Ballinlough in County Roscommon developed around roads, a fair and a prominent parish church. Its railway station came later than the line itself, while two church buildings mark successive periods of local worship.
Illustration, Ballinlough Main Street
⊕Recorded locationBallinlough53.74199° N · 8.63568° WInteractive map supplied by OpenStreetMap.
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 Locha· Irish · main form · validated name
Ballinlough· English · main form
Place & story
Houses on uneven ground
Samuel Lewis described Ballinlough in 1837 as a village of about forty-five small houses and cabins arranged in detached groups on uneven ground. A new parish church stood prominently behind them. He recorded a fair on 29 September, a police station and two schools. Ballinlough House was the residence of the Reverend J. Le Poer Trench, while Willsborough House stood between the village and Lough Aelwyn. The account captures a settlement with several distinct groups of buildings and a close relationship with the nearby lake and country houses.[2]
A church bicentenary
The Church of Ireland community celebrated its church's bicentenary on 22 September 2024. A report in Annagh magazine described parish records of preparations for a replacement church in 1823, after an earlier building had suffered storm damage. Thomas McDermott was paid£5 to take down the old structure, and Thomas Cosgrave was engaged to construct the new one. The anniversary service included the dedication of a commemorative plaque. The account provides a local documentary history for the church whose castellated tower remains a focal point in the village.[3]
The Catholic church on Church Road
The Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception was built in 1894. The architectural inventory records its earlier dedication as St Joseph's. Its cruciform plan includes a five-bay nave, with stained glass set in pointed openings and dressed stone around the doors and windows. A separate cast-iron bell was erected in 1928, and a grotto was added in 2000. The church, burial ground, bell and grotto together record additions made by successive generations of the Catholic community.[4]
The railway stop
Ballinlough railway station opened on 1 January 1880. Passenger and goods services ended on 17 June 1963.[5]
Both counts use the 2016 settlement boundary, allowing like-for-like comparison. CSO supplies the 2022 count on this older boundary for comparison only. The official 2022 Built Up Area has different boundaries.
View population figures
Ballinlough — Census 2016 settlement footprint — census population
Ballinlough, Roscommon — Census town, CSO 2006 report
2002–2006: census town
262people · 2006
These are the historical areas published in the 2006 census report. Boundaries may differ between censuses and from modern settlements. Legal towns, environs and suburbs are shown separately; none has been combined into a modern settlement total.
View population figures
Ballinlough, Roscommon — Census town, CSO 2006 report — census population
Ballinlough, Roscommon — Census town, CSO 1996 report
1991–1996: census town
205people · 1996
These are the historical areas published in the 1996 census report. Boundaries may differ between censuses and from modern settlements. Legal towns, environs and suburbs are shown separately; none has been combined into a modern settlement total.
View population figures
Ballinlough, Roscommon — Census town, CSO 1996 report — census population
Ballinlough, Roscommon — Census town, CSO 1986 report
1981–1986: census town
244people · 1986
Figures cover the historical town area printed in the 1986 report. Boundaries may have changed between censuses. Legal town, environs and suburb totals remain separate and differ from modern settlement boundaries.
View population figures
Ballinlough, Roscommon — Census town, CSO 1986 report — census population
These figures use different area definitions. Read the boundary note before comparing them.
Ballinlough, Roscommon
Published census settlement populations
300people · 2016
Settlement boundaries changed during this period. Differences may reflect boundary changes as well as population change. Where a 2011 legal-town-and-environs count is shown, it has not been recalculated onto the 2016 settlement boundary.
placenames