Skeheenarinky is a townland

Townland

A townland or bally is a small geographical division of land used in Ireland. The townland system is of Gaelic origin—most townlands are believed to pre-date the Norman invasion and most have names derived from the Irish language...

 in south-west County Tipperary

County Tipperary

County Tipperary is a county of Ireland. It is located in the province of Munster and is named after the town of Tipperary. The area of the county does not have a single local authority; local government is split between two authorities. In North Tipperary, part of the Mid-West Region, local...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

.
It is a dispersed settlement

Dispersed settlement

A dispersed settlement is one of the main types of settlement patterns used by landscape historians to classify rural settlements found in England and other parts of the world....

 with a focal point at Skeheenarinky Cross
where a school, shop

Convenience store

A convenience store, corner store, corner shop, commonly called a bodega in Spanish-speaking areas of the United States, is a small store or shop in a built up area that stocks a range of everyday items such as groceries, toiletries, alcoholic and soft drinks, and may also offer money order and...

 and pub

Public house

A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...

 are located.

Location

Situated between the foothills of the Galtee Mountains

Galtee Mountains

The Galtee Mountains or Galty Mountains are a mountain range in Munster, located in Ireland's Golden Vale across parts of counties Limerick, South Tipperary and Cork. The name "Galtee" is thought to be a corruption of the Irish "Sléibhte na gCoillte" - "Mountains of the Forests" in English,...

 and the low-lying farmland at the north end of Ballyporeen

Ballyporeen

Ballyporeen is a village in South Tipperary, Ireland. The latest census of 2006 recorded the population of Ballyporeen at 304 with an additional 573 in its rural hinterland.-Location:...

 civil parish

Civil parishes in Ireland

The parish was once an ecclesiastical unit of territory based on early Christian and monastic settlements. It came into existence in Ireland in the 12th and 13th centuries and was continued by the Church of Ireland, the Established church, from the time of the Tudor conquest...

.
It lies on a stretch of the former main Cork

Cork (city)

Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...

-Dublin road that was superseded by the M8 Motorway

M8 motorway (Ireland)

The M8 motorway is an inter-urban motorway in Ireland, which forms part of the road from the capital - Dublin - to Cork city. The 149 km motorway commences in the townland of Aghaboe, County Laois and runs through the counties of Kilkenny, North Tipperary, South Tipperary and Limerick,...

 in 2008.This road is now designated as the R639 regional road.
Mitchelstown

Mitchelstown

Mitchelstown is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of approximately 3300. Mitchelstown is situated in the valley to the south of the Galtee Mountains close to the Mitchelstown Caves and is 28 km from Cahir, 50 km from Cork and 59 km from Limerick...

 and Cahir

Cahir

Cahir is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. The town is best known for its castle and the Swiss Cottage. It is in the barony of Iffa and Offa West.-Location and access:...

 are approximately 10km. and 20km. respectively.

School

Skeheenarinky National School was built in 1858 and celebrated its 150th anniversary in November 2008, a book chronicling its history was produced to mark the occasion. It is perhaps the oldest still operating national school building in the country . The building itself is considered notable for its cut limestone

Limestone

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 construction. Nearby Galty Cottage (c.1858) was built as a home for the teacher.It is known as 'Morrisseys' in recognition of a Mrs. Morrissey who taught at the school and lived there for fifty years.

The school's primary catchment area comprises the Coolagaranroe Electoral District

District Electoral Division

A district electoral division is a former name given to a low-level territorial division in Ireland. In 1994, both district electoral divisions and wards were renamed as electoral divisions...

, this recorded a population of 501 at the most recent 2006 census.

History

The Mitchelstown Caves are suituated approximately 3 km. from Skeheenarinky Cross and were discovered in 1833 by a labourer quarrying on a small farm. Today the caves are a popular tourist attraction.

Skeheenarinky was once the location of an extravagant mansion

Mansion

A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...

 called Galtee Castle

Galtee Castle

Galtee Castle was a mansion that was situated on the foothills of the Galtee Mountains at Skeheenarinky in South Tipperary, Ireland approximately 10 km...

, the original structure built for the 2nd Earl of Kingston

Earl of Kingston

Earl of Kingston is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1768 for Edward King, 1st Viscount Kingston. He had already succeeded his father as fifth Baronet of Boyle Abbey and been created Baron Kingston, of Rockingham in the County of Roscommon in 1764 and Viscount Kingston in 1766,...

 dated from the late 18th Century, it was later remodelled and expanded but was completely demolished c.1941.

People

Former Taoiseach

Taoiseach

The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...

, Garret FitzGerald

Garret FitzGerald

Garret FitzGerald was an Irish politician who was twice Taoiseach of Ireland, serving in office from July 1981 to February 1982 and again from December 1982 to March 1987. FitzGerald was elected to Seanad Éireann in 1965 and was subsequently elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fine Gael TD in 1969. He...

 and British model/singer Samantha Fox

Samantha Fox

Samantha Karen "Sam" Fox is an English dance-pop singer, actress, and former glamour model. In 1983, at the age of 16, she began her topless modeling career on Page Three of The Sun, and went on to become a popular pin-up girl...

can trace ancestry to the area.