Kinnegad

Kinnegad or Kinagad (Irish: Cionn Átha Gad, meaning "‘the head of the ford of withes") is a town in County Westmeath, Ireland. It is on the border with County Meath, near the junction of the M6 and the M4 motorways - two of Ireland's main east–west roads. It is roughly 60 km from the capital, Dublin.

Kinnegad

Cionn Átha Gad
Town
Kinnegad Main Street, the former N4
Kinnegad
Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 53.455°N 7.101°W / 53.455; -7.101
CountryIreland
ProvinceLeinster
CountyCounty Westmeath
Elevation
76 m (249 ft)
Population
 (2016)[1]
2,745
Irish Grid ReferenceN595453

From 1996–2016, there was a considerable increase in Kinnegad's population, from 517 to 2,745 inhabitants.[2] According to the 2016 census, approximately 79% of the town's housing stock (715 out of 907 households) was built between 1991–2010.[1] Tesco Ireland opened a supermarket in the town in late 2010.[3] In 2014, a hotel, which stands on the site of a former pub, "Harry's of Kinnegad", was opened.[4] The Kinnegad Plaza opened in 2019.[5] Aldi opened a store in the town in July 2019.[6][7]

Transport

Kinnegad is primarily a commuter town, serving Dublin via the N4 and the M4 motorway. Citylink and Bus Éireann both serve Kinnegad towards Dublin,[8][9] in addition to private company Kearns. There is no railway station in the town; it was served by the station at Hill of Down (which was originally called Kinnegad when it opened in 1847) until its closure in 1947.[10] There are plans to reopen the train station at Killucan, which would serve both Killucan and Rathwire and Kinnegad, but this is unlikely before extra capacity is available on the Dublin-Sligo railway line.[11]

Education

The town has a large national school, Saint Etchen's Kinnegad N.S. The school consists of two separate buildings, Scoil Etchen Naofa (built-in 1984) and the Cardinal Glennon building (built-in 2008). The renovation was necessary due to an increase in population. The school now caters for up to 560 young people each day. It is run by the Catholic Church but non-Catholic children can attend the school.[12]

There has been a campaign by the Kinnegad Steering Group during the 2010s in favour of the development of a secondary school in the town, but as of 2019 this has yet to materialise.[13]

Religious sites
St. Mary's Church of the Assumption, Kinnegad

The Catholic Church of St. Mary's Church of the Assumption is in Kinnegad. It is part of the Diocese of Meath, the bishop of which is Michael Smith (bishop). The parish priests of Kinnegad are Monsignor Eamonn Marron, former rector of the Pontifical Irish College and Father Tom Gilroy. Seán Brady visited the church on June 7, 2009, in honour of its 100-year anniversary.[14][15] There are bullet holes visible in the stations of the cross in the church which were made by the Black and Tans in the 1920s. The church building is the tallest in the town, although the Lagan Cement facility which is outside the town at Killiskillen, is taller.

Sport

The main sports team in the town is the Coralstown/Kinnegad Gaelic Football Club, which has teams for both male and female players aged from under eight through to senior level. The colours of the team are red shirts and socks, and white shorts. The clubhouse has four dressing rooms, toilets, and a gym. The team has three football pitches.

The town also has an association football club, Kinnegad Juniors Athletic Football Club, which was founded in 2005. Kinnegad Juniors play at Lagan Park on the Killucan Road, Kinnegad. The club caters to boys and girls from the ages of 6–19 and also boasts a senior men's team.[16]

See also

References
  1. "Sapmap Area - Settlements - Kinnegad". Census 2016. CSO. 2016. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  2. "KINNEGAD (Ireland)". City Population. Archived from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  3. "Tesco says Irish business has turned around". RTÉ. 5 October 2010. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  4. "Harry's back in Kinnegad". Westmeath Examiner. 2 May 2014. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  5. "Kinnegad Plaza to be officially opened on August 25". Westmeath Examiner. 21 August 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  6. "Aldi begins construction of new €4.5m Kinnegad store". Shelflife Magazine. 15 February 2019. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  7. O'Loughlin, Brian (31 July 2019). "Aldi creates 15 new jobs with Kinnegad 'Project Fresh' shop". Westmeath Examiner. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  8. "Timetables: Galway-Ballinsloe-Athlone-Dublin-Dublin Airport - Route 763". citylink.ie. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  9. "Burke welcomes improved 115 bus timetable for Mullingar". Westmeath Examiner. 21 June 2018. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  10. "Irish railways" (PDF). railscot.co.uk. pp. 32, 69. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  11. "Killucan rail campaign is moving at last". Westmeath Examiner. 4 April 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  12. "About the School". Scoil Etchen Naofa. Archived from the original on 1 December 2016. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  13. "Kinnegad group pushing for secondary school and trains". Westmeath Examiner. 4 April 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  14. "Cardinal to mark hundredth birthday of Kinnegad Church". Westmeath Examiner. 2 June 2009. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
  15. "Kinnegad Matters". Westmeath Examiner. 17 June 2009. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
  16. "History". Kinnegad Juniors AFC.
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