Allenwood () is a small

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

village in

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

situated on the Grand Canal. Allenwood is located about from

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

and halfway between Rathangan and

Clane Clane (; ) is a town in County Kildare, Ireland, from Dublin. Its population of 7,280 makes it the eighth largest town in Kildare and the 66th largest in Ireland. It is on the River Liffey. Clane gives its name to the associated townland, ci ...

in north County Kildare. According to the CSO, Allenwood had a total population of 981 inhabitants as of the 2016 census, an increase from 845 in the 2011 census. The main road through Allenwood is the R403 and the village is within of both the M4 (to the north) and M7 (to the south) motorways. Businesses in the area are centred on the crossroads, and consist of several shops, including a

Spar SPAR, originally DESPAR, styled as DE SPAR, is a Dutch multinational that provides branding, supplies and support services for independently owned and operated food retail stores. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1932, by Adriaan van Well, ...

, a

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, a barbers and a public house. There are two primary schools that were amalgamated into one in 2017, Allenwood G.N.S built in 1957 and Allenwood B.N.S built in 1929. The school is located next to the church which was built in 1954. There is also a business park at the location of the old power station. The Grand Canal is traversed by means of a noteworthy bridge, known locally as the Shee Bridge.

History

Allenwood was developed in the nineteenth century as a coaching post along the Edenderry Road. Later residential development primarily occurred on local roads to the east of the village, typically as single plot developments. Allenwood is the location of a former electricity power station which was fueled by

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficien ...

from the surrounding bog lands. The station was built in 1952 by the Electricity Supply Board (ESB). The

cooling tower A cooling tower is a device that rejects waste heat to the atmosphere through the cooling of a coolant stream, usually a water stream to a lower temperature. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation of water to remove process heat and ...

which could be seen from over , was demolished shortly after the station was retired in 1994.

Bord na Móna Bord na Móna (; English: "The Peat Board"), is a semi-state company in Ireland, created in 1946 by the Turf Development Act 1946. The company began developing the peatlands of Ireland with the aim to provide economic benefit for Irish Midland c ...

which processed peat on the local boglands, established a camp for its workers at Allenwood Cross and the Roadstone quarry in

Allen Allen, Allen's or Allens may refer to: Buildings * Allen Arena, an indoor arena at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee * Allen Center, a skyscraper complex in downtown Houston, Texas * Allen Fieldhouse, an indoor sports arena on the Unive ...

is also nearby. The industrial park located to the north-west of the village has grown around the location of the former ESB power plant.

Recent developments

Allenwood has undergone expansion in the early 21st century, with a two-fold population increase (from 481 to 981 inhabitants) between the 2002 and 2016 censuses. Several larger homes have been built in the area as well as a number of housing estates and apartments. As of Spring 2019, there were three housing estates under development. Traffic lights were also added in late 2016 at the towns major crossroads. There is now provision for a new playground and the proposed Grand Canal Greenway would be a local amenity.

Sport and recreation

The close proximity to the Grand Canal makes Allenwood a destination for fishing and walking. The local football club Allenwood G.F.C. is situated on the Station Road and offers its premises for a variety of other sports and recreations including kick boxing, dancing, scouting and annual school sports days. The local soccer club, Allenwood Celtic, is located outside the village on the Edenderry Road. There were several golf courses within a range of the village, but the nearest ones are now closed.

Notable people

* Johnny Doyle, Kildare Senior Footballer and All Star.

References

External links