Binghamstown
Townland in Connacht, Ireland
Binghamstown
An Geata Mór
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Townland
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Saleen Harbour is 1
km south of Binghamstown village
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Coordinates: 54°12′N 10°02′W / 54.200°N 10.033°W / 54.200; -10.033 | |
Country | Ireland |
Province | Connacht |
County | County Mayo |
Area | |
• Total | 293.6 ha (725.6 acres) |
Population
(2011)
[2]
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106 |
Irish Grid Reference | F671302 |
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Binghamstown ( Irish : An Geata Mór ) [3] is a townland and village in County Mayo , Ireland . It lies on the R313 regional road on the Mullet Peninsula , near the town of Belmullet . The townland of Binghamstown has an area of approximately 3 square kilometres (1 sq mi) , [1] and had a population of 106 people as of the 2011 census. [2] Binghamstown is in the electoral division of An Geata Mór Thuaidh . [1]
History
The townland was originally called Ballymacshedon (the anglicisation of an Irish name), before being renamed Binghamstown after the local landlords. [3] The Bingham family came to the Erris area of County Mayo in the 18th century, [4] and built a large house on the northern reaches of Elly Bay on the Mullet peninsula in 1796. [5] Known as Binghamstown House, this structure was built in castellated style and had outbuildings, offices and gardens. [ citation needed ] Nothing substantial survives of this building except for low grass covered foundations. [ citation needed ]
The village itself was built in 1796 by Major Denis Bingham, and it was built essentially as a "landlord village" providing services for the Bingham estate. It was not until 1817 that a main road was constructed into Erris from Castlebar and it was only in 1824 that it finally ran through Binghamstown to the extremity of the peninsula. [ citation needed ]
In an attempt to keep the Binghamstown fair alive, Major Bingham erected a large gate across the roadway. [ citation needed ] Those who took their animals out of Binghamstown to the Belmullet fair had to pay a toll as they passed through the gate, giving rise to the Irish name an Geata Mhór (the Big Gate) for Binghamstown. [ citation needed ]
In A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland , published in 1837 by Samuel Lewis , the fair at Binghamstown is described as taking place on the "first day of every month throughout the year". [6] By the end of the nineteenth century, the fair had declined. [ citation needed ] Lewis (1837) describes Binghamstown as having a "good view of Saleen bay" where "a landing pier has been erected by the late Fishery Board". [6] The pier at Saleen harbour was built in the 1820s to designs by engineer Alexander Nimmo . [7]
See also
Further reading
- McCalmont, Rose Elizabeth (1995), Memoirs of the Binghams , Spottiswoode, London
- Fraser, James (1844), A Handbook for Travellers In Ireland , William Curry, London, page 481
References
- 1 2 3 "Binghamstown Townland, Co. Mayo" . townlands.ie . Retrieved 16 January 2021 .
- 1 2 "CD164 - Mayo Population by Private Households, Occupied and Vacancy Rate by Townlands, CensusYear and Statistic" . data.gov.ie . Central Statistics Office. 2011 . Retrieved 16 January 2021 .
- 1 2 "An Geata Mór / Binghamstown (see archival records)" . logainm.ie . Placenames Database of Ireland . Retrieved 16 January 2021 .
- ↑ "Estate Record: Bingham (Bingham's Castle)" . Landed Estates Database . NUI Galway . Retrieved 16 January 2021 .
- ↑ "Binghamstown House" . Landed Estates Database . NUI Galway . Retrieved 16 January 2021 .
- 1 2 Lewis, Samuel (1837). "Binghamstown" . A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland . Dublin: Lewis.
- ↑ "Curraghboy, An Geata Mór [ Binghamstown ] , County Mayo" . buildingsofireland.ie . National Inventory of Architectural Heritage . Retrieved 16 January 2021 .
External links
- Binghamstown statistics (19th century population summary)
- Binghamstown at the world map database (archived)