County Longford - Towns

About 3km (2 miles) north-west of the village of Kenagh on the Ballymahon/Longford road are the ruins of Abbeyderg a 13th century Agustinian Friary (partially restored). There is a well chronicled architectural gem in Kenagh which has recently been restored. This is the pigeon house or the Dovecote at Mosstown Estate. Nothing now remains of Mosstown House. The Dovecote has been recorded and sketched by historian and author Olive Sharkey. She has described it as reminiscent of Scottish Baronial Dovecotes in parts of Fife and Lothian. The interior of the building is very impressive. The redbrick boxes along the walls which were once home to hundreds of fat pigeons are almost entirely intact. The lower floor of the building was used as an ice-house similar to that in Lough Key Forest Park near Boyle. There is a Clock Tower which was erected in 1878 in memory of the King Harman family who were popular landlords of the area. A lime tree avenue forms the entrance to Mosstown Estate which, although only a shadow of its former glory, is still a delightful sight on a crisp morning. The Royal Canal passes near the village.

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Lanesboro is in a pivoted position located on the river Shannon at the Northern entrance to Lough Ree. In ancient times Lanesboro was known by the Irish name Beal Atha Liag, which when translated means "Mouth of the Ford."

The town of Lanesboro is called after the family name Lane who owned large tracts of land in the vicinity. The river divides Lanesboro from Ballyleague which is located in Co Roscommon.

The first bridge across the river was made from wattles. In the year 1706 a stone bridge was built from the stones taken from Geoffrey Meares Norman Castle which stood where the car park is situated. The present bridge was built in 1847 and was updated in 1970.

Lanesboro today has blossomed into a thriving little town with many facilities for visitors and locals alike. It has long been recognised as one of the foremost angling centres in Ireland. Cloontuskert Abbey may be seen in this area. This abbey was founded by Saints Brendan and Faithleach about AD520.

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Longford, the county town, is on the south bank of the little Camlin River and on the Dublin-Sligo road. It was named after the ancient castle of the princes of Annaly, the O' Farrells, who also founded a Dominican priory in 1400. Neither building has survived, but there are slight remains of the castle erected by the 1st Earl of Longford in 1627 incorporated in the old military barracks. During the Confederate Wars of 1641 the castle was captured by the English, and later it withstood a siege of several weeks by Owen Roe O' Neil.

Near the centre of the town is St Mel's Cathedral, a nineteenth-century Renaissance-style building of grey limestone. The saint's crosier is preserved in the diocesan museum at the rear of the cathedral. St Mel's College, the diocesan seminary, contains part of the library of Edgeworthstown House. The County museum containing many artefacts and providing a genealogical service is located in the old post office in the main street.

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Moydow is a sleeply hamlet to the south of Longford town.

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A picturesque area not found on all tourist maps is Moyne, situated on the Longford-Cavan road, 12 km (7 miles) from Drumlish and close to the Cavan border. Rolling hills, bogland and a myriad of small fishing lakes are features. There is a new Community School opened in 1974 replacing the famous Latin school in which hundreds of missionary priests and a protestant bishop were educated.

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