TOURISM

An article in the Press in 1929 described Killybegs as a great tourist destination.  One of the sights to be seen, it was said, was the Rocking Stone in Faiafannon:

The Rocking Stone of Faiafannon, about two miles from the town, should not be missed.  The huge stone, delicately poised on a rock, is capable of being moved without the slightest danger of being disturbed from its resting place. Strangers may have difficulty in providing the motion, but those who are familiar with the stone usually succeed in producing the swaying movement which gives it its name.

During the depression years of the late 1930s there was very little employment in Donegal.  Work was created by the Government via Minor Relief Schemes, for example, the opening of extra roads in country areas, or repairing roads that did not really need much repair.  One such scheme was started in the townland of Faiafannon, where, in November 1938, thirty men were provided with work, under the supervision of John McBrearty, Island.  The purpose of the scheme was to build a new road to the Rocking Stone, or Wishing Stone, as some called it.  Killybegs folklore stated that Finn McCool threw this rock from Connaught, although what made him so mad is not recorded.  The new road was completed just before Christmas in that year, the scheme providing many households with badly-needed cash during the darkest time of the year.

The Rocking Stone at Faiafannan, Killybegs.