placenamesBellewstown
Baile an Bheileogaigh
A Meath hilltop village with three centuries of racing history, the Yellow Sam phone box and a modern church on an older site.
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
- Baile an Bheileogaigh · Irish · main form · validated name
- Bellewstown · English · main form
Place & story
Racing on the hill
Bellewstown Racecourse traces its recorded history to 1726. Its hilltop setting has remained central to its identity, with racing overlooking the surrounding Meath countryside. The left-handed circuit measures one mile and one furlong and accommodates both flat races and hurdles. Racing marked its three-hundredth anniversary in 2026, giving the village a sporting history extending across three centuries. [2] [3]
The Yellow Sam phone box
In 1975, Barney Curley organised the Yellow Sam betting coup here. Bets were placed away from the course while an associate kept its public telephone occupied, obstructing communication with bookmakers at the track. Yellow Sam won at 20–1. RTÉ’s 2026 visit found the telephone box preserved beside the course and the story displayed on its wall of fame: a piece of communications history turned into a local landmark. [3]
A modern church with older boundaries
The present St Thérèse’s Church in Collierstown is dated to about 1977 by the architectural inventory. Its cross-shaped plan retains a familiar church form, while the hexagonal bell tower and glazed upper stage express a more modern design. Gates, railings and stone piers dating from about 1890 survive around the grounds, marking the site’s earlier church history. [4]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Meath
- Barony
- Duleek Upper
- Civil parish
- Duleek
- Coordinates
- 53.64320, -6.34785
- Logainm ID
- 1414633 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Bellewstown. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- About us: Racing on the Hill · Bellewstown Racecourse
- Bellewstown marks three centuries of horse racing, 24 August 2026 · RTÉ News
- Saint Thérèse’s Catholic Church: NIAH 14320002 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2026-09-19. How this page was prepared.