| Muine Bheag Bagenalstown |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
| — Town — | |||
| The railway station | |||
|
|||
| Motto: Uimhir gan choisc "The Irrepressible Number" |
|||
|
Muine Bheag
|
|||
| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Ireland | ||
| Province | Leinster | ||
| County | County Carlow | ||
| Elevation | 40 m (131 ft) | ||
| Population (2006)[1] | |||
| • Urban | 2,532 | ||
| • Environs | 203 | ||
| Irish Grid Reference | S683609 | ||
Muine Bheag or Muinebeag (meaning small thicket), also known as Bagenalstown, is a town and townland in County Carlow, Ireland.
Contents |
Muine Bheag is the official name of the town. The name comes from the Irish for "small thicket".[2] It was historically anglicised as Moneybeg.[3] The motto on the town's coat of arms is The Irrepressible Number and its Irish equivalent Uimhir Gan Choisc.
The English name Bagenalstown came from Lord Walter Bagenal, who based the town on Versailles in France, and the town's courthouse resembles that of Versailles. Bagenal built the town on the River Barrow to allow for trade and access to the town. He originally wanted the town to be called "New Versailles".
Muine Bheag/Erins Own have been winners of the Carlow Senior Hurling Championship on fourteen occasions, they last won in 1970. Saint Andrews have never won the Carlow Senior Football Championship but were finalists in 1977 and 1978. They won the 2011 Intermediate Football Championship this year however and will compete in the Senior grade again from next year.
Muine Bheag currently has two soccer clubs both participating in the Carlow premier division, Bagenalstown F.C. and Kilree Celtic.
Muine Bheag has had a long tradition in cricket. The local Bagenalstown Cricket Club was first formed in 1842 by the local millers, and is still in use. The club's logo is a grinding wheel, which was used in early milling.
Bagenalstown swimming pool is situated on the approach road to the town from Leighlinbridge. The pool is an excellent attraction for families and children during the summer months.
Muine Bheag has three primary schools and two secondary schools.
Queen of the Universe NS founded by Bishop Keogh in 1957, is a primary school in Muine Bheag catering for boys (junior infants to 1st class) and girls.
St. Brigid’s National School founded in 1865,is a primary school in Muine Bheag catering for boys only from classes 2nd to 6th.
St Mary's National School is a co-educational school under Church of Ireland patronage, based in Bagenalstown (Muine Bheag) County Carlow.
Presentation De La Salle College is a secondary school in Muine Bheag established in 1983, this Catholic College is under the trusteeship of the De La Salle Brothers, the Presentation Sisters and Bagenalstown Parish.
Muine Bheag Vocational School is a secondary school in Muine Bheag. Opened in 1963, being, until the establishment of the Gaelcholaiste in Carlow, the last second level school established by Co. Carlow V.E.C.
The town was twinned with the town of Pont-Péan, Brittany in 1999. The twinning charter is written in Irish, English and French, and it commits the two towns to "developing social, economic, cultural, touristic, and sporting links" between the two communities. Muine Bheag hosts a floral festival every August.
|
||||||||||||||||||