Carrickmore is a small town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is situated in the historic barony of Omagh East, the civil parish of Termonmaguirk and the Roman Catholic Parish of Termonmaguirc between Cookstown, Dungannon and Omagh. It had a population of 612 in the 2001 Census. In the 2011 Census 2,330 people lived in the Termon Ward, which covers the Carrickmore and Creggan areas.

History

The current settlement can trace its origins back thousands of years to the pre-Christian era. A wide range of historic monuments can be found in the Carrickmore area, including cairns, stone circles, standing stones and raths. It lies in the centre of the county on a raised site colloquially called "Carmen". An alias name for Carrickmore village is Termon Rock, Termonn being the first element of the parish name Termonmaguirk (Ir. Tearmann Mhig Oirc ‘McGurk’s sanctuary’) and rock referring to the rocky hill on which the village is situated. The McGurks were the Coarb family or hereditary lay custodians of the parish's church lands. The site of the former parish church is adjacent to the village of Carrickmore. The Dean Brian Maguirc College, a second-level education school, is named for Dean Brian McGurk who was Vicar-General to St Oliver Plunkett during the Penal Times and died in Armagh Gaol, aged 91. On Easter Sunday 1916, 60 men mobilized in Carrickmore in anticipation the Easter Rising. A garden of remembrance on the edge of the village is the location for an annual commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising. Two historical figures from the Clan na Gael and Irish Republican Brotherhood hailed from the Carrickmore area: Joseph McGarrity who helped fund the 1916 Easter Rising and Patrick McCartan. Carrickmore is the ancestral home of Kurt Cobain, lead singer and guitarist of the band Nirvana. Samuel and Letitia Cobain left the townland of Inishatieve for America in the 1800s first moving to Canada and then settling in Washington. Kurt Cobain was a fifth generation descendant from the emigrants.

Places of interest

Transport

Carrickmore is served by Ulsterbus route 86, which runs between Dungannon and Omagh via Dungannon, Donaghmore, Pomeroy, Carrickmore, Drumnakilly and Omagh. The Portadown, Dungannon and Omagh Junction Railway opened Carrickmore railway station on 2 September 1861. The Ulster Transport Authority closed the station on 5 October 1959 and the line on 15 February 1965.

Geography

The townlands that make up the area of Carrickmore border on the parishes of Ballygawley, Beragh, Galbally, Kildress, Kileeshil, Pomeroy. Carrickmore also shares the parish of Termonmagurk with Loughmacrory and Creggan. Carrickmore has the smallest townland in Ireland known as Old Church Yard.

Sport

Carrickmore St Colmcille's (Gaelic football club) and Éire Óg Carrickmore (hurling and camogie club) are the two main sporting organisations in the village. Carrickmore also has a proud tradition of boxing in the area and has had many All-Ireland Champions. There are also local walking, running, cycling and Special needs sporting clubs.

Employment

Main areas of employment are engineering, construction, quarrying, I.T. and farming. The larger surrounding towns of Cookstown, Dungannon and Omagh also provide other forms of employment.

Demography

Carrickmore is classified as a town by the NI Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (i.e. with a population between 500 and 1,000). On Census day 2011: 99.48% were from the white (including Irish Traveller) ethnic group; 95.67% belong to or were brought up in the Catholic religion and 3.78% belong to or were brought up in a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' religion; and 6.57% indicated that they had a British national identity, 67.98% had an Irish national identity and 27.90% had a Northern Irish national identity. For more details see: NI Neighbourhood Information Service

Carrickmore townland

The townland of Carrickmore is situated in the historic barony of Omagh East and the civil parish of Termonmaguirk and covers an area of 915 acres. The population of the townland declined during the 19th century: In 1891 the town of Carrickmore (formerly Termon Rock) stood in the townland of Carrickmore, with an estimated area of 11 acres. The townland contains two Scheduled Historic Monuments: Graveyard: Relignaman or Relicknaman and Graveyard: Relignalaniv.

Notable people

Kurt Cobain

Cobain’s ancestors emigrated from Carrickmore, County Tyrone in 1875. Researchers found that they were shoemakers, originally named "Cobane", who came from Inishative, a townland within Carrickmore. They first settled in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada, and then in Washington. A small plaque is erected to the Cobane/Cobain family in the centre of Carrickmore.