Hepburns of Donegal

RAPHOE HEPBURNS

Updated

Raphoe, about four miles from Castlefinn, gets its name from the Irish Ráth Bhoth, from the words ráth (fort) and both (hut), identifying with the clay and wattle huts built by monks.
The Beltany Stone Stone Circle, just outside the town is one of the largest in Ireland and is believed to date to around 2000 BC.
The design of the town centre is traced to the Ulster Plantation of the early 1600s, when the town was granted to English and Scottish settlers. It was these settlers who laid out the town with the 'Diamond' at its centre, in a similar manner to other Plantation towns like Derry and Donegal.
Records show that Hepburns resided on McBride Street from the late 1700s/early 1800s.