Fedamore / Feadamair

The Diocesan Heritage Project entry on Fedamore [www.limerickdioceseheritage.org/Fedamore.htm] [accessed 13 January 2012] notes: "A water font in the church bears the following inscription: Dr John Hanrahan got this made in 1756. Pray for him. This water font came from the pre-1830 parish church. Just outside the church is a cross from the old church. [...] According to Westropp, Fedamore church was listed in 1410 as dedicated to St John the Baptist. The Church of Ireland church was built in 1740 and demolished in 1956. All traces of this church are now gone." The object is noted and illustrated in Cregan (2008): "In 1740 a Church of Ireland Church was built in the centre of it. Previous to that a Catholic Church stood to the north of where the Church of Ireland Church was. What could be traces of a foundation can still be seen there. That was the church that was used before one was built on the present site. The Church of Ireland Church was a very small building, with 4 pews, a narrow chancel and a narrow alcove, which served for pulpit and reading desk. The Parson lived in Glebe House, built in 1816, just across the road. This Church was demolished in 1956 and all memorial tablets were removed to Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Limerick. [...] Many years after the church was built a porch was added to it. John (Rowley) Hedderman lived in Cloughadoolarty and was born in 1903.In Sept. 1951, in an interview given to Canon O’Grady he told this story: His father Luke Hedderman and another man, working for Parson Bennett, (The Parson was the grandfather of Senator Thomas Bennett and George Bennett T.D. Their father was Captain Bennett and he lived in Ballymurphy Crecora.) were digging a foundation for a porch for the Church of Ireland Church. They found a stone water font. The Parson said to Luke and the other man that was with him that the font belonged to their church. “I will send it up to the parish priest (Fr Tom Blake)” he said. This is of course was the Doctor John Hanrahan Holy Water Font, now at the entrance of main isle in Fedamore Church. The inscription on it reads, “Dr John Hanrahan got this made in 1756. Pray for him”. [...] Doctor John Hanrahan was born in Anhid near Croom in 1701. He studied for the priesthood in the Irish college in Paris, where he received a Doctorate in Theology. The earliest records show that Daniel Hourigan was Parish Priest of Fedamore in 1704. At some stage he was succeded by Father Francis Nolan. Doctor Hanrahan was the third priest that we know of and succeeded him in 1739. He resided at Lisbreac (Badgersfort), Kilpeacon. At that time due to the Penal Laws no churches could be built in Ireland so instead he provided articles for divine worship: In addition to the font in Fedamore he gave a gift of a chalice to Bruff Church in 1763. He gave a Holy Water Font to Manister. [...] He died in1774 aged 73 years and is buried in Anhid cementary [sic]. [...] (From looking at the dates it would appear that this font probably came from the old thatched chapel that was on the site of the present church, probably where the Sacristy is now and not from the Old Catholic church in the graveyard.)"