Watt (Kilmacrenan)
James Watt was among the principal lessors in the parish of Mevagh, barony of Kilmacrenan, at the time of Griffiths Valuation in the 1850s. The representatives of Mrs. Mary Watt owned over 5200 acres in County Donegal in the 1870s and are recorded in the 1873 Landowners' Survey in care of David Watt, Distiller of Derry. In 1878 over 2000 acres of the property of James Watt, a minor, was offered for sale in the Landed Estates Court. The tenure details suggest it was leased by James Watt in 1835 from the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. Members of the Watt family are buried at Tullyaughnish church, Ramelton. James Watt is described there as ''eldest son of A.A. Watt of Derry''.
Associated Families
Houses
| Name | Townland | Civil Parish | PLU | DED | Barony | County | Map Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tully Hall (Kilmacrenan) | Tully Hall | Tullyfern | Millford | Ballyarr | Kilmacrenan | Donegal |
OSI Ref: C196211
OS Sheet: 45 Discovery map: |
|
| Claragh (Kilmacrenan) | Claragh | Tullyfern | Millford | Ballyarr | Kilmacrenan | Donegal |
OSI Ref: C201202
OS Sheet: 45 Discovery map: 6 |
|
| The Green | Bridgend or Drummonaghan | Tullyfern | Millford | Rathmelton | Kilmacrenan | Donegal |
OSI Ref: C220210
OS Sheet: 45 Discovery map: |
|
Archival sources
- Correspondence of the Watt family,of Ramelton, Co. Donegal, including letters from James Watt, Kingston, Jamaica, 1828. D2298/32/1 [Wilson & Simms, Solicitors]; Public Record Office, Northern Ireland
- Landed Estates’ Court Rentals (O’Brien), Watt, 8 Nov 1878, Vol 134, MRGS 39/060, (microfilm copy in NUIG);; National Archives of Ireland
Contemporary printed sources
- PARLIAMENTARY PAPERS. ''Return of Untenanted Lands in Rural Districts, Distinguishing Demesnes on Which There is a Mansion...'', HC 1906, c, 177: p.46 (Claragh)
- HUSSEY DE BURGH, U. H. ''The Landowners of Ireland. An alphabetical list of the owners of estates of 500 acres or £500 valuation and upwards in Ireland''. Dublin: Hodges, Foster and Figgis, 1878. [available online at www.askaboutireland.ie] : p.470.
- PARLIAMENTARY PAPERS. ''Return of owners of land of one acre and upwards, in the several counties .... in Ireland''. HC 1876, LXXX: p.231.
Modern printed sources
- ''Ulster Folklife'': Bielenberg, Andy. The Watt family and the distilling industry in Derry, 1762-1921. 40 (1994), pp.16-26.