Outside the Church of Saint Thomas in Achill Island
Not too far away from The Strand Hotel where I was staying in Achill Island is the church of Saint Thomas. This church appears to be abandoned from the outside. There is a short path from the main road which leads to the church. There path is covered with plants so you don’t really see the church as you walk, it kind of suddenly pops up after you walk to the end of the path. This is a Protestant church which was established in 1831. This was supposed to be the main church here in Achill by the Protestant mission. Looking at Dugort now, I don’t know why they would set up shop here in the middle of nowhere. There didn’t seem to be enough people to warrant a church. Perhaps there used to be a lot more people here than now.
Bell Outside the Church of Saint Thomas in Achill Island
As you might expect for a community this small, the church of Saint Thomas isn’t large at all. From the looks of it, the church is still well maintained. In fact, there are still regular services but that aren’t daily like other churches have. Considering how remote this place is, it probably makes sense to have it on an infrequent schedule. There is a bell outside the church which can be run by pulling a rope which is accessible from the inside of the church. I have never seen this kind of set up before. Usually, bells would be set up on top of towers. The church of Saint Thomas doesn’t have a bell tower and it is instead set right outside the church. I am surprised as to the durability of the bell considering it has been outside all this time. The bell was probably casted in Dublin in the year 1853.
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