placenamesBailieborough
Coill an Chollaigh
The former bridewell’s restoration and a chapel converted for arts use preserve different kinds of public building in Tanderagee.
The name
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
- Coill an Chollaigh · Irish · main form
- Bailieborough · English · main form
Place & story
From detention rooms to caretaker’s home
Cavan County Council’s restoration account dates the bridewell to 1833, adjoining the courthouse built in 1817. Prisoners awaiting trial and people detained overnight occupied its cells; the keeper’s family lived upstairs. The council records its closure as a gaol in 1900, followed by use as accommodation for the courthouse caretaker. [2]
A restoration and a museum launch
The council restored the building in 2024. The visitor centre was launched on 12 December that year, ahead of its planned public opening in spring 2025. Its exhibition covered the building’s occupants and the histories of Gaelic, Ulster-Scots and English communities. The launch and intended opening were separate stages of the project. [2]
A chapel with another purpose
On Adelaide Street, the former Wesleyan Methodist chapel bears an entrance plaque dated 1833. The architectural inventory recorded its use as an arts centre in 2012. Its pointed windows retained stained glass, while the graveyard and former manse preserved the setting of the earlier congregation. Those features make the religious history legible within a building adapted for cultural activity. [3]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Bailieborough. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Bailieborough Bridewell visitor centre launched,12December2024 · Cavan County Council
- Bailieborough Arts and Cultural Centre, NIAH40303003 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2017-12-01. How this page was prepared.