Lifford Courthouse Lifford Courthouse is now a restaurant and
heritage centre and is located across from the
County House, the HQ of
Donegal County Council, in The Diamond area of the town. The courthouse was designed by Michael Priestly of Dublin and built in 1746. The museum houses a permanent display of
O'Donnell clan documents and artefacts, as well as minute books from various institutes in County Donegal. It also houses some of the original cells belonging to the Courthouse.
Lifford Gaol Lifford Gaol was formerly the County
Gaol or prison for all of
County Donegal. It was located on the northeastern side of The Diamond. The old gaol was demolished in 1907.
Cavanacor House Cavanacor House is located just off the
N14 on the outskirts of the town - which one ancestral home of the 11th
President of the United States of America,
James Knox Polk. His great, great, great-grandmother (Magdelene Tasker) was born here in 1634, she later married Capt. Robert Bruce Pollock and emigrated to the US.
King James II & VII dined at Cavanacor House on his way to the
Siege of Derry in 1689. The school and grounds were first taken over by the then Irish
Department of Posts and Telegraphs, and later (from 1974) by the
Irish Defence Forces for use as a military barracks. The Barracks has since closed along with
Rockhill House Military Post in
Letterkenny, on 31 January 2009.
St. Lugadius's Church Church in Lifford. St. Lugadius's, also known as Clonleigh (
Church of Ireland) Parish Church, was built in 1621. Sir Richard Hansard, who had been granted land at Lifford, directed in his will that a church be built in Lifford. There is a monument to Sir Richard and his wife Dame Anne inside the church, with a plaque on the wall detailing his wishes and who the executors of his will were. In the graveyard
George Gardiner, who won a
Victoria Cross during the
Crimean War in 1855, is buried.
St. Patrick's Church St. Patrick's Church, usually known locally as Murlog Chapel, is the second
Catholic church on the present site. The first church was built here at Murlog in the 18th century after the
Earl of Erne saw
Catholic worshippers praying in the open. The church was later demolished to make way for the new church which was built in 1963. A three-stage gothic tower dating from about 1820 was attached to the old church and was saved by the parish; it is still standing next to the new church. The church is in the parish of Clonleigh, formerly Clonleigh and Camus until it was established as an independent parish in 1974.
Lifford Community Hospital The hospital was once the County Hospital catering for all of
County Donegal. It is located on the banks of the
River Foyle just before the bridge into
County Tyrone. Although this is not the first location of the County Hospital, It was originally in the diamond area of the town in a place called the Barrack yard. The Hospital first opened in this location in 1773. The first surgeon was a man called Mr. William Hamilton from nearby
Strabane. In 1780 it was proposed to move to new premises with the
Cavalry Barracks and stables in the town being sought, it was not until 1799 that the premises were renovated and ready to be occupied. In the early 1900s, the hospital was operating at full strength with the
Maternity and
Surgical wards treating on average 400 patients and carrying out around 350 operations annually. The hospital today caters for long and short-term residents by providing a convalescent and respite service.
Physiotherapy and
chiropody services are also provided in the hospital for the in-patients and out-patients from the greater East Donegal area.
Hansard's Grammar School The will of Sir Richard Hansard in 1619, endowed a private school, in Lifford. The will provided for 30 pounds sterling a year for a master, and 20 pounds sterling a year for an usher. The school was intended to cater for classical studies. All children of Clonleigh parish were to be entitled to attend for free education. Hansards' Grammar School commenced operations in 1697. In 1791, the Commissioners of Education reported that there were no free scholars in the school out of an attendance of 18, of whom 6 were boarders. The Commissioners of 1807–1812 reported the school as being in a very unsatisfactory condition. While the headmaster and usher were being paid salaries according to the endowment, the teaching had been handed off to a third person on a wage of 6 pounds sterling a year. Furthermore, classical subjects were not being taught, only arithmetic. The school continued in decline until 1840, when an inspection by the Commissioners precipitated the resignation of the master, who was accused of major neglect. Attendance which had been as low as three pupils rapidly increased under a new classical teacher. Sometime before 1856, the
Earl Erne (whose family, the Creightons / Crichtons, had originally settled in
Ulster at Lifford before moving south to
County Fermanagh), on behalf of the
Church of Ireland Bishop of Derry and Raphoe, converted the school into an English-style school, and hired a master and mistress. Both were dismissed in 1856. At this time there was a dwelling house attached to the school, lived in by a previous master. In 1857, the school was reopened as an English school under the management of the Bishop of Derry and Raphoe. ==Transport==