Castletown-Kilpatrick, also known as Castletown KP[1] or Castletown (Irish: Baile an Chaisleáin),[2] is a townland and village in County Meath in Ireland.[3] It falls in the Meath East constituency. The Boyne Valley to Lakelands greenway passes through on the disused Navan and Kingscourt Railway line.[4][5]

The village lies south of the N52 and east of the R162 regional road, between Kells and Ardee, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) south of Nobber.

History edit

 
Silver and bronze hatpin found in the village, on display at the National Museum of Ireland, Kildare Street, Dublin

Evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of ring fort sites, and a large motte-and-bailey castle site, in Castletown townland.[6] The disused Church of Ireland church in the townland, dedicated to Saint Patrick and likely the origin of "Kilpatrick",[a] was built c. 1820 on the site of an older churchyard.[6][7][8] The existing Roman Catholic church, also dedicated to Saint Patrick, was built c. 1830.[9]

A battle of the 1798 Rebellion, involving revolutionaries from County Wexford, was fought near the village. The casualties were buried in mostly unmarked graves in the nearby Knightstown bog.[10][11]

The Navan and Kingscourt branch line had a halt at the village, which was closed in 1933.[12] The line remained in use for freight use until 2001.[12]

A human-trafficking base of activity was discovered outside the village in 2016.[3]

Amenities edit

The village has a pub, shop, pitch and putt club,[13] Catholic church and national (primary) school.[14] The church is in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath.[15] As of 2024, Castletown National School had an enrollment of 84 pupils.[16]

Notable residents edit

  • Shane McEntee (19 December 1956 – 21 December 2012), Fine Gael politician and Minister of State[17]
  • Helen McEntee (born 8 June 1986), Shane's daughter, Fine Gael politician and Minister of Justice[17]
  • C. Y. O'Connor (11 January 1843 – 10 March 1902), Irish engineer based in Australia[18]

Notes and sources edit

Footnotes edit

  1. ^ "Kilpatrick", literally "church of Patrick"

References edit

  1. ^ Hanna, Ciarán (21 June 2023). "Man dies in farm accident in Co Meath". Inside Ireland.
  2. ^ "Baile an Chaisleáin / Castletown". logainm.ie. Placenames Database of Ireland. Retrieved 5 March 2024. 1836 Castletown [..] 1836 Castletown - Kilpatrick
  3. ^ a b Brady, Tom; Harkin, Greg (20 August 2016). "'Gang kept more than 20 slave workers in rural Meath'". Independent.ie.
  4. ^ Finegan, Noelle. "Could Navan-Kingscourt Greenway attract 150,000 visitors a year?". Meath Chronicle. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  5. ^ "Works now underway on Ireland's newest greenway as €500,000 also allocated". StickyBottle.ie. December 2021.
  6. ^ a b Moore, Michael J., ed. (1987). Archaeological Inventory of County Meath. Dublin: Government Stationery Office. ISBN 0707600316.
  7. ^ "Saint Patrick's Church (Castletown), Castletown, Castletown, Meath". buildingsofireland.ie. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  8. ^ Lewis, Samuel, ed. (1837). "Castletown-Kilpatrick, a parish". A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland. Dublin: Lewis.
  9. ^ "Saint Patrick's Catholic Church, Leggagh, Castletown, Meath". buildingsofireland.ie. National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  10. ^ "Wexford Croppies' Graves In Meath". The Irish Times. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
  11. ^ Pryle, Paddy (12 October 2011). "Invitation to Castletown 1798 ceremony". MeathChronicle.ie.
  12. ^ a b "Castletown Halt". Eiretrains.ie.
  13. ^ "Pitch & Putt Clubs in Ireland - Castletown". Pitch & Putt Ireland. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  14. ^ "Tidy Towns Competition 2018 - Adjudication Report - Castletown-Kilpatrick, County Meath" (PDF). tidytowns.ie. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  15. ^ "Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath". navanhistory.ie. Archived from the original on 6 March 2024.
  16. ^ "Directory Page - Castletown N S, Castletown Kilpatrick, Navan, Co Meath". gov.ie. Department of Education. 22 January 2024. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  17. ^ a b "My farming background: 'What I loved was that I saw my dad all the time'". AgriLand.ie. 6 November 2017.
  18. ^ "Navan Historical Society - O'Connor, C. Y. (Engineer)". navanhistory.ie. Retrieved 25 October 2022.


53°46′50″N 6°42′53″W / 53.78042°N 6.71463°W / 53.78042; -6.71463