Louisburgh () is a small town on the southwest corner of

Clew Bay Clew Bay (; ga, Cuan Mó) is a natural ocean bay in County Mayo, Republic of Ireland. It contains Ireland's best example of sunken drumlins. The bay is overlooked by Croagh Patrick to the south and the Nephin Range mountains of North Mayo. Cla ...

in County Mayo,

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 home to Sancta Maria College and the

Gráinne O'Malley Grace O'Malley ( – c. 1603), also known as Gráinne O'Malley ( ga, Gráinne Ní Mháille, ), was the head of the Ó Máille dynasty in the west of Ireland, and the daughter of Eóghan Dubhdara Ó Máille. In Irish folklore she is commonly k ...

Interpretive Centre.

Transport

Road access

Louisburgh is located on the R335 regional road. It can be approached from Westport (13 miles) or from Leenane (19 miles). The former approach passes along

on one side and Croagh Patrick on the other, while the latter passes through lake and mountain scenery past Doo Lough and Delphi Lodge.

Bus services

Bus Éireann local route 450 (Louisburgh-

Lecanvey Lecanvey () or Leckanvy () is a seaside village in County Mayo, Ireland, between Westport and Louisburgh, about 2 km west of Murrisk. It has a small beach with Lecanvey Pier. To the south is Croagh Patrick. To the west is Clare Island. ...

-Westport-

Achill Achill Island (; ga, Acaill, Oileán Acla) in County Mayo is the largest of the Irish isles, and is situated off the west coast of Ireland. It has a population of 2,594. Its area is . Achill is attached to the mainland by Michael Davitt Brid ...

) provides several daily journeys in each direction. The company's Thursday-only route to Killeen and Killadoon was discontinued in November 2020.

Rail access

The nearest rail services are from Westport railway station, approximately 24 km distant. There are several trains a day from Westport to

Dublin Heuston Heuston Station ( ; ga, Stáisiún Heuston; formerly Kingsbridge Station) also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iar ...

via Athlone.

History

Most of Louisburgh lies within 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 orig ...

of Clooncarrabaun (an anglicisation of ''Cluain Cearbán''). The town was constructed in

1795 Events January–June * January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659. * January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming t ...

by the 3rd Earl of Altamount (later 1st Marquess of Sligo), John Denis Browne of Westport, to house Catholic refugees who fled sectarian conflict in the north of Ireland. Originally a

planned town A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

, it retains many of the eighteenth-century features in style and scale. The 1st Marquess of Sligo named the town Louisburgh in memory of his Uncle, Captain Henry Browne, who fought on the British side against the French in the battle of Louisburg in 1758. Louisburg (or Louisbourg in French) was a French fortress on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. As a result of the British victory, a temporary unit of

Louisbourg Grenadiers The Louisbourg Grenadiers was a temporary unit of grenadiers formed by General James Wolfe in 1759 to serve with British Army forces in the Quebec campaign of the Seven Years' War. Grenadiers from the 22nd, 40th, and 45th regiments were brought ...

was formed, in which his Uncle was a captain. Kilgeever Abbey is just outside the town, and consists of a ruined church, a graveyard and a holy well, where pilgrimages or

patterns A pattern is a regularity in the world, in human-made design, or in abstract ideas. As such, the elements of a pattern repeat in a predictable manner. A geometric pattern is a kind of pattern formed of geometric shapes and typically repeated li ...

take place.

Geography

Louisburgh is built on the Bunowen River, part of which is a salmon fishery. Nearby Roonagh Pier, approx 6 km from the town, is the departure point for ferries to

Clare Island Clare Island ( or ''Oileán Chliara''), also historically Inishcleer, is a mountainous island guarding the entrance to Clew Bay in County Mayo, Ireland. Historically part of the kingdom of Umhaill, it is famous as the home of the 15th century pi ...

and

Inishturk Inishturk (''Inis Toirc'' in Irish, meaning ''Wild Boar Island'') is an inhabited island of County Mayo, in Ireland. Geography The island lies about off the coast; its highest point reaches above sea level. Between Inisturk and Clare Isl ...

. There are a number of stunning beaches in the area renowned for their cleanliness. Nearest to the town are "majestic Old Head", Bunowen and Carramore while Carrowniskey, Cross, Lecanvey are within easy reach. Further to the west and south are the famed beaches of White Strand of Tallabawn, Silver Strand and Uggool Beach. Each year, on the May Bank Holiday Weekend, the town hosts a traditional music festival - Féile Chois Chuan - which attracts a large number of enthusiasts from many parts of Ireland and abroad. The main geographical features around Louisburgh are Croagh Patrick to the east, the Sheeffry Hills and

Mweelrea Mweelrea (; ) at , is the 26th-highest peak in Ireland on the Arderin scale, and the 34th-highest peak on the Vandeleur-Lynam scale.Mountainviews, (September 2013), "A Guide to Ireland's Mountain Summits: The Vandeleur-Lynams & the Arderins", Co ...

Mountains to the south, the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

to the west and

to the north.

Economy and culture

Louisburgh in the evening light, July 2017

Louisburgh experienced an upturn in its fortunes during the economic boom in Ireland. For many years emigration and joblessness prevailed. During the boom there was high employment especially in construction due to a large a number of holiday homes being built. Many local people commute to work in nearby towns such as Westport and

Castlebar Castlebar () is the county town of County Mayo, Ireland. Developing around a 13th century castle of the de Barry family, from which the town got its name, the town now acts as a social and economic focal point for the surrounding hinterland. W ...

, each of which have a growing industrial base. Louisburgh has facilities for fishermen, surfers, hill walkers, beach-walkers and photographers. Recently the theatre has received a major boost in the town with the addition of a second drama society. The new group entitled ''Ceol agus Dramá i gCluain Cearbán'' (Music and Drama in Louisburgh) formed with a focus on children's theatre and

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

. They then went on to perform the first ever pantomime in Louisburgh helping to raise over 1,000 euro for the local

Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

group. Since the group's inception in 2006 they have produced 6 annual pantos ''Dick Whittington'' (2006), ''Cinderella'' (2007), ''Aladdin'' (2008), ''Snow White'' (2009), "''Robin Hood''" (2010) and "''Hansel and Gretel''" (2011).

Notable people

* James Berry (1842–1914), Writer * John Heneghan SSC, Columban missionary kidnapped and killed by Japanese forces during the Second World War in the Philippines * Mike McCormack, author * Austin O'Malley, Mayo GAA Footballer * Martin O'Toole (1925–2013), Fianna Fáil TD and Senator *

Michael Viney Michael Viney MRIA (born 1933) is an artist, author, broadcaster, and journalist, based in Ireland. He was born in Brighton, England. Best known for his writings on nature, he has contributed to ''The Irish Times'' since 1962. Career In the 19 ...

Writer for The Irish Times

Notes

External links

* http://www.louisburgh.com/ {{Authority control Towns and villages in County Mayo 1795 establishments in Ireland Populated places established in 1795