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Simpson (Clooncorick)
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A family who settled in the Drumsna area of county Leitrim at the beginning of the 18th century. Mr. Simpson of Drumsna was listed as a resident proprietor in Leitrim by McParlan in 1802.Pierce Simpson of Clooncorick served as High Sheriff of Leitrim in 1836. Clooncorick Castle was the seat of the Simpson family during the 19th century although it appears to have been leased from the Ormsby Gore estate. The estate also held several townlands in Mohill parish in the baronies of both Leitrim and Mohill and in the parishes of Elphin and Shankill, barony and county of Roscommon. In the 1870s the Simpson estate amounted to 1,652 acres in county Leitrim, 1,293 acres in county Roscommon and 339 acres in county Wexford. In June 1886 George Simpson, the owner, offered the estate for sale in the Land Judges' Court but the sale was adjourned due to absence of bidding.
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Conolly (Castletown)
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At the beginning of the 18th century William Conolly of Castletown, county Kildare, purchased over 2,000 acres in county Roscommon from the trustees for the sale of forfeited estates. In June 1867 the rental of the estate of Thomas Conolly, Member of Parliament, in the parish of Elphin, barony and county of Roscommon, was advertised for sale. The Irish Times mentions Messers Lyle and Ryan as among the purchasers. At the time of Griffith's Valuation the estate was mainly in the possession of Pierce Simpson. It was comprised of just over 1,000 acres. Some land in King's County (County Offaly) was included in the sale.
Thomas Conolly was recorded as the proprietor of several townlands in the parishes of Drumhome, Inishmacsaint, Kilbarron, Killybegs and Lettermacaward in the baronies of Banagh, Boylagh and Tirhugh, County Donegal, at the time of Griffith’s Valuation. In the 1870s, Thomas Connolly of Castletown, [County Kildare], was the owner of over 22,700 acres in County Donegal. The Conolly association with Donegal originated with William Conolly in the 17th century who rose from humble beginnings in Ballyshannon to become an influential political figure as well as a wealthy landowner.
In June 1867 Thomas Conolly, then then estate owner, advertised for sale the celebrated salmon and eel fisheries of Ballyshannon, in the Landed Estates Court. They were held by the Sheil family under lease from 1819. In November of that year he advertised what are described as his Glencollumkill and Killybegs estates, amounting to over 25,000 acres in the barony of Banagh, in the Landed Estates Court. In November 1867 Elizabeth Jones offered over 300 acres for sale in the Landed Estates Court, held on lease by Edward Jones from Thomas Conolly's estate in the barony of Tirhugh, County Donegal. In June 1868 over 500 acres of the Conolly estate in the parish of Lower Killybegs was advertised for sale in the court. November 1872 saw the advertising for sale in the Landed Estates Court of over 6000 acres of what was known as the Ballyshannon estate some of it held by conveyance from the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. In 1877 Joseph Lipsett offered the rental of properties in and around the town of Ballyshannon for sale in the Landed Estates Court. The Conolly estate is described as the original lessor.
The Conolly estates devolved in the direct line on a number of occasions due to the lack of a male heir. The main family seat was at Castletown House, near Maynooth, in County Kildare.
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