Bowles in Killesher and Cleenish Parish, co. Fermanagh

There are two likely possibilities for the origin of these Bowles in this area.  I have been told that the family's own tradition is that they arrived here from England as soldiers in the army of William of Orange in the late 1600's.  Another possibility is that they arrived even earlier from England or Scotland as tenants of the Cole family who later became the Earls of Enniskillen.

In 1600 Queen Elizabeth I gave orders for the defeat of O'Neill, O'Cahan and other Ulster Chiefs who had rebelled against her rule.  Mountjoy landed troops under the command of Sir John Bolles of Haugh, the ancestor of many of the later Bowles lines in England (see Sir John Bolles at Dunnalong Fort, co. Tyrone).  In 1607 the Northern Irish Earls fled Ireland for asylum in France under the protection of Rome and left Ulster in English hands.  To consolidate their holding, James I awarded huge areas of land to loyal followers and ordered the "plantation" of Ulster with English settlers.  By 1609, Enniskillen was under the military command of Captain William Cole who was awarded huge tracts of land around Enniskillen and was instructed to build a new town on the ruins of the old one.  He brought over English settlers with building skills and paid them with grants of land within his estate.  As even the earliest Bowles references in Cleenish and Killesher were on land owned by the Cole family we have to consider the possibility that they may have arrived in this way.  However, the Muster Roll of Fermanagh taken in 1630 does not list any name even similar to Boal, Boles, Bowles, Bolle etc.  After 1630 the mass plantation was over and new settlers arrived mainly on their own initiative either by migration from other Irish counties or from England and Scotland.

The first Bowles reference we have found in this area are from the Poll Book for co. Fermanagh 1747 - 1763 which listed all the male Protestant land owners in co. Fermanagh who had assets worth a declared value of 40 shillings or more which were the requirements to be entitled to vote.  Women, Catholics and anyone with assets less than 40s could not vote.

Bennet Bowles of Dornogagh in Cleenish parish , Freehold registered Feb. 8, 1749

Then we have the 1788 Poll of Electors:

The 1788 Poll Book shows Thomas and Patrick Bowles at Knockageehan, Killesher parish (note: the two sets of townland spellings probably indicates that two different clerks registered their land; it's not likely that they had two lots each) and an Alexander Bowles who lived at Fingreagh in co. Leitrim but who held the Bowles land at Dornogagh.  As this is one generation after the 1749 record, Alexander is very likely Bennet Bowles' eldest son who may have moved on to his own land in county Leitrim prior to his father's death and inherited the land later.  Thomas and Patrick may also be younger sons of Bennet's or they may be the sons of another Bowles who may have also lived at Knockageehan but whose assets were less than 40s and so was not recorded in 1749.  They almost certainly would be some relation to Bennet Bowles though.

See also The Boles of Fingreagh, co. Leitrim who were almost certainly a branch of this line.

Next we have the 1796 Freeholder's Register for co. Fermanagh which shows that Thomas and James Bowles held land at Knockageehan and there is no listing for a Bowles at Dornogogh.

Freeholder’s Register for co. Fermanagh, 1796

Here is a copy of the original Freeholder's Register:

The 1796 Flaxgrowers list mentions a Thomas Bowles of Killesher parish as qualifying to be given one spinning wheel as an incentive to grow flax.  ref.

From 1823 to 1838, every landholding in the entire county was assessed for the purpose of setting the tithes which each landowner would pay to support the Established Church (the Church of Ireland).  The list is not exhaustive as many categories of land were exempt from tithe assessment.  However Bowles appear in the following Tithe Applotments for county Fermanagh:

What We Can Sort Out

The Bowles line had a continuous presence in this area from at least 1749 until modern times.  As can be seen on this map Bennet Bowles holding at Dornogagh in 1749, and later held by Alexander Bowles in 1788, was very close to Thomas and Patrick Bowles' holdings at Knockageehan in 1788, to John and William Bowles' holdings at Macken and Clonathumper in 1828, to Thomas Bowles holding at Drummaren in 1834, to John, James and William's holdings at Calkill, Correen and Lisdivrick in 1862 and to Bowles family holdings at Knockageehan, Shanmullagh, Killesher, Gortatole, Rossaa, Killycreen and Cloonatumpher in the 1911 census. All these townlands are within an approximately 6 mile by 6 mile area.  The unusual given name Bennet appears again 100 years later as a witness at a Bowles marriage in Knockageehan.  I believe we can assume a family connection and we have worked out some of the branches in this area although I don't yet know enough to start a family tree which would connect them up.

2.  James Bowles b. ca. 1817 (lived at Drumaran)

m. Mary Winifred ? (b. ca. 1917) ca. 1940