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A Cruising Guide and Anthology of the Ballinamore
- Ballyconnell Canal
Published by the Erne-Ballinamore-Ballyconnell Rally Committee
1994
for the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland
Ballinamore
Situated at the foot of Slieve an Iarainn mountain in the basin of the Yellow River now the basin of the Ballinamore
and Ballyconnell Canal.
Slieve an Iarainn, "Iron Mountain" got it's name from the fact that iron ore was mined there in the late
17th and arly 18th centuries. There was a flourishing iron works in Ballinamore on the site if the present Convent
of Mercy grounds where smelting was done by charcoal from local forests. It closed in 1750.
Folklore has a different explanation as to how the mountain got its name. According to local legend the Tuatha
De Danann, one of the mythical groups siad to have invidaded Ireland in pre -historic times landed at Slieve an
Iarainn where they discovered the use of iron from which they fashioned spears which they used to defeat the Foromorians
at the battle of Magh Tuiredh in Sligo.
History of the Town
Ballinamore (Beal an Atha Moir) means the mouth of the big ford. It was obviously an important ford or crossing
place on the Yellow River. Under the plantation of Leitrim in1621 a large grant of land in the vicinity of the
present town was made to a Sir Fenton Parsons which he undertook to erect into the manor of Ballinamore. While
there was a nucleas of a town there in the 17th century its real growth belongs to zhe 18th century as the centre
of a flourishing iron works and as market town. It had a weekly market on Tuesday and two fairs annually. The town
remained virtually unchanged throughout the 19th century until the coming of the Cavan and Leitrim Narrow Gauge
Railway in 1887 which opened up its fairs and markets to the north and midlands. It also gave employment to over
one hundred people. The town itself took on its present appearance during the thirty years following the coming
of the railway.
Ballinamore and Ballyconnell Canal
Built between 1845 and 1860 as a joint navigation/drainage project and also as a famine relief during the great
famine of 1845-49. It joins the Shannon at Leitrim village to the Erne at Belturbet. The water shed of the canal
is lough Scur near Keshcarrigan. The portion of the canal between St.John's Lough and Belturbet is canalised river.
The locks were built between 1850-2. At Ballinamore there was a quay popularly called the "basin" which
was attached to the nearby house which was built in 1847 by Catherine Penelope Jones, the local landlady. It was
expected that the market house would take the business of the canal. It took fourteen years to bulid the original
canal at a cost of £274,272. The project was a total failure. Only about eight boats ever used it before
it went into decline.
Cavan and Leitrim Gauge Railway
Built in 1887 by the Cavan and Leitrim Railway Co. - a three-foot gauge railway. Its headquarters were at Ballinamore.
It ran from Dromod to Belturbet where it met the Great Northern Railway (GNR) with a branch line to Arigna. It
survived on freight business and haulage of coal from the Arigna collieries. It was closed in 1959.
Ballinamore
Ballinamore town is built in what was known as the Valley of the Black Pig, the name given to the ancient frontier
of Ulster in the fourth century of our era. Beal an Atha Moir) meaning "the mouth of the big ford, was probably
named because it was the main crossing point on the Yellow River,which later became the Ballinamore-Ballyconnell
Canal and is more recently referred to as the Shannon-Erne Waterway.
The town has a population of over 800 persons. Ballinamore is a thriving rural centre for the surrounding parishes
of Aughnasheelin, Aghawillan, Dumreilly and Fenagh. Like all Irish towns is has an adaquate supply of pubs-sixteen
at present, including three hotels. It also has churches, schools, community centres and all facilities associated
with a town of its size.
St Brigid
According to local tradition St.Brigid is said to have visited the Ballinamore
area with her cow, stayed a while, founded a church and left a holy well dedicated to her. The well is still there
and a pattern in her honour takes place there every St.Brigid's day, Feb 1st.
Garadice Lake
The most beautiful of the lakes which dot the region,it has associations
with the time of St.Patrick. Church Island, the largest island on the lake has a church ruins dating back to soon
after St.Patricks time.
Football
Football in Ireland means Gaelic Football and wherever football is mentioned
in Leitrim, Ballinamore tops the bill. Football matches and Hurling games too can be seen regularly in the local
park.
Library
The County Library for Leitrim is situated in the centre of the town.
It has an extensive local studies collection.
Museum
There is a small local museum in the county library which is open to
the public Mon.Fri during the summer months.
Genealogy Centre
If you have Leitrim ancestors and want to find out all about them,the
Genealogy Centre,located beside the County Library is the place to go. It is open all year round.
St.Patricks Church.
Built in 1963,it replaced an older church in St.Brigid's Street built
in 1820.
Garadice Lake
One of the largest lakes,in Leitrim. Its islands contain the ruins of an O'Rourke castle. The O'Rourke's were the
hereditary chieftans of the Gaelic kingdom of West Breifne (Leitrim),down to the end of the 16th century. It also
contains a ruined church. Nearby is a ring fort in Darraugh townland said to be the location of a famous pagan
celtic sun god called Crom Cruaich who was eventually destroyed by St.Patrick.
Fenagh Abbey
A ruined late medieval church of St.Caillin on the site of an early christian monastery founded by St.Caillin.
Note its beautiful rose window. Nearby is another ruin most likely residential accommodation for the priests of
Fenagh. The abbey was used for a time for Protestant worship until the present church was built nearby in circa
1798. About two miles from Ballinamore, it is steeped in history. It was the site of an abbey from the fifth o
sixth century.The present day abbey ruins date from the fifteenth century and are well worth a visit.
Ballyduff House
A late 18th or early 19th century house built by the LaTouche family, a famous Dublin bankung family of Huguenot
origin. They were the owners of the LaTouche Bank in Dublin in the 18th century.
"Had I command of all the land
From the Lagan to the Lee
No tourist guide could e'er provide
A place so dear to me
In this dear spot as in a cot
Devoid of earthly woe
My life I'd spend till it would end
In peaceful Ballinamore"
"Ballinamore is a town of history, culture, activities and traditions. The people of the area are unique throughout
the world, they are kind, amicable, well-disposed.possessing a sense of humour and a sense of fun, visitors always
appreciate. Ballinamore has earned its legacy well-The Friendly Town"
Doctors
Dr.Sean Burke Tel 44046 (Home), 44485 (Surgery)
Dr.Dermot Cribben Tel 44187 also Dentist
Ambulance Tel 20011
Vet
Seamus Gough Tel 44032
Ignatiuos Feeney Tel 44066
Church Services
Catholic Services
Sat 8pm,Sun 8.30am, 11.30am
Father Duffy Tel 44050
Canon Mc Manus Tel 44039
Church of Ireland
Sun 12 noon
Rev. Meissnger Tel 31012
Other Services
Fire Station Tel 44071
Garda (Police) Tel 44002
Mechanics
Francie Prior Tel 44315
Gerry McIntyre
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