History
Gort takes its name, Gort Inse Guaire, from gort (a meadow), "inse" (island) and Guaire Guaire Aidne mac Colmáin, the sixth century King of Connacht and patron of St. Colman MacDuagh. During the Middle Ages the chiefs of Cenél Áeda na hEchtge, the O'Shaughnessys (Ó Seachnasaigh, a clan descended from Guaire Aidhneach) had their principal stronghold in Gort, on a site which later became a cavalry barracks. At the end of the seventeenth century the O'Shaughnessy lands were confiscated and granted to Sir Thomas Prendergast, 1st Baronet, whose grandson was John Prendergast Smyth, 1st Viscount Gort. In 1831, the town had a population of 3,627 and 563 houses. The Great Hunger of the mid-1840s devastated the population.
A number of historic sites around Gort are included in the Sites and Monuments Record. Kilmacduagh monastery and round tower are situated approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) west of Gort. Rahaly Castle lies approximately 4.8 km (3 mi) east of Gort.
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