Crossmolina

Crossmolina
Crois Uí Mhaoilíona
Town
Montage including; Top: A view of the statue at the centre of the town of Crossmolina. Centre: Deel River and Saint Mary's Church. Bottom: Street view in centre of the town
Crossmolina
Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 54°06′00″N 9°19′00″W / 54.1°N 9.3167°W / 54.1; -9.3167Coordinates: 54°06′00″N 9°19′00″W / 54.1°N 9.3167°W / 54.1; -9.3167
Country Ireland
Province Connacht
County County Mayo
Elevation 24 m (79 ft)
Population (2016)[1]
 • Urban 1,044
Time zone UTC+0 (WET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC-1 (IST (WEST))
Irish Grid Reference G137175
Website www.crossmolina.ie

Crossmolina or Crosmolina[2][3] (Irish: Crois Uí Mhaoilíona, meaning "Cross of Mullany") is a town in the Barony of Tyrawley in County Mayo, Ireland, as well as the name of the parish in which Crossmolina is situated. The town sits on the River Deel near the northern shore of Lough Conn. Crossmolina is about 9 km west of Ballina, on the N59 Road as it travels west through Erris to Bellacorick and Bangor Erris Glencastle, Belmullet and the Mullet peninsula.

History

The origins of present-day Crossmolina are tied to the founding of a religious settlement in the area: Errew Abbey was founded by St. Tiernan in the 6th century.[4] In the 12th Century this Abbey came into possession of the invading Hiberno-Norman de Barry family. During the 15th century, Crossmolina passed into the hands of the Bourke Family. In 1526 O'Donnell of Tir Conaill (Co. Donegal) invaded Tirawley and destroyed Crossmolina Castle.[5] In response, the Bourkes would construct a replacement in Deel Castle.[6] Their possession of his new fortress did not last however as during the Williamite War in Ireland of the 1690s Thomas Burke fought for the defeated Catholic Jacobites. Subsequently, Deel Castle was granted by the English crown to the Anglo-Irish Protestant Gore family, ushering in the era of Protestant Ascendancy into the area.[7] In 1789 Crossmolina would have been swept up with the events of the United Irishmen Rebellion when French Forces under General Humbert coming from Ballina would have passed by Crossmolina, towards Lahardane and on towards Castlebar as they went west of Lough Conn to fight the Battle of Castlebar.

The Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s devastated the greater Crossmolina area, slicing a population of 12,221 in 1841 down to 7,236 by 1851.[8] The Famine would have also have had drastic effects on the use of language in the area: It is estimated that over 80% of the Crossmolina area spoke the Irish Language previous to the famine.[9] In the 1880s, Pat Nally was arrested, tried and convicted of "The Crossmolina Conspiracy", a supposed Fenian plot to murder landlords' agents in the Crossmolina area.[10]

Aerial view of Crossmolina. In the distance is Saint Tiernan's Church and the mountain Nephin.

Population

In the Census of April 2011[11] Crossmolina had a population of 1,060 consisting of 535 males and 526 females.The population of pre-school age (0-4) was 62, of primary school going age (5-12) was 88 and of secondary school going age (13-18) was 76. There were 198 persons aged 65 years and over. The number of persons aged 18 years or over was 844.

Sport

GAA

The local Gaelic football is Crossmolina Deel Rovers. Founded in 1887 as Crossmolina Dr. Crokes, they became Deel Rovers in 1906.[12] The club saw major success in the early 2000s, winning the Connacht Senior Club Football Championship in 1999, 2000 and 2002, and as well as obtaining the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship in 2001, and were runners-up for that title in 2003.

Areas of Crossmolina

  • Abbeytown
  • Abbey View
  • Ballina Road
  • The Boreen
  • Chapel Street
  • Church Street
  • Church View
  • Deer Park
  • Erris Road
  • Killala Road
  • Mullenmore Road
  • Mullenmore Street
  • Riverwalk
  • St. Jude's Avenue
  • St. Mary's Park
  • St. Patrick's Avenue
  • Fotish

Notable current and former residents

View of Saint Tiernans Church located in Crossmolina

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Census 2016 Sapmap Area: Settlements Crossmalina". Central Statistics Office. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
  2. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 9 July 2009. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  3. ↑ http://www.advertiser.ie/galway/article/14389
  4. ↑ http://www.mayo-ireland.ie/en/towns-villages/crossmolina/crossmolina-history.html
  5. ↑ http://www.crossmolina.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=139&Itemid=1082
  6. ↑ http://www.crossmolina.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=140&Itemid=1083
  7. ↑ http://www.crossmolina.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=140&Itemid=1083
  8. ↑ http://www.mayolibrary.ie/media/Exhibitions/Famine/FamineCombined.pdf
  9. ↑ https://twitter.com/frank_selby/status/704810228542541825
  10. ↑ http://www.mayo-ireland.ie/en/about-mayo/people/pat-nally.html
  11. ↑ "Census April 2016 (Crossmolina)" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-11-22.
  12. ↑ http://www.deelrovers.com/contentPage/203637/h_i_s_t_o_r_y_o_f_t_h_e_c_l_u_b
  13. ↑ http://www.hoganstand.com/mayo/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=201293
  14. ↑ http://mayogaablog.com/?p=10225

Sources

  • Lynott, J. (1980). "A Guide to History and Antiquities West of Killala Bay"
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