Manorhamilton () is the second-largest town in

County Leitrim County Leitrim ( ; gle, Contae Liatroma) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Connacht and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the village of Leitrim. Leitrim County Council is the local authority for the ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. It is located on the N16 from

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

and from

Enniskillen Enniskillen ( , from ga, Inis Ceithleann , 'Cethlenn, Ceithlenn's island') is the largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the middle of the county, between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of ...

History

Before the

Plantations of Ireland Plantations in 16th- and 17th-century Ireland involved the confiscation of Irish-owned land by the English Crown and the colonisation of this land with settlers from Great Britain. The Crown saw the plantations as a means of controlling, angl ...

, the settlement was known, and continues to be known in the

Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

, as ''Cluainín'' or ''Cluainín Uí Ruairc'' (meaning "little meadow of O'Rourke"). This lay on the west bank of the Owenbeg. Uí Ruairc (anglicised as O'Rourke) was the local Gaelic chieftain, based in nearby

Dromahair Dromahair () is a village in County Leitrim in the northern part of Connacht, the western province in Ireland. Dromahair is 10 km (6 mi) from Manorhamilton and 17 km (10 mi) from Sligo town. Geography Dromahair lies in the ...

, whose land was seized by the British and then granted to Sir Frederick Hamilton for his services in the European wars of the 17th century. As a result of his actions, Hamilton to this day is considered to have been a tyrant by the local people. He began building a new town on the east bank of the river, in the

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 origi ...

of Clonmullen, which he renamed 'Manorhamilton'. After the town emerged, the name ''Baile Hamaltuin'' was adopted by Irish speakers and its anglicised form 'Ballyhamilton' was for a time used by English speakers. ;Manorhamilton Castle Manorhamilton castle was erected in 1634 by Sir Frederick Hamilton, who had been granted land in north Leitrim by the British government. The land had been confiscated from the O'Rourkes, the ruling clan of Breifne. Hamilton was a very unpopular overlord and faced frequent native rebellion before the Castle was burned by the Earls of Clanrickard (Burkes) in 1652. The castle ruin has been renovated as a tourist attraction.

Economy and culture

Manorhamilton acts as a retail and services catchment for the surrounding rural area. Manorhamilton is also home to several manufacturing businesses, including manufacturers of rubber, plastics, automotive and other products. Throughout at least the 19th and 20th centuries, a number of annual fairs were held at Manorhamilton on 8 May, 1 July, 7 October and 18 November, with four annual fairs held at nearby Lurganboy on 15 (or 17) May, 21 June, 21 August, 23 September and 21 October. Farming is still a dominant sector, yet traditional industries and livelihoods are being replaced by new forms of economic activity. Manorhamilton has several pubs, with many hosting

traditional Irish music Irish traditional music (also known as Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is a genre of folk music that developed in Ireland. In ''A History of Irish Music'' (1905), W. H. Grattan Flood wrote that, in Gaelic Ireland, there w ...

sessions.

Places of interest

Manorhamilton Castle & Heritage Centre

The ruins of Manorhamilton Castle have been renovated and now house a heritage centre and a permanent exhibition, with guided tours of the castle ruins and grounds.

Bee Park Resource Centre

The Bee Park Resource Centre is a facility on the site of the former community centre. The centre has a large main hall which stages concerts and community events. The Bee Park Centre is also used by youth, sport, disability and childcare groups. The North Leitrim Women's Group and The North Leitrim Men's Group are also located here.

Square

A public square has been developed adjacent to Manorhamilton Castle on the former fair green. The square, which incorporates an outdoor performance platform, features an abstract sculpture, sourced from the local Leitrim Sculpture Centre.

Famine graveyard

This plot is one of three graveyards opened shortly before and during the Great Famine of 1845 - 1849.

Megalithic sites

The north Leitrim area features a number of pre-historic sites of interest. This includes the nearby O'Donnell's Rock plateau, where several well-preserved stone forts and passage tombs are located. Cairns and other tombs are also visible on Benbo Mountain and at the summits of surrounding mountains. On lower ground, the remains of ringforts and cashels, tombs and other structures are dotted throughout the landscape. Lisdarush Ring Fort is an Iron Age site which can be seen just off the

Rossinver Rossinver or Rosinver () is a small village in north County Leitrim, Ireland. The village is home to a retired monastery of the same name and is at the southern shore of Lough Melvin, home to two rare species of trout – the ''Gillaroo'' an ...

road approximately from Manorhamilton.

Healthcare

Our Lady's Hospital, Manorhamilton - geograph

Our Lady's Hospital is located on the edge of the town. This HSE hospital provides a range of services, and is focused on long-stay and day-care

geriatric Geriatrics, or geriatric medicine, is a medical specialty focused on providing care for the unique health needs of older adults. The term ''geriatrics'' originates from the Greek language, Greek γέρων ''geron'' meaning "old man", and ιατ ...

and

rheumatology Rheumatology (Greek ''ῥεῦμα'', ''rheûma'', flowing current) is a branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis and management of disorders whose common feature is inflammation in the bones, muscles, joints, and internal organs. Rheumatolog ...

services.

Transport

Road

Manorhamilton is on the N16 national primary route. This road continues across the border and becomes the A4. The

R280 road The R280 road is a regional road in Ireland linking Bundoran in County Donegal in the north to Carrick-on-Shannon in County Leitrim. En route it passes through Kinlough, Manorhamilton, Drumkeeran and Leitrim village. The road is long. Image ...

links the town to

Bundoran Bundoran () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. The town is located near the N15 road near Ballyshannon, and is the most southerly town in Donegal. The town is a tourist seaside resort, and tourism has been at the heart of the local economy s ...

in County Donegal and to

Carrick-on-Shannon Carrick-on-Shannon () is the county town of County Leitrim in Ireland. It is the largest town in the county of Leitrim. A smaller part of the town lies in County Roscommon. The population of the town was 4,062 in 2016. It is situated on a stra ...

in County Leitrim. The R282 road links the town to

and continues across the border as the B53 to

Garrison, County Fermanagh Garrison is a small village near Lough Melvin in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. The Roogagh River runs through the village. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 357 people. It is situated within Fermanagh and Omagh district. Accord ...

. The town is served by a number of

Bus Éireann Bus Éireann (; "Irish Bus") is a state-owned bus and coach operator providing services throughout Ireland, with the exception of Dublin and the Greater Dublin Area, where bus services are provided by sister company Dublin Bus. It is a subsidia ...

routes. The only daily service is route 458 which runs from Ballina to

. Route 470 (serving

) and route 495 (to

Ballyshannon Ballyshannon () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is located at the southern end of the county where the N3 from Dublin ends and the N15 crosses the River Erne. Incorporated in 1613, it is one of the oldest towns in Ireland. Location B ...

) both run on Fridays.

Rail

The nearest railway station to Manorhamilton is

, which is served by trains to

Dublin Connolly Connolly station ( ga, Stáisiún Uí Chonghaile) or Dublin Connolly is one of the busiest railway stations in Dublin and Ireland, and is a focal point in the Irish route network. On the North side of the River Liffey, it provides InterCi ...

and is operated by

Iarnród Éireann Iarnród Éireann () or Irish Rail, is the operator of the national railway network of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ). It operates all internal InterCity, Commuter, DART and fr ...

. Bus Éireann services from Manorhamilton stop at Sligo bus station, which is beside Sligo railway station. Manorhamilton previously had its own station, Manorhamilton railway station, which opened in 1880 and formed part of the

Sligo, Leitrim and Northern Counties Railway The Sligo, Leitrim and Northern Counties Railway (SL&NCR) was a railway in counties Cavan, Fermanagh, Leitrim and Sligo in north-west Ireland. It consisted of one main line, with no branch lines and remained privately owned until its closure. ...

(SLNCR). All maintenance on the line's engines and rolling stock was carried out at the station works, and the railway became a major employer locally. The administrative headquarters of the SLNCR was located in the nearby village of Lurganboy. The railway served as a major business and tourism artery to the area and developed a large trade in livestock exports. The SLNCR, and with it Manorhamilton station, closed on 1 October 1957.

Sport

The local

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

and

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

club is

Glencar–Manorhamilton GAA Glencar–Manorhamilton GAA is a Gaelic football, hurling and ladies' Gaelic football club based in Manorhamilton and the Glencar valley, County Leitrim, Ireland. The hurling team play under the name Cluainín Iomáint (Manorhamilton Hurling). ...

(Gleann an Chairthe–Cluainín). The club has won the

Leitrim Senior Football Championship The Leitrim Senior Football Championship is an annual football competition contested by top-tier Leitrim GAA clubs. The Leitrim County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association has organised it since 1890. St Mary's, Kiltoghert are the title ...

on several occasions, including in 2019. The club's grounds are in Boggaun. The

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

(soccer) club, Manorhamilton Rangers AFC, participates in the Sligo Leitrim Junior soccer leagues. Manor Rangers pitch is located in the Bee Park sports grounds in the centre of the town. Manorhamilton Tennis Club has all-weather courts in the Bee Park sports grounds. Teams from the club also participate in the Connacht Tennis League. Other local sports clubs include a boxing club (Sean McDermott Boxing Club), hillwalking club (Holey Soles Hillwalking Club), and others involved in fishing, athletics, basketball, Irish dancing, table tennis and badminton.

Media

Local media organisations include the ''

Leitrim Observer The ''Leitrim Observer'' is the oldest newspaper in County Leitrim. It is a weekly newspaper published every Wednesday and once competed with another newspaper called the ''Leitrim Post'' which was forced to close in 2009 during the economic cr ...

'' newspaper, and the town and its hinterland is covered by Ocean FM radio station, which had a studio in Manorhamilton until 2017.

Notable people

John Willoughby Crawford John Willoughby Crawford (26 August 1817 – 13 May 1875) served as the third Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Canada from 1873 to 1875. Born in 1817 in Manorhamilton, County Leitrim, Ireland, the son of George Crawford, John Crawford came to ...

QC (1817–1875),

Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the , who operates distinctly within the province but ...

(1873–75). *

Charles Irwin Charles Irwin, VC (1824 – 8 April 1873), was born in Manorhamilton, County Leitrim, and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British ...

VC (1824–1873),

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 ...

recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...