placenamesArdnaree
Ard na Ria
Ardnaree on the eastern side of the Moy has a history distinct from the later town of Ballina, reflected in its houses and commemorative projects.
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
- Ard na Ria · Irish · main form · validated name
- Ardnaree · English · main form
Place & story
Ardnaree House and Elizabeth Ham
Ardnaree House, also known as Ardnaree Cottage, was already standing in 1777. Its long, low composition developed further during the nineteenth century. The architectural inventory notes an earlier thatched roof supported on a timber cruck frame. Among the tenants associated with the house was the Ham family, including Elizabeth Ham, whose autobiographical writing was published as Elizabeth Ham by Herself. Her connection belongs to the house's residential history rather than a claim that she was born here. [2]
The Jones estate and its sale
The University of Galway's estate survey traces the Jones family's presence at Ardnaree from the early eighteenth century. In 1861 Major Thomas Jones offered the town and lands of Ardnaree, then in County Sligo, for sale alongside property in Ballina. Further lands in Mayo and Sligo were advertised through the Landed Estates' Court in 1867. The surviving estate and solicitors' records document ownership and finance across the Moy's county boundary. [3]
Commemorating the events of 1586
In 2021 Ballina's Community Cleanup Group announced a project to commemorate the attack on Scottish gallowglass forces and their families at Ardnaree by Richard Bingham's army in 1586. Its plans brought together local artists Smiler Mitchell and Leslie Lackey for an installation near the Moy, with a documentary and remembrance events. The initiative records a modern community's effort to make an episode of Tudor conflict visible within the town's public landscape. [4]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Ardnaree. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Ardnaree House, architectural survey registration31204133 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- Jones (Ardnaree), estate216 · University of Galway, Landed Estates Database
- Battle of Ardnaree commemoration planned for2021 · Ballina Community Cleanup Group statement published by Ballina Chamber
- Saint Muredach's Cathedral, Ardnaree/Ballina, County Mayo illustration: based on a South view of St Muredach's Cathedral, Ballina by Andreas F. Borchert. AI-assisted watercolour and ink adaptation; cream paper margins added, incidental clutter omitted and fine details simplified. Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0.
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.