TOWNLANDS OF NEWTOWNHAMILTON

Altnamackan is a townland of 621 statute acres 2 roods and 15 perches about three miles south-west of Newtownhamilton. It is bounded on the north and east by Tullyvallen, on the south-east by Skeriff Tichburn, on the south by Ballynarea and on the west by Muckno Parish in County Monaghan. . In the Tithe Applotment Books of 1825 the total area is shown as 409 acres 3 roods and 39 perches (Plantation Irish measure).

Name of townland

Alt-na-meachan, "The hill of the wild parsnips" (according to 'Aimnneach Gaeilge na mBailte Poist') but I think Fr. Murray's Alt na Máighin, "the hill in the little plane" more likely since the townland was spelt Altnamoighan in earlier English versions.⁽¹⁾.

The townland was named "Altnamoighan" in the 1766 Census of Creggan and "Altnamackan" thereafter.

Valuation

Although the decimalisation of the currency was introduced only in 1971, all of the valuations in the following table have been converted from £sd for convenience.

Year	1837	1851	1864	1871	1881	1891	1901	1911	1926	1935	1952	1957	1974
Valuation	£292.25	£378.25	£475.50	£456.50	£462.75	£459.50	£451.00	£455.25	£456.75	£564.50	£630.65	£792.15	£857.15

The 1837 Townland Valuation recorded only houses worth £5 or more a year. There were five such houses in the townland -

• James Hughes
• James Jenkins
• John Jenkins
• James Mulligan, and
• William McWibley

Griffiths Valuation records the owner of the townland as Walter McGeough Bond

Census of Ireland 1901

The Census enumerated 109 people in 25 households; a ratio of 4.4 people per household. The households occupied a total of 95 rooms; a ratio of 3.8 rooms per household and 1.1 people per room. One of the households had 14 rooms, one had 7 rooms, two had 6 rooms, two had 5 rooms, six had 4 rooms, five had 3 rooms, five had 2 rooms and three had two room. Seven of the houses were thatched.

Native Irish Speakers

There were no native Irish speakers in the townland.

Population Decline

The following table sets out the number of houses and population enumerated in the townland in each of the 11 Censuses held between 1841 and 1951.

In the period of 110 years, the number of households dropped by 71.4% and the population by 78.6%.

Names of House and land Holders ⁽²⁾

The following table sets out the names of those who owned or rented houses and land in the townland at the time the official valuation record or population census was compiled.