Cavan

Cavan, an inland county in the south of Ulster. It lies in the narrowest part of Ireland, 18 miles from the Atlantic, and 20 from the Irish Sea. Area, 746 sq. m., of which less than a third is under crops. Bogs and hills, with many small lakes, are found in the north-west, where Cuihcagh attains a maximum altitude of 2188 feet. The chief rivers are the Erne, the Woodford, and the Annalee. The eastern half of Cavan rests on clay-slate and graywacke; the mountain district in the west is carboniferous formation. Of minerals, Cavan affords coal, iron, lead, and copper, with many mineral springs. The climate is cold and damp; and the soil is poor, wet, and clayey, except along the streams. The chief crops are oats and potatoes, the cultivation of flax having greatly decreased since 1850. The farms are small. Agriculture forms the staple industry, but linen is manufactured to a considerable extent. The chief towns are Cavan, Cootehill, and Belturbet. Cavan returns two members to parliament. Pop. (1851) 174,064; (1881) 129,176; (1891) 111,679, of whom 90,329 were Catholics.—CAVAN, the county town, stands on a branch of the Annalee, 85 miles NW. of Dublin by rail. It has a court-house and a grammar-school; and the beautiful demesne of Lord Farnham lies between Cavan and Lough Oughter, which is about 5 miles west. Pop. 3050.