Patrickswell, historically known as Toberpatrick (), is a small town in

County Limerick "Remember Limerick" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Limerick.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Republic of Ireland, Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Ireland, Province , subd ...

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 primarily a commuter village for people working in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

, particularly the nearby

industrial suburb An industrial suburb is a community, near a large city, with an industrial economy. These communities may be established as tax havens or as places where zoning promotes industry, or they may be industrial towns that become suburbs by urban spr ...

of Raheen. The population was 847 at the 2016 census.

Etymology

The name refers to Saint Patrick and there is a small hand pump/well in the main street; Microsoft mappoint and some other programs call the village St. Patrick's Well or St. Patrickswell.

Overview

Patrickswell has a main street, with shops, garages, ATMs and a post office. The town is located only 10 km from

city, and as a result relies on the city and its suburbs for secondary schools, shops, banks and other facilities. There are several

housing estate A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Popular throughout the United States ...

s (''Marian Park'', ''Lisheen Park'', ''Belgard Grove'' ''Sycamore Heights'' and ''Laurel Park'') off the main street and road to

Clarina Clarina () is a village in County Limerick in the province of Munster, Ireland. It lies between Mungret and Kildimo on the N69 National Route about 6 miles west of Limerick city close to the River Maigue. The Maigue is a tributary of the Riv ...

. The latter road has strip development north from Patrickswell all the way to Clarina and the N69 road. As a dormitory town with only one major street, Patrickswell retains the appearance of a village, despite its population of over 3000.

Location and transport

The town is located near to the N20/

N21 road The N21 road is a national primary road in Ireland. The route runs from the M20 outside Limerick to Tralee with connecting roads to other parts of County Kerry. It is in length. It runs through the towns of Abbeyfeale, Newcastle West, Ada ...

, which until Patrickswell was bypassed in 2001, ran through the town centre. This road is now the R526 from west of the town to Limerick city. The town can be accessed at either end from the N20 junction for Limerick Racecourse, or the N20/N21 junction further west (where the R526 commences). A

railway line Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. The difference between the American term ''railroad'' and the international term ''railway'' (used by the International Union of Railways and English-speaking countries outside the United Sta ...

to Adare and

Foynes Foynes (; ) is a town and major port in County Limerick in the midwest of Ireland, located at the edge of hilly land on the southern bank of the Shannon Estuary. The population of the town was 520 as of the 2016 census. Foynes's role as seap ...

passes alongside the town to the south, although Patrickswell station is long closed. The station was at one time Patrickswell Junction, with direct Limerick–Cork trains diverging here from the route of trains bound for Foynes,

Newcastle West Newcastle West () or simply Newcastle (''An Caisleán Nua'', formerly anglicized Castlenoe) is a town in west County Limerick, Ireland. It is the largest town in the county, excluding Limerick city, It is also the county town, and sits on the ...

and

Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...

. Freight trains from Limerick to/from Foynes ran until 2000, and technically the line is still open - though not passable all the way to Foynes (a bridge is in need of replacement). The last train was when the weedspray train visited the line on 7 May 2002. An inspection car was the last movement on the line, which travelled the line in January 2003. Passenger trains ceased in 1963, though passenger services to Croom, Bruree and Charleville on the Cork direct line ceased in 1934 finally closing in March 1967 and lifted soon afterwards. In November 1975 the Ballingrane–Tralee (North Kerry) line closed (see Irish railway history). Patrickswell railway station opened on 12 July 1856, closed for passenger traffic on 4 February 1963 and finally closed altogether on 2 December 1974. The signal cabin remained opened until 1982. Patrickswell Railway station is now in private ownership, it is home to Hutch Hollywood Engineers. A contemporary extension to the original railway station building was designed by Rob Shanahan architects and won OPUS Building of the year award in 2004.

Media

Despite the size, Patrickswell exchange was not DSL-enabled till 2007,List of Exchanges to be enabled in 2007
/ref> though this means it is ADSL2+. Some parts can get

Digiweb Digiweb is a telecommunications company in Ireland, supplying business and consumer broadband and web hosting. Digiweb is 100% Irish-owned and run, and is headquartered in Dundalk, County Louth, with its technical, installation and sales offic ...

Metro Broadband on 10.5 GHz wireless (needs Line of sight Woodcock Hill). Most homes have good reception of Saorview DTT (much better than analogue TV was), DAB (RTE only) and VHF-FM from Woodcock Hill. MMDS (UPC's Wireless cable TV for Rural areas) is either from Woodcock Hill or a transmitter in Limerick City direction. MMDS is likely to end in 2016. Patrickswell is on Eircom's Fibre Rollout for 2016-17, but this is likely just VDSL from exchange and perhaps a cabinet near Marian Park.

History

The town played a role in the

Battle of Killmallock The Battle of Kilmallock took place between 25 July and 5 August 1922 in County Limerick, Ireland. It was one of the largest engagements of the Irish Civil War. It consisted of ten days of fighting in the countryside round Kilmallock in Cou ...

. According to Mainchín Seoighe, the present day parish of Patrickswell-Ballybrown is made up parts of the pre-Reformation parishes of Kilkeedy, Killonahan, Mungret, Croom, and Adare. Until the middle of the 18th century, the parishes of Kilkeedy and Clounanna were joined with Adare. When the parish of Patrickswell was formed Kilkeedy and Clounanna became part of the new parish. The first parish priest of the new parish was Fr Nicholas Molony. The present population of the parish is roughly 3,400 people.

Politics

The village is located with the Limerick City West local authority area of

Limerick City and County Council Limerick City and County Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach agus Contae Luimnigh) is the authority responsible for Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local government in the Limerick, City of Limerick and County Limerick in Republic of ...

& in the Limerick City constituency for national politics

References

{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Limerick Towns and villages in County Limerick