Mountcharles
| Mountcharles Tamhnach an tSalainn | |
|---|---|
| Village | |
 | |
  Mountcharles | |
| Coordinates: 54°39′N 8°12′W / 54.650°N 8.200°WCoordinates: 54°39′N 8°12′W / 54.650°N 8.200°W | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Ulster |
| County | County Donegal |
| Government | |
| • Dáil Éireann | Donegal South–West |
| • EU Parliament | North–West |
| Population | |
| • Total | 468 |
Mountcharles (Irish: Tamhnach an tSalainn, meaning "The salt mountain field")[1][2][3] is a village in County Donegal, Ireland. It lies 6 km from Donegal town on the Killybegs road.
Name and history
The area was originally known as Tamhnach an tSalainn (meaning "The salt mountain field"). This refers to a salt mine in the area which local people worked in, and at an growing rate, as the salt extraction rate was increased by the incoming family of Charles Conyngham.[4] The name was later anglicized as Tawnaghtallan and Tawnytallan.[1]
The English name for the village owes its origin to the Scottish plantation runner, Charles Conyngham, who arrived in Donegal during the Plantation of Ulster and asserted a landlord control over the area, renaming the region Mount Charles after himself.[5] He is the ancestor of the current "Lord" Henry Conyngham (frequently, if inaccurately, known as 'Lord Henry Mountcharles') of Slane Castle, County Meath. Charles Conyngham financed the building of the village in the 17th century. The Conyngham estate and its large estate house (Hall Demesne), close to the village, are now unoccupied. The courtesy title of the heir apparent of The Marquess Conyngham is Earl of Mount Charles, being named after the village.
The villages's English language name is usually pronounced locally as Mount-charr-liss.[citation needed]
Transport
Mountcharles railway station opened on 18 August 1893 and shut on 1 January 1960.[6]
Notable people
- Cahir Healy, politician
- Seumas MacManus 1869-1960 a prolific historian, folklorist and University of Notre Dame lecturer. Who wrote, amongst other works, The Story of the Irish Race, Hiberian Nights and The four winds of Eirinn.[7][8][9][10]
Shops and pubs
Mountcharles has two shops: one on the Main Street the other on the Upper Main Street. There are three pubs: two on the Main Street, while the other is on Upper Main Street. The Village Tavern on the Main Street has been voted pub and restaurant of the year in 2003 and 2004.
Sport
Montcharles has a Gaelic games pitch that belongs to the local club St Naul's (or Naomh Naile in the Irish language); nearby is Eany Celtic F.C.
See also
- List of populated places in Ireland
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Placenames Database of Ireland: Mountcharles/Tamhnach an tSalainn
- ↑ http://www.welovedonegal.com/tv-mountcharles.html
- ↑ ""Tamhnach" translation in Irish English Dictionary Foclóir.".
- ↑ http://www.dun-na-ngall.com/mountc.html
- ↑ http://www.welovedonegal.com/tv-mountcharles.html
- ↑ "Mountcharles station". Railscot - Irish Railways. Retrieved 18 November 2007.
- ↑ http://archives.nd.edu/episodes/visitors/macmanus/
- ↑ http://www.dun-na-ngall.com/mountc.html
- ↑ http://www.donegallibrary.ie/memory/towns/mountcharles.htm
- ↑ https://www.librarything.com/author/macmanusseumas
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