placenamesCastlecoote
Baile Mhic Oireachtaigh
Castlecoote House combines defensive remains beside the River Suck with an eighteenth-century residence and a more recent role as a festival venue.
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 Mhic Oireachtaigh · Irish · main form · validated name
- Castlecoote · English · main form
Place & story
A house incorporating fortified towers
Castlecoote House preserves several phases of building. The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage identifies seventeenth-century fortified remains incorporated into the later country house, with other tower ruins in the grounds. Its classical frontage has bowed elevations and an entrance reached by sweeping stone steps, with Ionic columns framing the doorway. Outbuildings, gateways and the River Suck contribute to the setting. The result is a residence whose fabric retains evidence of both defence and domestic display. [2]
Recovery from ruin
When Kevin Finnerty bought the property in 1997, the house had lost its floors, stairs and windows, and the basement lay buried beneath earth. The owner’s account describes five years of restoration, including foundation underpinning, consolidation of the towers and rebuilding of mill-race walls. Restored ceilings and the ballroom formed part of the work inside. This campaign returned a severely damaged house to use while retaining the older structures around it. [3]
The Percy French Festival
Castlecoote House has hosted the Percy French Festival since 2009. Its founder, Kevin Finnerty, continued a family connection with earlier festivals held in 1957 and 1958, in which his father had been involved. The programme brings lectures and recitals into the restored house, connecting its present cultural use with the work of the Roscommon-born songwriter, painter and entertainer. The association is through the festival rather than a claim that French lived at Castlecoote. [4]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Roscommon
- Barony
- Athlone North
- Civil parish
- Fuerty
- Coordinates
- 53.61675, -8.29236
- Logainm ID
- 1414640 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Castlecoote. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Castlecoote House, NIAH 31816001 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- The House: history and restoration · Castlecoote House
- Venue: Castlecoote House · The Percy French Festival
- Castlecoote House illustration: based on a Castles of Connacht: Castlecoote, Roscommon (1 of 10) by Mike Searle. 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 2026-08-05. How this page was prepared.