Killea, County Donegal

Coordinates: 54°58′38″N 7°24′01″W / 54.977301°N 7.400329°W / 54.977301; -7.400329
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Killea
Cill Fhéich
Village
Killea is located in Ireland
Killea
Killea
Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 54°58′38″N 7°24′01″W / 54.977301°N 7.400329°W / 54.977301; -7.400329
CountryIreland
ProvinceUlster
CountyCounty Donegal
Government
 • Dáil ÉireannDonegal
Population
 (2011)
 • Urban
581
Time zoneUTC+0 (WET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-1 (IST (WEST))

Killea (Irish: Cill Fhéich, meaning "Fiach's church") is a village and civil parish in County Donegal, Ireland, located on the border with County Londonderry in Northern Ireland.

History[edit]

Killea was one of several Protestant villages in eastern Donegal that would have been transferred to Northern Ireland, had the recommendations of the Irish Boundary Commission been enacted in 1925.[1]

This border village once had a customs post on the main B193/R237 Letterkenny Road.[2]

In recent years, many new homes have been built in the area and the village now acts largely as a commuter village for Derry.[citation needed]. Some of the housing in Killea village is on the County Londonderry side of the border.

Celtic Cross[edit]

The Emmery Celtic Cross, named after its creator, forester Liam Emmery, planted a Celtic cross design in the woods near Killea. Emmery used two different types of trees create the effect.

Emmery died in 2016. A few years after his death, the Celtic Cross became visible from the sky. It was first spotted by passengers flying into the City of Derry Airport. The cross measures more than 100 meters in length and 70 meters wide. [3]

Transport[edit]

Killea is on the main road between Derry and Letterkenny. Bus Eireann run a regular bus service, Expressway Route 64, that connects the village with Derry and Letterkenny.

Notable residents[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Irish Boundary Commission Report". National Archives. 1925. p. 140–43.
  2. ^ "Exploring the Border: the first challenge in Derry is to find it". The Irish Times. 2018. In Donegal and Derry lives are lived and businesses thrive with cross-Border access
  3. ^ "The Emmery Celtic Cross". Inishview.com.