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

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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

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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

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  • 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

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Footnotes

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

References

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  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