Kionslieu Farm Cottages | Kionslieu Chronicles II: More History & Plans of the Original Farmyard

My research continues, I woke up this morning to find an email from Greg Brown from Los Angeles. Greg and his wife stayed at Kionslieu in one of the holiday cottages last December (2019), whilst researching their family history. If you’ve not already seen the first chronicle just click this link: ‘Kionslieu Chronicles I’

How fantastic! Greg has sent me a document with the title ‘Memoirs of Kionslieu’, written by Terence Kermode. I requested permission to share the actual memoirs, Greg tells me that the author passed away a number of years ago. For anyone searching for information for their own family tree in years to come I will add that Terence had no children of his own, he married late in life and had 4 step children but of course they are not Kermodes. When Terence passed away they sent all of his backup materials to Greg’s cousin Simon (the author’s nephew) in Cheshire.

Greg tells me that his cousin sent a copy of the memoirs to the Manx Library and so he suspects that Terence (like any author) would be thrilled to have his work “published”.

Greg’s mother, Eileen (Kermode) Brown also lived in Los Angeles and worked with Terence researching their family history but she also passed away several years ago. Greg tells me that he feels sure that she would also be thrilled for others to learn more about the old family ‘homestead’.

In my first blog of ‘Kionslieu Chronicles’ there is a photograph of the inscription of ‘R Clucas AD MDCCCL’ (1850) which can still be seen on the gable of the farmhouse. The following is a photograph of Richard Clucas’s daughter, Mary Ann Clucas, together with her husband John Kermode and their 11 children.

The photograph above, of John Kermode, Mary Ann Clucas Kermode and and their 11 children, was taken in front of Kionslieu farmhouse at the turn of the last century. I was also told that we should note the 1900 style photoshopping on the right side of the picture. Apparently three of the children couldn’t be there in person and so were pasted in!

The date, 1904 and the list of names on the back of the photograph were written by Eileen. It has been pointed out that 1904 may be a best guess rather than based on hard evidence.

Plan of the farmyard taken from the ‘unfinished memoirs’

Eileen visited the Isle of Man and Kionslieu a number of times and the following photographs were taken at Kionslieu in the 1970’s and 80’s.

In the photograph above Eileen is pictured standing in front of the water trough which had originally supplied both the farm and the house (when there was no internal plumbing system); it was fed by a pipe from a spring in one of the fields and had never been known to dry up. The shed to the right was originally a cowshed, which was connected to the Thie veg -Manx for ‘little house’, this was the only toilet, a seat with a hole in the ground, know also as a ‘one – holer’.

Looking up the lane onto the farmyard (we think this was in the 70s)

The barns, which are now Kionslieu Farm Holiday Cottages.

from the fields at Kionslieu looking over Springfield Terrace

From the fields at Kionslieu looking over Foxdale 1972 – see the spoil heaps in the centre

The photograph above was taken in July 1972. Eileen (Kermode) Brown is on the right of the picture and her sister Leota (Kermode) Schmidt on the left. The couple in the middle are also Kermodes and were living near Kionslieu at the time, the photograph was taken outside Lilybank.

Perhaps you’d like to visit the island to research your genealogy?

Somewhere to stay?

If your looking for a place to stay on the Isle of Man while you research your family history, look no further than Kionslieu Farm Cottages.

During our time here we have welcomed Clucas’s, Kermodes, Kelly’s, Quayle’s, Clagues, Maddrell’s & Wattersons from all over the world and you can be sure of a true Manx welcome when you come to stay. Just