Belturbet

Belturbet (Irish place name|Béal Tairbirt|Entrance to Tairbert island) is a town in County Cavan, Ireland, located km to mi | 14 | abbr=yes | precision=0 from Cavan town km to mi | 123 | abbr=yes | precision=0 from Dublin city. Belturbet lies on the (N3 road). It is km to mi | 4 | abbr=yes | precision=0 from the border with Northern Ireland between the counties of Cavan and Fermanagh and is km to mi | 36 | abbr=yes | precision=0 south of Enniskillen.

History

Belturbet lies at one of the best places for crossing the River Erne. When the Anglo-Normans tried to conquer Cavan in the early 13th century, Walter de Lacy built a small fort on Turbot Island. The fort was probably made of wood and it hasn't survived, though the steep mound of earth where it was built is still to be seen.

In the 17th century Belturbet was developed by Stephen Butler, a spud planter from England. It was an important trading centre, and it also had a garrison. Much of the original fortifications are in good repair. The town retains much of its original lay-out, with the main street leading to the square or 'diamond' with all of the town's important buildings (Fay's and Lilly's). The parish church dominates the sky-line; some of it dates from the early 17th century, and it was one of the first Anglican churches built in Ireland.

The Troubles

Two young people, Geraldine O'Reilly and Patrick Stanley, were killed by a car bomb in Belturbet on 28 December 1972. [ [http://www.childrenofireland.us/childrenkilled.htm Children of Ireland] ]

Transport

The railway station in Belturbet has recently been restored and is back to its former glory. It was opened on 29 June 1885 for the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) connecting to the broad gauge branch to Ballyhaise on the Clones to Cavan line. It also served the narrow gauge Cavan and Leitrim Railway to Dromod and Arigna, for which it opened on 24 October 1887. The station finally closed for all services on 1 April 1959. [cite web | title=Belturbet station | work=Railscot - Irish Railways | url=http://www.railscot.co.uk/Ireland/Irish_railways.pdf | accessdate=2007-09-12] [cite book |last= Baker |first= Michael HC |title= Irish Narrow Gauge Railways. A View from the Past|publisher= Ian Allan Publishing|year= 1999 |isbn= 0-7110-2680-7 ]

Economy

The town's main source of revenue is tourism , which includes fishing, boat cruising, the local railway station and country walks. The town also has its own festival, Belturbet Festival Of The Erne which also includes the "Lady Of the Erne" competition. The festival attracts large crowds for the last week in July and boasts one of the largest fancy dress parties in Ireland. For employment, most of the locals work in Cavan (Town), Ballyconnell (Town) or other nearby areas (Fields), as there are few other sources at home of employment, aside from tourism and hospitality.

Politics

As of 2002, 414 people were recorded on the live register. [ [http://www.cso.ie/releasespublications/documents/periodicals/2002/labour_2002.pdf CSO] ]

Statistics

The population of Belturbet was 1,411 in 2006 (1,304 in 2002) according to the [CSO Census of 2006] . [http://beyond2020.cso.ie/Census/TableViewer/tableView.aspx?ReportId=1764]

The town has:
*16 pubs
* 4 local shops,
* 1 supermarket
* 2 butchers
* 1 bank (Ulster Bank),
* 1 Post Office (An Post)
* 3 churches (1 Protestant, 2 Roman Catholic)
* 4 schools:::Sisters of Mercy Primary School, ::St Mary's Primary Boys School::St Bricin's Vocational School::Belturbet Primary School

Arts

Former Dead Can Dance singer and composer Brendan Perry lives in the vicinity of the town.

ee also

* List of towns in the Republic of Ireland

References

External links

* [http://www.irishtourist.com/details/belturbet_station.shtml#map Location in Ireland]
* [http://www.johnthemap.co.uk/pages/cavan/belturbet.html A map Of Belturbet Town]
* [http://www.belturbet-station.com/ Railway Station Of Belturbet]
* [http://www.belturbet.org/ Belturbet Town 1613-1840]
* [http://www.sierratel.com/colinf/genuki/CAV/Annagh/Belturbet.html Belturbet Genealogy Page]
* [http://www.ernefestival.com/about/ Lady Of the Erne festival]
* [http://www.angling-holidays.com/en/edito/index.htm Fishing in the area]
* [http://www.emeraldstar.ie/baseintro.html?base=BEL Boat cruises]