Abbeyside, Ballinroad & Garranbane Parish Launch Fund to Preserve Ancient Bell Tower.
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ABG Parish office received word in mid-March that their application to Waterford Council for funding for conservation works on Abbeyside’s medieval tower had been successful. The grant covers 52% of total costs, leaving the parish with a €70,000 shortfall to raise.
The architecturally stunning Abbey Tower and chancel ruin are the historic and eponymous centre of the Abbeyside. The current parish church incorporates the fabric of a much earlier medieval Augustinian priory, built c.1290. The village of Abbeyside derives its name from St Augustine’s Priory. A priory in simple terms is a small abbey managed by a prior. The bell tower, dating from c.1450, gave the ruins the local name of ‘the Clogchas’, a name derived from the old Irish for belfry (bell tower).
The priory was founded by the Augustinian order, who came from Clare Priory in Suffolk, England. A story about the arrival of the Augustinians tells of how they were undecided where to land when they sailed into Dungarvan Bay. After praying for guidance, they launched a small raft with a statue of St Augustine on it. Where the raft came ashore is where they decided to build their abbey.
When the original monastery was dissolved by order of King Henry VIII in 1541 the records show that it functioned as the local parish church. The monastic buildings on the two-acre site were deemed to be suitable for farming use. The holdings of the abbey included 165 acres, four dwelling-houses with adjacent buildings, thirty-eight small homes with gardens, and a subsidiary farm known as a camera. This is the earliest known description of the village of Abbeyside.
The modern Abbeyside Church built in 1832 incorporates the ancient tower. Worshipers literally walk in the footsteps of the early friars thus marking over seven centuries of ecclesiastical presence on this site.
Time has taken its toll on the bell tower, with water damage threatening its integrity. To safeguard the structure for future generations, a conservation program is imperative. Joints need to be repointed using lime mortar, walls have to be grouted, and lead flashing replaced. Doing these to the appropriate conservation standard carries significant cost. To defray these costs the Parish tasked a small team to apply for grant aid. Parish Priest, Fr. Hassett wished to thank all of the volunteers who have contributed to the project to date. These include chartered buildings surveyor Kevin Ryan who conducted a detailed study (in an entirely voluntary capacity) of the building, preparing an excellent condition report, complete with method statement. The grant application, which was prepared by Lucinda Shrubb, was based entirely on his work. The parish is grateful to all the committee members who had an involvement in the grant process at various stages.
The parish committee appeals to the community of Abbeyside, both near and far, to contribute to this vital preservation effort. Fr. Hassett also requests that “only people who can genuinely afford to contribute should do so.”
Donors wishing to contribute can do so online at https://www.idonate.ie/fundraiser/saveourabbey or they can contact Abbeyside Parish Office by phone at (058)45787 or email abgparish@gmail.com.
Photos by: Patrick Kenealy
