Shercock 4.42

Shercock is a small town situated in the east of County Cavan, Ireland. As of the 2016 census, the population of the town was 588.Shercock is located at the intersection of the R162 and R178 regional roads. The town is located on the shores of three lakes - Lough Sillan, Steepleton's Lake and Muddy Lake. Lough Sillan is the largest of the three covering approximately 162 hectares.HistoryThe town was founded in the early 17th century as a plantation village to accommodate mainly Presbyterian British settlers who colonised this part of County Cavan. Usually these new settlers gave their towns English or Scottish names - near neighbours are Kingscourt, Cootehill, and Bailieborough - but the existing Irish names were maintained in Shercock. The modern Irish language name is Searcoig or Searcog.The local townlands almost all retain their Gaelic names. For example, the townland of Lecks, on the Kingscourt road on the outskirts of Shercock, has been so named for a thousand years because of the flat-slabbed rocky landscape (leac is the Irish word for a flagstone).By the mid-19th century the village and immediate area had a population of about 5,000. However, the great famines and subsequent emigration affected the county of Cavan, reducing the population by 50% between 1841 and 1891.IndustryThe area is "Drumlin Country", being a landscape of small hills and lakes formed at the end of the last ice age. County Cavan borders County Fermanagh and County Monaghan. Together, they form the colloquially named, "Drumlin County". Shercock lies on the border between County Cavan and County Monaghan.