Dublin Core
Title
St. Patrick's Well
Description of Well Item Type Metadata
1 Name of well and saint
St Patrick’s Well
2 Townland, County, GPS
Walterstown, Meath
3 Physical description of well and its surroundings
The well is located “in Monktown parish…there was a flag stone, bearing the impression of [St Patrick’s] knees and crosier, which could be seen in a drain in O’Donovan’s time…this well appears on later OS maps but in different locations in the townland…This well never ran dry and even in the sultry summer weather the water was as cold and fresh as ice. People did not use the water for household purposes, nor did they disturb the well in any way” (French 2012: 16-17).
5 Pattern day
15 August
8 Stories
“Christopher Macken, who lived near the chapel of Walterstown, used to own the field in which the well was located. It is said that Christopher, brought home the stone that was at the well and put it into the hearth at the fireplace. From that day on, he never had a day’s bad luck” (French 2012: 16).
“Another story has It that the stone was used by the local landlords, the Wilkinsons, in a farm building. In the 1930’s the lands were owned by the Caffrey family. It is said that St Patrick knelt at this well on his journey from Slane to Tara and left the mark of his knees on the stone. St Patrick drank out of this well using a cup shaped like a bell, similar to a sheep bell. There were three streams running from this well. One runs into the Baushla and the other one runs into Danestown. Mrs. McCabe of Realthogue told the story that the mark of St Patrick’s knee could be seen in the stone beside the well where he knelt down to take a drink” (French 2012: 16-17).
“Another story has It that the stone was used by the local landlords, the Wilkinsons, in a farm building. In the 1930’s the lands were owned by the Caffrey family. It is said that St Patrick knelt at this well on his journey from Slane to Tara and left the mark of his knees on the stone. St Patrick drank out of this well using a cup shaped like a bell, similar to a sheep bell. There were three streams running from this well. One runs into the Baushla and the other one runs into Danestown. Mrs. McCabe of Realthogue told the story that the mark of St Patrick’s knee could be seen in the stone beside the well where he knelt down to take a drink” (French 2012: 16-17).
9 Publications
French, Noel. 2012. Meath Holy Wells. Trim: Meath Heritage Centre.