was built at the onset of the Great Famine to accommodate 870 poor & destitute inmates. Between 1847 and 1851, almost 5,000 people died working within these workhouses, many died from cholera. 

A memorial monument was erected in 1995, a mile outside Ennistymon on the road to Lahinch to commemorate the memory of the victims of the Great Famine from 1845 to 1850. The monument was designed by an artist from Co Kerry and depicts an account from around the time of the famine. The account centered on a note that was pinned to the torn shirt of a barefoot orphan boy who was left at the workhouse door on the freezing cold morning of 25 February 1848. The note read:

Gentlemen,

There is a little boy named Michael Rice of Lahinch aged about 4 years. He is an orphan, his father having died last year and his mother has expired on last Wednesday night, who is now about to be buried without a coffin!! Unless ye make some provision for such. The child in question is now at the Workhouse Gate expecting to be admitted, if not it will starve.

Rob S. Constable''

After the famine, the town slowly rebuilt itself and a new middle class of shopkeepers and businesspeople emerged and a town centre began to develop. By the 1880s, the town was prosperous, epitomised by the opening of the Ennistymon railway station opened on 2 July 1887. The town also had its own woolen mills for the manufacture of tweeds and flannels, which brought employment to the area & increased prosperity.

This prosperity was further increased by the introduction of a creamery to the town by the Irish Government in the 1930s, which brought public lighting, running water, and a new sewage system to the area. Unfortunately, by the 1960s, a wide variety of issues including the closure of the railway line & mass emigration, meant a decline in economic activity in the area, stunting the town's growth and prosperity.

Nowadays, Ennistymon is a bustling rural town that remains true to its rich history. All the shops are within walking distance, the fronts of which are all beautifully done up. There is a range of beautiful restaurants (both new & old), lovely pubs & plenty of accommodation for a little break down in the country.  

Our latest forest, Cloudforest Four is located only a few minutes outside of Ennistymon & is a 30-acre incredible site. This forest will be planted over the next year and will hopefully become another great asset to the already stunning local landscape.