Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for KIRK-BRADDAN

KIRK-BRADDAN, a parish in the Isle of Man; on the Dhoon river, 2¼ miles NW of Douglas. It contains the village of Kewague, and part of the town of Douglas; and its post town is Douglas, Isle of Man. Pop. in 1851, 2, 664; in 1861, 2, 794. Houses, 453. Pop., exclusive of the part of Douglas, 2, 301. Houses, 396. A road from Douglas to Peel goes up Dhoon valley; and is overlooked, within the parish, by interesting scenery. Kirby, near the church, was formerly the seat of General Sir J. Buchan, and belongs now to D. Drinkwater, Esq. The Union cloth mills are on the Dhoon, ½ a mile above the church. The parish includes the five chapelries of St. Matthew, St. George, St. Barnabas, St. Thomas, and St. Luke. The head living is a vicarage, and each of the chapelries is a p. curacy, in the diocese of Sodor and Man. Value, of the vicarage, £175;* of St. M., £85;* of St. G., £245; of St. B., £240;* of St. T., £200; of St. L., £70. Patron of the vicarage, of St. M., of St. G., and of St. T., the Bishop of Sodor and Man; of St. B., Trustees; of St. L., the Vicar of Kirk-Braddan. The parish church was rebuilt in 1773; succeeded an old one, in which a synod was held in 1291; retains a battlemented tower of intermediate date between that old church and itself; has tall narrow doors, and Norman window arches; and forms a striking object. The churchyard contains a monumental obelisk to Lieut. Col. Lord Henry Murray: a monument to Patrick Thompson, a Pnritan minister who died in 1673; three Runic crosses, and four other ancient sculptured stones. Remains of an extensive Druidical temple, comprising large stones, mounds, and irregular excavations, were discovered adjacent to the churchyard in 1860. Some remains of ancient kirks or kiels are near Castleward Hill.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a parish"   (ADL Feature Type: "countries, 4th order divisions")
Administrative units: the Isle of Man CrProt
Place: Braddan

Go to the linked place page for a location map, and for access to other historical writing about the place. Pages for linked administrative units may contain historical statistics and information on boundaries.