town information ireland

Dunmore, from the Irish Dun Mor - Large Fort, lies 15 km north east of Tuam. The original fort was a stronghold of the ancient O'Conor kings, later dispossessed by the Norman de Berminghams. These newcomers built their own stone castle beside the Sinking River here after the conquest of 1235.

The upper section of the present massive structure of four storeys, with wide windows, dates mostly to the 16th or early 17th centuries. On the eastern side of the town, stand the ruins of an...

A resort town, 12 km from Ross, built along a fine beach in Moore Bay, the entrance which is protected from the full force of the Atlantic by a reef known as the Duggerna Rocks.

Kilkee has, of course, like virtually every townland in Ireland, an early history of saints and warriors but its career as a seaside resort took off in early Victorian times. The affluent families of Limerick City built themselves summer villas, "lodges", near the beach which offered safe swimming, ocean bree...

The Fermanagh Tourist Information Centre is run by Fermanagh District Council and is also a member of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board T.I.C. network. We provide a range of tourist information services for visitors, locals and members of the tourism industry. These include: accommodation reservations - Ireland and UK, tourist information both local and national, literature gifts and souvenirs, postage, fax and photocopying service, answering service and 24 hours public access system, access fo...

A picturesque area not found on all tourist maps is Moyne, situated on the Longford-Cavan road, 12km (7 miles) from Drumlish and close to the Cavan border. Rolling hills, bogland and a myriad of small fishing lakes are features. There is a new Community School opened in 1974 replacing the famous Latin School in which hundreds of missionary priests and a protestant bishop were educated....

In Irish, Ath na nUrlaidhe, "the ford of the sledgings" according to O'Curry, where by tradition a battle was fought in the 10th century in which "the Irish and the Danes did sledge each other's heads". The ford from which the name of the pretty town is taken is marked by the bridge which crosses the River Gowl between the old parish church and the Butler Castle of Urlingford. The pre-Reformation church, though in a ruined condition, has substantially perfect walls. A large church stood here...

Headford, some 28km north of Galway, is the popular angling centre for the eastern shore of Lough Corrib, and Greenfields, some 6.5km west of the town, is its boating harbour. The town is situated next to the Black River (noted also for its trout angling) which is the county boundary with Mayo.

Headford is also the centre of an area rich in archaeological monuments, ranging from prehistoric burial cairns, Iron Age stone enclosures, early Norman and later castles, to a bewildering array...

A picturesque village on the River Inny, between Lough Sheelin and Kinale. In the centre of the village there is a memorial to Myles "Slasher" O'Reilly, who defended the town bridge in 1646, during the Confederate wars. On the shore of lough Sheelin is Ross Castle where O'Reilly slept on the eve of the battle.

Sheelin is probably the best known brown trout lake in the midlands; it is a lake to be enjoyed by all the family, you can picnic, swim or just enjoy the scenery. If you...

Edgeworthstown/(Mostrim) is a successful centre located on the N4. The town has a long association with the celebrated family of Edgeworth, who first settled here in 1583. The story of the Edgeworths is almost as entertaining as that of "Arabian Nights". Among the eminent members of the family were Richard Lovell Edgeworth, inventor and surveyor, "The Ingenious Mr. Edgeworth", Desmond Clarke has entitled him in his fine biography. Of his twenty four children, Maria the novelist is best known...

Carraroe is, perhaps, the main centre of Cois Fharraige, (By the Sea), the extensive Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking) area of South Connemara. It is one of the most important places promoting Irish culture involving both language, song and dance and, like many places in the district, organises Irish Summer schools for children from English-speaking areas.

It is also a very popular holiday resort for Irish-speaking holiday makers from other parts of the country. It is the ideal base from whi...

An example of a seventeenth-century market town. The ruins of Ballinakill Castle are of a late seventeenth-century castle built by the Dunnes (but never inhabited) on the site of one destroyed by Cromwellian troops under Fairfax. The configuration of streets around the large rectangular square is eighteenth century.

The town's entrance from Abbeyleix is marked by two trees known as Toll Trees where a toll was paid by visitors to the town. The town had important fairs, a brewery, wo...