Summary
Leitrim (/ˈliːtrəm/ LEE-trəm; Irish: Liatroim)[2] is a village in County Leitrim, Ireland, on the River Shannon near the border with County Roscommon. It is at the junction of the R280 and R284 regional roads.
Leitrim
Irish: Liatroim | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 Leitrim village marina | |
  Leitrim Location in Ireland | |
| Coordinates: 53°59′27″N 8°03′49″W / 53.9908°N 8.0636°W | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Connacht |
| County | County Leitrim |
| Elevation | 70 m (230 ft) |
| Population | 594 |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (WET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-1 (IST (WEST)) |
| Irish Grid Reference | G958046 |
Location edit
Located on the River Shannon, Leitrim village is connected to the River Erne via the Shannon-Erne Waterway. The river port has a quay, several jetties and two marinas, with facilities for cruising traffic. The village is about 5 kilometres (3 mi) from Carrick-on-Shannon.
History edit
From the Early modern period, County Leitrim is named after the village. Throughout at least the 19th and 20th centuries, numerous annual fairs were held at Leitrim village on- 22 January, 20 February, 25 March, 5 May, 16 June, 23 July, September 1 (or 3rd), 13 October, and 1 December.[3][4][5] In 1925, Leitrim village comprised 30 houses with 5 being licensed to sell alcohol.[6]
Liatroim was a strategically important ford of the River Shannon connecting Ulster and Connacht. The Irish Annals makes mention of Leitrim village (Irish: Liath-druim) many times. In 1270 the Battle of Áth an Chip between Normans and Connacht probably occurred on Drumhierney townland beside Battle-bridge.
The county itself is named after the village of Leitrim near the River Shannon, which was an important stronghold during the Ó Ruairc (O'Rourke) family reign. The remains of O'Rourke's Castle can still be found in the village centre. The name 'Leitrim' itself is derived from the Irish Liath Druim, meaning 'grey ridge', and is a commonplace name throughout Ireland.
Developments edit
Successive Finance Acts during the 1990s encouraged the building of hotels and holiday houses in designated deprived rural areas. Leitrim village was a beneficiary of these tax incentives.[citation needed] The resultant growth in the period between 2002 and 2007 saw several complexes of self-catering apartment blocks being erected around the marinas, one of which was funded by the International Fund for Ireland under the auspices of the Anglo-Irish Agreement.[citation needed] The village has had a number of successes in the National Tidy Towns competition.[citation needed] Leitrim village is used as a tourist base for the surrounding attractions such as the Arigna Mining Experience, Lough Rynn, Lough Key Forest Park, the Shannon-Erne Blueway and the nearby County Town of Carrick on Shannon.[citation needed]
Education and religion edit
St Joseph's National School is the local primary school. The local Roman Catholic church is also dedicated to St Joseph.
Demographics edit
The village had 274 residents in 1834.[3] In 2016, the population was 594.[1]
See also edit
References edit
Notes edit
- ^ a b "Census 2016 Sapmap Area: Settlements Leitrim". Central Statistics Office (Ireland). Retrieved 4 June 2018.
- ^ "Liatroim/Leitrim". Placenames Database of Ireland. Government of Ireland - Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and Dublin City University. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
- ^ a b Wright 1834, pp. 24.
- ^ Longman 1819, pp. 405.
- ^ Watsons 1830.
- ^ Irish Free State 1925, pp. 31.
Sources edit
- Wright, G. N. (George Newenham) (1834). A new and comprehensive gazetteer (PDF). Vol. IV. London, T. Kelly.
- Longman (1819). Traveller's New Guide Through Ireland, Containing a New and Accurate Description of the Roads (digitized from original in Lyon Public Library [2011] ed.). Longman.
- O'Clery, Lughaidh (1895). The life of Hugh Roe O'Donnell (PDF). Dublin: Fallon and Co, 16 Lower Sackville Street.
- Watsons (1830). The Gentleman's and citizen's almanack ... for the year (PDF). Dublin, Printed for S. Watson [etc.]
- Irish Free State (1925). Intoxicating Liquor Commission Report (Report). Vol. Reports of Committees. The Stationery Office. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
Irish annals edit
- John O'Donovan, ed. (1856). Annála Rioghachta Éireann. Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland by the Four Masters... with a Translation and Copious Notes. 7 vols. Translated by O'Donovan (2nd ed.). Dublin: Royal Irish Academy. CELT editions. Full scans at Internet Archive: Vol. 1; Vol. 2; Vol. 3; Vol. 4; Vol. 5; Vol. 6; Indices.
- Bambury, Pádraig; Beechinor, Stephen (2000). "The Annals of Ulster" (Electronic edition compiled by the CELT Team (2000) ed.). CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts: a project of University College Cork College Road, Cork, Ireland—http://www.ucc.ie/celt.
- Walsh, Paul (2012). "Beatha Aodha Ruaidh Uí Dhomhnaill". CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts: a project of the Department of History, University College, Cork College Road, Cork, Ireland—http://www.ucc.ie/celt.