Currow

Currow (Irish:An Currach / Corra, meaning "The Marsh") is a rural village in County Kerry in south west Ireland, located approximately 12 km from Killarney and 18 km from Tralee. Currow is situated on the Brown Flesk River, a tributary of the River Maine. Currow covers 3,376 Hectares, much of the land is arable, mainly used as pasture for dairy stock. However there are areas of peat land, particularly to the south, where a blanket bog is located on the border with Kilcummin. There are many old, mature trees particularly on the floodplain of the river. Currow is mainly a residential area with close links to Castleisland. The main industry is agriculture. The original village grew up on both sides of the roadway to the north of Flesk Bridge, between two old estates, Dicksgrove and Parkmore, which have influenced the architectural character. The Meredith Family were the landlords of the area, residing in the old Parkmore estate. The first influence of the British came from the Herbert Family during the plantations. The village escaped much of the major development experienced by many nearby villages and towns during the Celtic Tiger. Any development is mainly one-off housing. Currow is bordered to the west by Farranfore, to the south by Kilcummin, to the east by Scartaglin and to the north by Castleisland. Currans lies north west of Currow, which forms the Killeentierna Parish. Con Houlihan, a columnist with the Sunday World, once wrote how he considered Currow as his 'own favourite' village in Ireland. Although he is undecided whether Currow is a village or a hamlet. He also declared he would someday 'apply to be made a Freeman of Currow'. Currow takes pride in its sporting heritage, producing several international rugby players. The popularity of the GAA is unrivaled in the community but basketball has thrived in recent decades, particularly with juveniles, with much success at county, provincial and national level.