The novel on which this film is based is a fictionalized account of actual events. A hostel now stands where Anges MacDonnell's estate once stood.
Most of the film was shot in the location where the events took place in 1894, on Achill Island off the west coast of Co Mayo, Ireland. The house shown in the film, is the one Agnes MacDonnell rebuilt, after her original house was burned down by James Lynchehaun.