Fenagh, County Leitrim

Fenagh ("Fiodhnach" in Irish) is a village in County Leitrim, Ireland. The writer John McGahern lived, wrote and farmed there for the last 30 years of his life. Much of the inspiration for "Amongst Women", "That they May Face the Rising Sun" and "Memoir" comes from here.

History

The area was the site of the battle of Fidhnacha in 1094 [ [http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~ruairc/placname.htm O'Rourke Family Genealogy and History] ]

Fenagh Abbey is one of the most ancient monastic sites in Ireland, widely believed to date back to the earliest period of Celtic monasticism. The founder was St. Caillin who is thought to have arrived in Fenagh from Dunmore in Co. Galway in the 5th century (according to the Book of Fenagh). The Abbey had a famous monastic school and in the "Annals of the Four Masters" it is stated that the monastery at Fenagh was "celebrated for its divinity school, which was resorted to by students from every part of Europe".

People

*Home to John Ellis, politician.

Transport

*Fenagh railway station opened on 24 October 1887 and finally closed on 1 April 1959. [cite web | title=Fenagh station | work=Railscot - Irish Railways | url=http://www.railscot.co.uk/Ireland/Irish_railways.pdf | accessdate=2007-10-14] It was part of the narrow gauge Cavan and Leitrim Railway.

References

ee also

* List of towns and villages in Ireland.