Brickens (), officially Brickeens,Brickeens
Placenames Database of Ireland. Retrieved: 2012-04-18. is a village and

townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic orig ...

on the N60 road between

Ballyhaunis Ballyhaunis () is a town in County Mayo, Ireland. It is at the crossroads of the N60 and N83 National secondary roads and on the railway line linking Dublin to Westport and Ballina. It is thought that the town grew up around St Mary's Augu ...

and

Claremorris Claremorris (; ) is a town in County Mayo in the west of Ireland, at the junction of the N17 and the N60 national routes. It is the fastest growing town in the county. There was a 31% increase in the town's population between 2006 and 2011 an ...

in southeast

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...

in Ireland. The

River Robe The River Robe ( ga, Abhainn an Róba) is a river in County Mayo, Ireland. It rises near Ballyhaunis, then flows generally west for , where it drains into Lough Mask. The river's name in Irish is ''An Róba'', first recorded as ''Rodba'' ...

flows through the village which is 65 metres above sea level,Brickeens: Historic 25" map
(surveyed between 1898–1913), Ordnance Survey Ireland. Retrieved: 2012-04-18. and old

ordnance survey , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = Ordnance Survey 2015 Logo.svg , logo_width = 240px , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = , picture_width = , picture_caption = , formed = , preceding1 = , di ...

maps show the townland with an area of 368

acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

s and 23

perch Perch is a common name for fish of the genus ''Perca'', freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which three species occur in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Percif ...

es – equivalent to nearly 150

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is a ...

s.Brickeens, Historic 6" map
(surveyed between 1838–1845), Ordnance Survey Ireland. Retrieved: 2012-04-18. It is in the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

and

Catholic parish In the Catholic Church, a parish ( la, parochia) is a stable community of the faithful within a particular church, whose pastoral care has been entrusted to a parish priest (Latin: ''parochus''), under the authority of the diocesan bishop. It is t ...

of Bekan and in the former

barony Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

of Costello. The area surrounding the village is devoted to agriculture. Brickens is a 30-kilometre drive from

Ireland West Airport Knock Ireland West Airport ( ga, Aerfort Iarthar Éireann Mhuire), officially known as Ireland West Airport Knock ( ga, Aerfort Iarthar Éireann Chnoc Mhuire), is an international airport south-west of Charlestown, County Mayo, Ireland. The vi ...

Etymology of "Brickens"

The official name of the village is Brickeens but it is known locally as Brickens. The name derives from the

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 ...

word , meaning

badger Badgers are short-legged omnivores in the family Mustelidae (which also includes the otters, wolverines, martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and ferrets). Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united b ...

warrens. The Irish word means badger and is related to the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

word brock, also meaning badger. The

Placenames Database of Ireland The Placenames Database of Ireland ( ga, Bunachar Logainmneacha na hÉireann), also known as , is a database and archive of place names in Ireland. It was created by Fiontar, Dublin City University in collaboration with the Placenames Branch of t ...

records that the English place name Brocklin was in use here in 1591. Brock is one of a handful of ancient words that survive from the Celtic-speaking era in Britain, and which are still in use in English today. The Irish word is also a diminutive form of (thus, another meaning of ''broicíní'' is "little badgers"), and means a short thick-set person, a sturdy little fellow, or a dirty-faced or grizzled, grey-haired person.

History

Evidence of an ancient human presence in the district exists in the form of three

ringfort Ringforts, ring forts or ring fortresses are circular fortified settlements that were mostly built during the Bronze Age up to about the year 1000. They are found in Northern Europe, especially in Ireland. There are also many in South Wales ...

s east of the village Community Centre, at Liscolman (officially called Liscluman), and at Lurgan, and there are many others in the surrounding region. The prefix "lis-" ( in Irish) in the name Liscolman means "fort". In more recent, historical times, the local big house was at Ballinvilla Demesne, southeast of Brickens church at the former home of the Crean family, who were transplanted from

County Galway "Righteousness and Justice" , anthem = () , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg , map_caption = Location in Ireland , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = ...

under the

Cromwellian settlement The Act for the Setling of Ireland imposed penalties including death and land confiscation against Irish civilians and combatants after the Irish Rebellion of 1641 and subsequent unrest. British historian John Morrill wrote that the Act and ...

.Estate: Crean
Landed Estates Database. Retrieved: 2012-04-18. The Creans settled at first in Brickens and by the mid-nineteenth century they held five townlands in the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of Bekan and were residing at Ballinvilla. In 1876, they had an estate of , but by 1916 they accepted an offer from the Congested Districts Board for the purchase of of the estate. Ballinvilla House is now demolished and a large modern home has been constructed nearby within the former

demesne A demesne ( ) or domain was all the land retained and managed by a lord of the manor under the feudal system for his own use, occupation, or support. This distinguished it from land sub-enfeoffed by him to others as sub-tenants. The concept or ...

, but a small Crean family graveyard still exists there. The N60

national secondary road A national secondary road ( ga, Bóthar Náisiúnta den Dara Grád) is a category of road in Ireland. These roads form an important part of the national route network but are secondary to the main arterial routes which are classified as national ...

that passes through Brickens was formerly a sand road that was tarred in 1940.Obituaries: Mary Kelly
The Mayo News, 2009-10-28.

Community

Social life in the village takes place at Brickens Community Centre,Bekan Parish
Archdiocese of Tuam, 2009-12-10. owned by the Diocese of Tuam, with activities ranging from

adult education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained self-educating activities in order to gain new forms of knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralp ...

classes to

bingo Bingo or B-I-N-G-O may refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * Bingo, a game using a printed card of numbers ** Bingo (British version), a game using a printed card of 15 numbers on three lines; most commonly played in the UK and Ireland ** Bi ...

,Bekan Parish Newsletter
My Local News, 2011-10-01. and at the village

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

and restaurant. The church of St. Therese of the Little Flower, built in 1927–8, is on the east of the village, one of the three Catholic churches in the

of Bekan. The local cemetery for Brickens is four kilometres to the southeast in Kildarra, beside Tulrahan. The village had a sub-post office in the past but this was closed on 23 June 2005. Church of Saint Therese in Brickens

The Lohan Park Group Home and Retirement Village was opened by the Minister of State for Health and Children in July 2005 at the modern Lohan Park development on the southeast of the village. It was described during an

Oireachtas The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of: *The President of Ireland *The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...

joint committee debate on

community development The United Nations defines community development as "a process where community members come together to take collective action and generate solutions to common problems." It is a broad concept, applied to the practices of civic leaders, activists ...

in 2009 as providing "residential care and community services to older people in the local community, including meals on wheels, day care and laundry services." The facility was singled out during the Oireachtas debate for commendation as a successful example of how "community development is able to lay the foundation for local groups to develop into fully fledged community enterprises." The community of Brickens participates in such organizations as the

Irish Countrywomen's Association The Irish Countrywomen's Association (ICA; ga, Bantracht na Tuaithe) is the largest women's organisation in Ireland, with over 15,000 members. Founded in 1910 as the Society of United Irishwomen, it exists to prove social and educational oppo ...

and the Brickens Foróige Club, part of a national youth organization with branches throughout Ireland. is a contraction of the Irish phrase , meaning "development of youth". The village also has a local Enterprise Centre operating under the aegis of the Irish state economic development agency,

Enterprise Ireland Enterprise Ireland is an Irish state economic development agency focused on helping Irish-owned business deliver new export sales. The aim of Enterprise Ireland is . History Enterprise Ireland was established by the Industrial Development (E ...

. The facility, called the Gilmore Enterprise Centre, contains resources for local entrepreneurs planning to start small local businesses. It was opened officially by the

Cathaoirleach Cathaoirleach (; Irish for chairperson; plural: ) is the title of the chair (or presiding officer) of Seanad Éireann, the sixty-member upper house of the Oireachtas, the legislature of Ireland. The current Cathaoirleach, who has held the off ...

Mayo County Council Mayo County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Mhaigh Eo) is the authority responsible for local government in County Mayo, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and ...

in October 2010.

Education

Montessori The Montessori method of education involves children's natural interests and activities rather than formal teaching methods. A Montessori classroom places an emphasis on hands-on learning and developing real-world skills. It emphasizes indepen ...

pre-school called Little Acorns Children's Centre was opened in Brickens by the Minister for Labour Affairs in April 2010. It was erected on land donated by Brickens Integrated Resource Development Company and catered for 53 children when it began. There was a two-roomed national school in the village in generations past called Ballinvilla School, where the sexes were segregated. The school was beside the church but, today, primary and secondary school children are taken by bus to schools beyond the townland. The old Ballinvilla school building was renovated and extended during the early 1980s for use as a community centre, as part of an

AnCO Anco may refer to: Places * Anco, Kentucky, US * Anco District, Churcampa Anco District is one of ten districts of the province Churcampa in Peru. Ethnic groups The people in the district are mainly Indigenous citizens of Quechua descent. Quech ...

Community Youth Training Project.

Sport

The local GAA football club is the

Eastern Gaels Eastern Gaels GAA (Irish: ''CLG Gaeil an Oirthir'') is a Gaelic Athletic Association club located in Brickens, County Mayo. The club was founded in 1984 in the parish of Bekan drawing its members from Bekan, Brickeens to the south of the paris ...

, founded in 1984. The team colours are blue and yellow, and there is a playing pitch on the northern outskirts of Brickens, in the direction of Keebagh.Eastern Gaels website
Retrieved: 2016-12-27.

Notable residents

* Michael Cleary, bishop of

Banjul Banjul (,"Banjul"
(US) and ), officially the City of Ba ...

Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

(retired 2006).

References

External links

Photographs of Brickens
* Scanned census forms for Brickens, handwritte
in 1901
an
in 1911
{{County Mayo Towns and villages in County Mayo Townlands of County Mayo