Archaeologist to inspect graveyard site in New Year
“We must do what we can to preserve our history. We must learn from it, and respect it, no matter how unpalatable it might seem to some people,” says Councillor Aidan Fitzpatrick in respect of Cootehill Town Team’s attempts to conserve the Coote family vault in time for the tercentenary of the establishment of the town come 2025.
A medieval graveyard prior to the plantation period, the site later housed Drumgoon Church of Ireland before it was demolished to make way for a vault to hold the remains of town founder Thomas Coote, and other family members.
The last recorded burial in the historic Church Street graveyard was recorded in the 1940s and, up until work began on clearing it last year, the site had run into serious disrepair.
The current phase of the project is focusing on rebuilding the mausoleum walls above the basement crypt. This is set to cost €50,000, with Cootehill Town Team receiving €20,000 from the Heritage Council towards the work, €7,000 from Creative Ireland, and a further €10,000 from Cavan County Council. The Cootehill Historical Society provided the remaining €9,000.
“Cootehill was established as a market town in 1725 when [Thomas] Coote obtained a charter to hold markets and fairs,” explains Cllr Fitzpatrick. “Linen was the main business here in the 18th century, and Cootehill market was one of the largest in Ulster. It was Coote who brought linen to the town and Cavan.”
The Fianna Fáil representative goes on to say of the graveyard site that all the founding fathers of Cootehill town are buried at Church Street.
“While the vault is the main focal point, there are plenty of other interesting graves about. So it is an important site far beyond the legacy of Thomas Coote alone,” says Cllr Fitzpatrick, pointing to a grave containing the remains of a Reverend Stewart, a member of the United Irishmen who was involved in the 1798 rebellion. Cllr Fitzpatrick adds that an important element of the work currently underway is based around improving access to the graveyards in the hope of turning it into a tourism attraction in future.
The work, which began last year, was stalled for a short period after it was decided that the walls above the vault were too unstable to proceed safely. With that now secure, Cllr Fitzpatrick says the project is back “on schedule”.
“You couldn’t get in here when we started, so overgrown was it. The end goal is to totally restore it. Coote is underneath what we can see above and are currently working on. The main aim is to make that safe and the next funding we get, hopefully next year; we have an archaeologist coming who will hopefully give us a steer on where to take the project next.”
Heritage points
The economic subgroup of Cootehill Town Team, who are overseeking the graveyard restoration, have also recently published a brochure a walking trail that highlights heritage points around Cootehill. It notes 15 individual landmarks within easy access of each other, and lists many others just a short distance from the town centre.