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Inner Lough (and its little island - probably an old ‘crannog’ Link ) is enclosed by the old Dartrey estate. Lying on the northern bank of the Dromore river, this once beautiful and thriving estate has been given over entirely to forestry. In the 17th century the land was owned by Richard Dawson and known as Dawson’s Grove. The Dawsons became active in politics and in 1770 Thomas Dawson, a Whig MP for Co. Monaghan was made Baron Dartrey (becoming Viscount Cremorne in 1785). The third Viscount, Richard Dawson, reflecting the family’s increase in status, replaced the brick house built by his grandfather in 1780, with a grander ‘Elizabethan-Revival mansion’ which became known as Dartrey Castle (this was built lakeside beyond the figure in the picture). At that time the house was an active centre of the local community, but eventually the Dawson fortune waned and their male heirs died out. In 1937 the contents of Dartrey Castle were auctioned and in 1950 the building was demolished.

Black Island appears as the nearest belt of trees on the right. This is where the famous temple erected by Thomas Dawson in the 1770s stands H6116 : The Temple on Black Island - Restoration Link (Archive Link ) .See also H6015 : The Dromore river with the Dartrey estate beyond viewed from Bellamont Forest