placenames.ie
Population centre

Newtownmanor

An Baile Nua

The Church of Mary, Mother of God records successive generations of building, adaptation and local support.

Watercolour and fine ink illustration of The church at Newtownmanor, as photographed in May 2008.
Illustration, The church at Newtownmanor, as photographed in May 2008
Recorded locationNewtownmanor54.27368° N · 8.28772° WInteractive map supplied by OpenStreetMap.
Recorded place location · Logainm.ie

The name

nuanew

These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.

An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.

Recorded forms

  • An Baile Nua · Irish · main form · non-validated name
  • Newtownmanor · English · main form

Place & story

The foundation remembered

At the church’s bicentenary in June 2025, Bishop Martin Hayes credited Fr Thomas Ford and local parishioners with its foundation in 1825. His historical account, reported by the Leitrim Observer, also acknowledged support from Lady Whyte, the French-Canadian Catholic wife of the local landlord. The anniversary placed the church’s beginnings within the period leading to Catholic Emancipation. [2]

A changed interior

The same account identifies a substantial refurbishment in 1990 under Fr Patsy Young. The arrangement brought the congregation around the altar, changing the interior’s emphasis while retaining the older church as a place of worship. The bishop described its setting between O’Rourke’s Table and the valley below, connecting the building with the surrounding upland landscape. [2]

Roof repairs and the community hall

The church reopened on 25 June 2023 after a new roof and interior redecoration. In his published address, Fr Paul Casey described repairs to leaks, new roof windows above the altar and renewed ceiling and sanctuary decoration. During the closure, Mass took place in Newtownmanor Hall. That temporary arrangement records the practical relationship between the church and the neighbouring community building. [3]

Geographic information

Place type
Population centre
County
Leitrim
Civil parish
Drumlease
Within
Sramore
Within
Curraghan
Within
Leckaun
Within
Magurk
Coordinates
54.27368, -8.28772
Logainm ID
1166974 ↗

Sources & further reading

  1. Logainm.ie — Newtownmanor. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
  2. Leitrim Parish marks200years of faith at Newtownmanor Church,17July2025 · Stella Gordon, reporting Bishop Martin Hayes’s anniversary address
  3. Re-opening of Newtownmanor church took place on June25,5July2023 · Fr Paul Casey’s address, published by Leitrim Observer
  4. The church at Newtownmanor, as photographed in May 2008 illustration: based on a St Mary's Church, Newtownmanor by Oliver Dixon. AI-assisted watercolour and ink adaptation; cream paper margins added, incidental clutter omitted and fine details simplified. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.

Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2026-07-20. How this page was prepared.