- Calverstown
Infobox Irish Place
name = Calverstown
gaeilge = Baile an Chalbhaigh
map
pin coords = left: 55px; top: 68px
north coord = 53.081944
west coord = 6.800556
irish grid = N802041
area =
elevation = 106 m
province =Leinster
county =County Kildare
population = 650 (as of 2006)
|Calverstown (Irish place name|Baile an Chalbhaigh)is a small
village located km to mi | 6 | abbr=yes | precision=0 south of the town ofKilcullen and approximately km to mi | 16 | abbr=yes | precision=0 from each of the towns ofAthy ,Kildare ,Naas and Newbridge inCounty Kildare , Ireland. It is an old settlement located close to the archaeological sites of Dún Áilinn and Old Kilcullen. The village has a stream running through it with another to the south.Population
The village was recorded in the census of population in
2006 as having 650 people. [http://www.cso.ie/census/documents/census2006_Table_7_and_12.pdf]History
Calverstown has been in existence as a named location since the early medieval period.An early reference to lands described as 'Terra Philippi Vituli' (Vitulus is the Latin for calf, i.e. Philip of Calfs town) provides an unaudited confirmation in the form of a petition from the Royal Hospitallers of
Kilmainham listing their possessions toPope Innocent III in 1212.In a note to an edition of Richard de Ledrede's account of the Kyteler Witchcraft trial Wright (1843, 56-7) noted that Walter le Veele, or Calf, of Calfstown was Chancellor of Kildare Cathedral and was made Bishop of Kildare in 1299. He purchased the manor of
Norragh , in which Calverstown is situated, from Geoffrey de Norragh before his death in 1332. The barony was inherited by his nephew John Calf, who passed it to his son Sir Robert Calf and to his daughter Elizabeth Calf who married William Wellesley of Baronsrath, whose heirs held the barony after that. The name of the town appears to be derived from the anglicised name of the le Veele family.It is explicitly mentioned in a Rental of Gerald
Earl of Kildare begun in 1518-19 1518 as "In baronia de Norragh. Item, in the barone of the Norragh & may be distraynet at Calfiston: £6" (MacNiocaill 1992, 291); and in the Extents of Irish Monastic Possessions 1540-41. In the former, the name is spelled Calfiston, in the latter Calveston.The Civil Survey of 1656 noted that in 1641 Calverstown contained 760 Irish acres of land and had one castle and a stone quarry and was held by Sir Robert Dixon (Simington 1952, 98)
The population, street layout and land-use have changed little over the past two and-a-half centuries. A map from 1752 shows a layout very similar to that of today. The natural environment reflects the predominance of well-established enclosed agricultural land. This is presently improved grassland or tillage, some of which is now succumbing to residential development.
Calverstown today
The village of Calverstown is well presented with a number of attractive buildings and areas including Grove Villa, Rose Cottage, Blackhall Castle and the Forge, and recent housing developments have attempted to continue this trend. There is a well maintained green at the centre of the village with some seating available at the stream.
The sense of community is strong with a Tidy Towns committee, a Golf Society and multiple residents associations, each including both new and native dwellers of the village.
Calverstown Castle
The ruins of Calverstown Castle can still be seen adjacent to the village.
Sport
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St Laurence's GAA is the localGaelic Athletic Association club.Notes and References
*cite book |last=Dick |first=William |coauthors=Vanda Clayton, Rebecca Jeffrey |title=Calverstown, A baseline review for Calverstown Tidy Towns |year=1999 |publisher= duQuesne Environmental Limited|location= Blessington Co. Wicklow, Ireland
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Kilcullen
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