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Contact Us | What's New Clare A History and Topography 1837 by
Samuel Miltown Malbay or Sráid na Cathrach is at the heart of an
ancient area known as Kilfarboy. Sráid na Cathrach translates
into "The Street of the Fort", deriving from the existence of an
Iron Age fort (An Cathair) near the site of St. Josephs Parish
Church. The earliest inhabitants of the area were likely found
on the rising ground to the north and east of the present town,
stretching from the fort to the monastic foundation in the
townland of Kilfarboy. It is suggested by some that Miltown
comes from the Irish "Meall-Bhaigh", meaning a treacherous coast
or bay. It could also have taken the name Malbay from either the
tradition of the witch, Mal, being drowned in the bay, or that
of the volcanic eruption which drowned 1,008 people and
separated Mutton Island