Carrickabraghy Castle was once the home of the O’Doherty family. The restoration of the castle is a project close to home if you are an O’Doherty, if your granny was Doherty, or if you have any connection with the area or any interest in the heritage of Inishowen.
The O’Doherty connection
The O’Doherty family has a deep connection to Carrickabraghy Castle and to the historic Inishowen peninsula. The following pieces explore this important connection.
Ó Docharthaigh: O’Doherty from The Gaelic Families of Donegal by Fergus Mac Giolla Easpaig from Donegal: History & Society (1995).
The O Dochartaigh family were a branch of the Cenél Conail and traced their descent from Dochartach, who was ninth in descent from Conall Gulban. They were known as the Clann Fiamhain from Dochartach’s grandfather, Fiamhan. We know nothing of either Dochartach or Fiamhan.
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Some O’Doherty castles of Inishowen from an article by Annesley Malley from McGlinchey Summer School Proceedings, Vol. 10
The many castles of Inishowen have always interested me since I came to live in Derry in 1969. Over the years I have tried to find out as much about them from various records. One of the most knowledgeable guides for the area was the late Mabel Colhoun, whose lifetime’s work was the archaeological study of the whole peninsula.
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O’Doherty’s Ashes A short story by Dan Casey from McGlinchey Summer School Proceedings, Vol. 10
It’s beginning to snow, so you search the dashboard for a wiperswitch or a knob. One blade lurches into action, scraping the wrong side of the windscreen, but the defroster responds and, in time blows the lower half of the window clear. By scrunching down and adjusting your glasses, you can just make out the line of the road.
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Carrickabraghy Castle 