placenamesBallyhugh
Bealach Aodha
Ballyhugh’s recorded heritage ranges from a lakeside burial monument to a vanished country house and an arts centre that welcomed visiting artists.
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
- Bealach Aodha · Irish · main form · validated name
- Ballyhugh · English · main form
Place & story
Two burial galleries beside the lake
Ballyhugh’s court tomb stands near the southern end of Dungummin Lough. The national megalithic survey describes two galleries, each divided into two chambers, facing in opposite directions within one mound. A broad court survives at the northern entrance, with less evidence at the southern end. The lake and surrounding drumlins form the setting of this carefully arranged burial monument. [2]
A house recorded and lost
Ballyhugh House appears within a small demesne on the Ordnance Survey map published in 1837. John Feris had occupied a residence called Ballyhue in 1814. By Griffith’s Valuation, John Grimes held the property from John E. Vernon, with buildings valued at £10 for rating. The university’s estate record reports that no building remained on the site by the early twentieth century. [3]
Local heritage and visiting artists
Ballyhugh Arts and Cultural Centre brought together local artefacts and photographs with classes, traditional music, dance and exhibitions. The library service’s account records its role in sharing west Cavan’s heritage. Its visual arts programme also reached beyond the county: American artist Susan Bennerstrom lists a solo exhibition at the Ballyhugh centre in 1997 among her own career records. [4] [5]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Cavan
- Barony
- Loughtee Lower
- Civil parish
- Drumlane
- Within
- Ballyhugh
- Coordinates
- 54.07420, -7.54165 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 1412171 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Ballyhugh. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Survey of the Megalithic Tombs of Ireland, volume III, pages 117–118: Ballyhugh · Ruaidhrí de Valera and Seán Ó Nualláin
- Ballyhugh House, property 5579 · University of Galway, Landed Estates Database
- Ballyhugh Arts and Cultural Centre · Ask About Ireland, local authority libraries
- Artist biography and exhibition record · Susan Bennerstrom
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.