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| St Finn Barr's Chapel |
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| St Finn Barr's Chapel |
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| Beara Peninsula |
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| Beara Peninsula |
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| Beara Peninsula |
Sun 9/19 Packed the car and headed southwest to the Beara Peninsula. Enroute, we stopped in Bantry hoping to find some info on Nora Cronin (Cornelius' wife). Bantry is less than an hour from Inchigeelagh so we suspect that Cornelius and Nora may have known each other before they each separately immigrated to America and then met in Arlington, MA. On the way, we stopped in Gougane Barra to visit St Finn Barr’s chapel. St Finn Barr was the founder and patron of the city and Diocese of Cork. It is a must see if visiting this area. On the grounds is a Cronin’s Café and Bar. In the gift shop we made a few purchases; Mary, never missing an opportunity, spoke up and asked if there were any Cronins in the area. The shop keep said to go next door where Breda Cronin was working. Turns out she knew Cronins who are related to the Cronins up in Gurteenflugh. Apparently, three brothers who live in Macroom are related, so Mary will try to contact them to get more info. The stop proved valuable by providing another solid lead in the search for direct family link. Of course no day would be complete without a tour of a cemetery, so we found a promising one just as it started to rain. In particular, we were looking for Francis Cronin and Ellen Jane Wren who were Nora’s parents. No luck because most of the old stones can hardly be read. We hit the road again and continued in the direction of the Beara Peninsula. The coastline runs up on ridges then down to seaside villages. Shannon saw a great boat shot and pulled off. Carolyn and Mary got out while Shannon was down on the rocks and talked to a local fisherman, Michael. It seems that a lens in Carolyn’s sunglasses popped out and she looked like an escapee from a local asylum. Michael was visibly confused while Mary was crying with laughter. After hours of driving, we found our next B & B in Kenmare.
