| Foxford Béal Easa
|
|
|---|---|
| — Village — | |
| Foxford | |
|
Foxford
|
|
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Connacht |
| County | County Mayo |
| Elevation | 12 m (39 ft) |
| Population (2006)[1][2] | |
| • Total | 1,058 |
| Irish Grid Reference | G265040 |
Foxford, historically called Bellasa (Irish: Béal Easa, meaning "mouth of the waterfall"), is a small village 16 km south of Ballina in County Mayo, Ireland. The village stands on the N26 national primary route from Swinford to Ballina and has a railway station served by trains between Dublin and Ballina.
Situated between the Nephin and Ox Mountains, Foxford lies on the River Moy, a salmon-fishing river, and close to Loughs Conn and Cullin, which have some brown trout fishing.[3] The Foxford Way is an 86-km waymarked tourist trail that circles Foxford, taking in the Ox Mountains, roads, bogland, archeological sites, lakeshores, and river banks.
Foxford developed around the eponymous Woollen Mills which have been producing the famous Foxford blankets since 1892.
Contents |
The busy N26 road passes through the village and the bridge over the River Moy is a bottleneck. Over 10,000 vehicles cross the bridge everyday, on route to Ballina and north Mayo. It is proposed to bypass the village by dual-carriageway when the proposed Ballina to Bohola road commences construction. However, this major piece of infrastructure is now on hold due to government cutbacks in public spending, despite several million euro of preparation work and compulsory purchase orders.