Ballinasloe (/ˌbælnəˈsloʊ/bal-na-SLOH; Irish: Béal Átha na Sluaighe, meaning 'mouth of the ford of the crowds')[10] is a town in the easternmost part of County Galway in Connacht. Located at an ancient crossing point on the River Suck, evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of Bronze Age sites. Built around a 12th-century castle, which defended the fording point, the modern town of Ballinasloe was "founded" in the early 13th century. As of the 2016 census, it was one of the largest towns in County Galway, with a population of 6,662 people.[3]
History
The town developed as a crossing point on the River Suck, a tributary of the Shannon. The Irish placename – meaning the mouth of the ford of the crowds – reflects this purpose.
The patron saint of Ballinasloe is Saint Grellan, who tradition believes built the first church in the area. A local housing estate, a GAA club, the branch of Conradh na Gaeilge, and formerly a school are named after him.
While there is evidence of more ancient settlement in the area (including crannog and ringfort sites in Garbally Demesne),[11][12]Richard Mór de Burgh (c.1194–c.1242) is credited with founding the town in the early 13th century.[13]
A castle was built in Ballinasloe on the east bank of the Suck in the 12th or early 13th centuries.[12] This was later rebuilt or expanded by the O'Kellys of Hy-Many in the 14th century.[12] The ruins of the outer wall of this structure remain visible today.[14][15]
Ballinasloe is historically known for its limestone which was used in many public buildings in the town.[16] The local Garda (police) station, built c.1840 as a terraced three-storey house, is built of cut limestone which indicates the relative prosperity of the town in the 19th century.[17] A courthouse in the town, built c.1840, features roofs and walls built of limestone.[18]
Much of Ballinasloe's town centre was laid out in the 18th and early 19th centuries.[19] During the Great Famine, a workhouse was opened in the town in 1842 at a cost of £9,500. The building's chimney stacks, sills and walls were partially built of limestone.[20] It was designed to house a maximum capacity of 1,000 people, but the 1851 census showed that the building housed 2,487 inmates. During the mid-1840s, a 64-bed fever hospital was built at the northeast of the workhouse with wards transformed to use as convalescent accommodation. Today, only the main block of the workhouse fever hospital survives.[21][22]
During the 2009 floods in Ireland, the River Suck burst its banks and caused major flooding in Ballinasloe.[23] About 40 families were evacuated by boat after the flooding caused over €8 million worth of damage in the town, with a number of buildings left under water for several weeks.[24][25]
An archaeological survey, undertaken in September 2021 as part of a street enhancement programme in the town, revealed a number of human skeletons and 17-century artefacts, 12 centimetres below existing footpaths.[26]
Economy
Fast-food restaurant Supermac's opened its first restaurant in Ballinasloe in 1978.[27] As of 2019, the restaurant chain had grown to 116 locations,[28] including three stores in the town.[29]
Ballinasloe traditionally had an agricultural economy,[30] though the 1980s and 1990s saw a number of factories locate in the town. Local employers include Surmodics,[31] a medical company with premises in the 39-acre Business & Technology Park.[32]
Another contributor to the local economy is the Enterprise Centre.[33] Managed by the Ballinasloe Area Community Development (BACD), it is located on the outskirts of Ballinasloe along the Creagh Road.[33] As of mid-2020, there were 26 enterprises based in the centre,[34] with nine more regularly using the training, meeting and hot-desk facilities.[35] In July 2021, Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and EmploymentLeo Varadkar visited the Enterprise Centre as part of a campaign to raise awareness of the advice available from the government about blended and remote work.[36]
The footwear and clothing company, Dubarry of Ireland, is headquartered in Creagh, Ballinasloe. In November 2004, Dubarry ceased its manufacturing facility in the town, however, its product development, marketing and distribution departments, remain in Ballinasloe.[37]
Businesses in the town centre include Gullane's Hotel, a three-star hotel and conference centre, which has served the area since 1943.[38] The Shearwater Hotel, a four-star hotel, leisure centre and gym, is located at Marina Point.[39]
During 2020, the future of the Aptar factory in Ballinasloe was questioned,[40] and several TDs called for a taskforce on the issue.[41][42] In August 2020, Aptar confirmed it would cease operations at the facility, with the loss of 115 jobs,[43][44] stating that industrial equipment would be transferred to other Aptar global sites by the end of 2020.[45][46]
Irish discount store chain, Mr. Price, opened a store in the town in 2022.[49]
In June 2019, planning permission was granted for a five-screen Omniplex cinema to be built near the Tesco store in the town.[50] Construction began in March 2022,[51][52] with the single-storey cinema opening in May 2023.[53]
Places of interest
Places of interest in the surrounding area include:
The Battle of Aughrim Interpretive Centre is located in Aughrim, a village 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) west of Ballinasloe. The centre offers insight on how three rival European Kings – William of Orange, James II, and Louis XIV – took hold of Ireland in their struggle for power, gathering at Aughrim in 1691.
Clontuskert Abbey is a National Monument, located approximately 7 km from the town. The cloister and church of the medieval priory are open-access to the public.
Hymany Way is a hiking trail between Portumna and Aughrim, following the banks of the River Shannon. The trail passes through Ballinasloe.
Once a notorious traffic jam on the old Galway to Dublin road, Ballinasloe is now bypassed by the M6 motorway. The motorway was opened on 18 December 2009 as the N6 was upgraded.
The town can also be accessed by public bus, with CityLink and Aircoach serving the town on their Limerick to Galway and Dublin to Galway routes. Bus Éireann previously served the town, but announced in July 2021 that it would end its Athlone services to Dublin and Galway.[54]
Bicycle
The Athlone to Galway Cycleway is a planned long-distance cycling and walking greenway that passes through Ballinasloe en route to Galway city.[55][56] The route selection process was completed in December 2021, as part of the Dublin–Galway Greenway, following a long consultation process that began in 2014, with Ballinasloe being the first stop in the west.[57]
From 1828 to the 1960s, Ballinasloe was the terminus of the Grand Canal. Guinness Company used the town's canal stores to store and distribute the Guinness to the midlands. The Grand Canal provided a route for Guinness barges to travel from Dublin to Shannon Harbour. The town features a public marina which was developed on the River Suck to allow traffic from the Shannon Navigation to access the town.[59]
Events
Ballinasloe hosts a number of annual events and festivals throughout the year.
The Ballinasloe Horse Fair is held annually in October. It is reputedly the oldest horse fair in Europe and dates back to the 18th century.[60] Chiefly agricultural in the past, it is now focused on the horse, and the associated festival attracts up to 80,000 visitors.[61] A large market typically takes place, along with a number of events, fireworks, a dog show and a fun fair beside Ballinasloe's town theatre. The 2020 and 2021 events were cancelled as part of Ireland's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[62][63][64] The event returned in 2022, marking the 300th anniversary of the fair.[65]
Larry Reynolds' Weekend
The Larry Reynolds' Weekend is a celebration of traditional Irish music. The event has run annually since 2014, in commemoration of Larry Reynolds, a former Ballinasloe native who emigrated to the United States in 1953 and brought the east Galway style of music to Boston.[66] The festival sees a number of traditional music performances in the different bars around town. What would have been the seventh event, due to have taken place in September 2020, was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[67]
Dinny Delaney Festival
The Dinny Delaney Festival is an annual traditional music festival, celebrating the traditions of uilleann pipes, in commemoration of Dinny Delaney, a late Ballinasloe native and well-known piper of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.[68][69] The festival includes concerts, masterclasses, sessions and livestreams.[70]
Other events
The Strings Festival, a music event focusing on stringed instruments, was hosted by Ballinasloe library in July 2017 and 2018.[71]
A "Zombie Walk" is held at Halloween on the grounds of the Garbally estate.[72] First held in 2015, the event involves "zombie" tour-guides bringing groups through Garbally woods. The 2019 Zombie Walk event was shortened to one day due to the weather,[73] and the 2020 event was cancelled outright in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland.[74]
Ahascragh, Annagh, Aughrim (in the former Rural District of Ballinasloe), Ballinasloe Rural, Ballinasloe Urban, Ballinastack, Ballymacward, Ballymoe, Ballynakill (in the former Rural District of Glenamaddy), Ballynakill (in the former Rural District of Mountbellew), Boyounagh, Caltra, Castleblakeney, Castleffrench, Clonbrock, Clonfert, Clontuskert, Cloonkeen (in the former Rural District of Mountbellew), Cloonkeen (in the former Rural District of Tuam), Colmanstown, Cooloo, Creggs, Curraghmore, Derryglassaun, Glennamaddy, Island, Kellysgrove, Kilconnell, Kilcroan, Killaan, Killallaghtan, Killeroran, Killian, Killure, Kilmacshane, Kiltullagh (in the former Rural District of Glenamaddy), Kylemore, Laurencetown, Lismanny, Mount Bellew, Mounthazel, Raheen, Scregg, Shankill, Taghboy, Templetogher and Toberroe.
Ballinasloe Town Commissioners came into being on 22 February 1841 by order of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. The first meeting was held at Craig's Hotel. Rear-AdmiralWilliam Le Poer Trench was in the chair and the members included Father Laurence Dillon, P. P.; Rev. Mr. Travers Jones, and representatives of the professional and business interests in the town. Their first responsibility was the public lighting and a gasworks was immediately erected at a cost of £1421.
Between 1986 and 1988, a pirate radio station "Kandy Radio" was broadcast from Ballinasloe serving the town and its rural hinterland. A log from April 1988 recorded Kandy Radio on 103.5 FM and the station closed down that month.[85] A temporarily-licensed station under the banner of "Ballinasloe Community Radio" on 102.8 MHz FM was also broadcast for five years running, which covered the Ballinasloe Horse Fair.[86]
Ballinasloe has soccer, golf, and rugby clubs, alongside Duggan ParkGAA grounds. The local GAA clubs are Ballinasloe GAA (incorporating St Grellan'sGaelic football club and the Ballinasloe Hurling Club), Derrymullen Handball Club and Ballinasloe Camogie Club. The soccer club, Ballinasloe Town AFC, plays its games at The Curragh Grounds in the town.
Ballinasloe also has two resident boxing clubs. Facilities in and near the town include a golf club (established in 1894), an equestrian centre (established in 1994 four miles from the town), an athletics club, GAA grounds, tennis club, two swimming pools, 40x20 handball alley, rugby grounds, soccer grounds, driving range, and a recreational track.[94]
LC1114.3. A hosting by Domhnall Mac Lachlainn to Rath-Cennaigh, when Eochaidh Ua Mathghamhna, with the Ulidians, came into his house, and Donnchadh Ua Loingsigh, with the Dal-Araidhe, and Aedh Ua Ruairc, with the men of Breifne, and Murchadh Ua Maelsechlainn, with the men of Midhe. They all proceeded across Ath-Luain to Dun-Leodha [the original name of Ballinasloe] where Toirdhealbhach Ua Conchobhair, with the Connachtmen, aud Niall, son of Domhnall Mac Lachlainn, with the chieftains of Clann-Conaill, came into his assembly.
^Lee, J. J. (1981). "On the accuracy of the Pre-famine Irish censuses". In Goldstrom, J. M.; Clarkson, L. A. (eds.). Irish Population, Economy, and Society: Essays in Honour of the Late K. H. Connell. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press.
^ abcAlcock, Olive; de hÓra, Kathy; Gosling, Paul, eds. (1999). Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. II – North Galway. Dublin: Government Stationery Office.
^"APTAR: Twelve Years A Growing"(PDF). Ballinasloe Life. Vol. 3, no. 3. September 2013. p. 7. Archived(PDF) from the original on 14 November 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
^"Ballinasloe-Life-Issue-53.pdf"(PDF). Ballinasloe Life. Vol. 9, no. 5. p. 41. Archived(PDF) from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020. The weather turned quite nasty for the 20 hours between the first evening and afternoon of the second, so much so that it became [a one night event]
^"ballinasloe-life-issue-58.pdf"(PDF). Ballinasloe Life. Vol. 10, no. 4. p. 3. Archived(PDF) from the original on 6 October 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2020. The now annual Zombie Walk has also been cancelled due to the Pandemic
^"About Ballinasloe Town Hall". ballinasloetownhall.com. Retrieved 7 May 2022. The theatre hosts local groups including Ballinasloe Panto's week long Christmas Panto
^County of Galway Local Electoral Areas and Municipal Districts Order 2018 (S.I. No. 618 of 2018). Signed on 19 December 2018. Statutory Instrument of the Government of Ireland. Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 23 February 2019.
^"Dinny Delaney". Catholic Press. 17 March 1921. Archived from the original on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
^"Aisling Dolan". Oireachtas Members Database. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
^McCrum, Robert (14 November 2004). "The vanishing man". The Observer. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 14 November 2004.