Cappamore

Cappamore (Irish: An Cheapach Mhór, meaning "the large tillage plot") is a small town in northeast County Limerick in the midwest of Ireland. It is also a parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly.

Cappamore An Cheapach Mhór
Town
Cappamore Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 52°36′52″N 8°20′22″W
Country	Ireland
Province	Munster
County	County Limerick
Population  (2006)
• Urban	669[1]
• Rural	738
Time zone	UTC+0 (WET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-1 (IST (WEST))
Irish Grid Reference	R767516

Location and facilities

R505 through Cappamore

Cappamore is situated on the R505 regional road, on the banks of the Mulcair River. The village is overlooked by the Slieve Felim Mountains and is approximately 20 minutes driving time from Limerick City. It has a rich agricultural hinterland in which the dairy industry is prominent.

The town has several pubs, grocery shops, a hardware store, GP surgery, pharmacy, bookmaker shop and veterinary clinic. Other services include a library and arts studios complex,[2] a church, community centre and day care centre. The village also has a fire brigade serving the surrounding area.[3]

The town hosts an annual Agricultural Show in August each year.[4]

Schools

There are three primary schools in Cappamore: Bilboa National School,[5] Tineteriffe National School,[6] and Scoil Chaitríona.[7] St. Michael's Technical School was a secondary school that existed in the village up to 2013 when it amalgamated with the two second-level schools in Doon to create Scoil na Trionóide Naofa.[8]

Transport

Cappamore is served by two Bus Éireann routes: the 332[9] to Limerick City via Newport which operates Monday to Saturday, and the 341[10] to Shannon via Murroe, Newport and Limerick City which operates Monday to Friday.

Limerick Junction train station is located 20 kilometres from Cappamore and has Iarnród Éireann services to Dublin, Cork, Kerry and Waterford. Limerick train station is 23 kilometres away with services to Dublin and Galway.

The nearest airport is Shannon, located 50 kilometres away with services to the UK, Europe and North America.

History

The famine years hit the area particularly badly, with the parish of Cappamore losing half of its population. Cappamore Historical Society produced a major publication on the history of the area in 1992 entitled Cappamore: A Parish History.[11]

Sport

The sport of hurling is probably the most popular in Cappamore (see Cappamore GAA). Cappamore have won the Limerick Senior Hurling Championship on five occasions: 1904, 1954, 1956, 1958 and 1964. However Gaelic football, athletics (Bilboa AC) and soccer (Cappamore Celtic FC) have grown in popularity in recent years, along with ladies soccer now growing under Bilboa Ladies Soccer Team.

People

Notable people from Cappamore include:

• David Gleeson, Irish film director and writer.[12]
• William O'Connor, professional darts player.[13]
• Seamus Coffey, economist and chair of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council
• John Hayes, international rugby player.
• Rosemary Ryan, olympian.

See also

• List of towns and villages in Ireland

References

1. Cappamore Local Area Plan 2011-2017 - Limerick County Council
2. €1m Library and Art Studios opens in Cappamore - Limerick Leader
3. A History of Cappamore Fire Brigade - Limerick County Council
4. Cappamore Show
5. Bilboa National School
6. Tineteriffe National School
7. Scoil Chaitríona
8. Scoil na Tríonóide Naofa
9. Route 332 Archived October 11, 2014, at the Wayback Machine - Bus Éireann
10. Route 341 Archived March 6, 2015, at the Wayback Machine - Bus Éireann
11. Cappamore: A Parish History. The Society. 1992.
12. Limerick director David's new film to be in the front line of success Archived April 11, 2015, at the Wayback Machine - Limerick Leader
13. William O'Connor - Limerick Leader