Daingean
Encyclopedia
Daingean formerly Philipstown, is a small town
in east County Offaly
, Ireland
. It is situated midway between the towns of Tullamore
and Edenderry
on the R402
regional road
. The town or townland
of Daingean has a population (2002) of 777 while the District Electoral Division (DED
) has a total population of 1168. It is the principal town of the Daingean Catholic
Parish
. The other main poles of this parish are Ballycommon, Kilclonfert and Cappincur.
in the newly shired King’s County
. The town and the county was so named after her husband, Philip II of Spain
, King consort of Ireland.
The town was once the seat of the O’Connor clan, who were chieftains of the surrounding area of Offaly. Its current name ‘Daingean’ from Daingean Ua bhFáilghe means fortress of the Uí Fáilghe clan, a name that it derived from the medieval island fortress of O'Connor Faly. In 1883 Tullamore replaced Daingean as the focal point of the county. As a result Philipstown was demoted from capital town to village
and as a result lost most of its political status. It was in 1922, with the foundation of the Free State
, that the village was renamed Daingean, at the same time as County Offaly
replaced the old King's County.
Daingean has long boasted a strong status as a Midlands town and this was never more evident than at the start of the 20th century when Daingean displayed at various points a number of important public buildings including the courthouse, the design of which is locally attributed to James Gandon, designer of the Four Courts in Dublin. In addition there is a children's reformatory
(mentioned in the Ryan Report
), remnants of a military barracks (known as the footbarrack) giving its name to the bridge leading out of the town towards Tullamore - the footbarrack bridge. There are the remnants of a Anglican
church and a functioning Roman Catholic church. Of these buildings all can still be seen in various states but few are still used for their original functions within the village. The courthouse has functioned as a town hall, dance hall and bingo palace having been renovated in the 1980s by the state training body ANC, using local labour.
A bog body
, given the name Old Croghan Man
, was found near Daingean in 2004 and featured on the BBC Two
Timewatch
programme in January 2006.
A book called From the Quiet Annals of Daingean was written and published by John Kearney, Main St., Daingean, Co. Offaly in December 2006.
While there is a local farming economy, many of the people from Daingean work in Tullamore or as far afield as Dublin or Athlone while commuting daily. Daingean is surrounded by the Bog of Allen and Bord Na Mona (BnM) remains a key employer, however the number employed is much reduced from the heyday when local people made a good living working at the Briquette Factory and on the bog including significant numbers of seasonal workers. The ESB power station at nearby Rhode was also a significant employer before its closure. Even in the period of very high unemployment in the 1980s the ESB and BnM trained local men in their apprenticeship programmes.
Publican Matt Farrell was murdered in this town on 1 April 2009. A €10,000 reward was offered for information when the crime had not been solved several months later.
, passes through the village. The village has its own 18-hole golf
course, Castle Barna Golf Club.
is a raft
race on the Grand Canal other events include the parade, traditional threshing, karaoke competition and children's day in recent years the canal gladiators competition was introduced. During the Daingean Homecoming Festival a Festival Queen is selected by a panel of judges. The festival Queen selection is made in a similar style to the Rose of Tralee. On the Friday night of the Homecoming Festival Tullamore Harriers Athletic Club organise the annual Daingean 5KM Road Race. This race makes four loops of the town on a circuit including Main Street, Church Street, Canal View, and Circular Road. A set of Flickr photographs are available for the 2011 race. The race is usually well attended with over 100 runners taking part adding colour and excitement to the town.
, Edenderry, Daingean, Ballinagar
and (through the R420
) Tullamore.
Daingean is served by a Bus Éireann
commuter bus service through Route 120.
The nearest railway station is Tullamore railway station
, approximately 17.5 km (10.9 mi) or 15 to 20 minutes away.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in east County Offaly
County Offaly
County Offaly is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Midlands Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe and was formerly known as King's County until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. Offaly County Council is...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. It is situated midway between the towns of Tullamore
Tullamore
Tullamore is a town in County Offaly, in the midlands of Ireland. It is Offaly's county town and the centre of the district.Tullamore is an important commercial and industrial centre in the region. Major international employers in the town include 'Tyco Healthcare' and 'Boston Scientific'. In...
and Edenderry
Edenderry, County Offaly
Edenderry is a town in the north of County Offaly, Ireland. It is near the borders with Counties Kildare, Meath and Westmeath. The Grand Canal passes immediately south of the town through the Bog of Allen and there is a short spur to the town centre....
on the R402
R402 road
The R402 road is a regional road in Ireland, linking the M4 at Enfield, County Meath to the R420 east of Tullamore in County Offaly.-Route:It starts in the centre of Enfield; crosses the R148 and M4 at a complex junction at the edge of the town.Immediately enters County Kildare at Johnstown...
regional road
Regional road
A regional road in Ireland is a class of road not forming a major route , but nevertheless forming a link in the national route network. There are over 11,600 kilometres of regional roads. Regional roads are numbered with three digit route numbers, prefixed by "R" A regional road in Ireland is a...
. The town or townland
Townland
A townland or bally is a small geographical division of land used in Ireland. The townland system is of Gaelic origin—most townlands are believed to pre-date the Norman invasion and most have names derived from the Irish language...
of Daingean has a population (2002) of 777 while the District Electoral Division (DED
District Electoral Division
A district electoral division is a former name given to a low-level territorial division in Ireland. In 1994, both district electoral divisions and wards were renamed as electoral divisions...
) has a total population of 1168. It is the principal town of the Daingean Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
Parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
. The other main poles of this parish are Ballycommon, Kilclonfert and Cappincur.
History
Daingean was originally named Philipstown in 1556 when it was established as the county town in the land that was planted by Queen Mary TudorMary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
in the newly shired King’s County
County Offaly
County Offaly is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Midlands Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe and was formerly known as King's County until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. Offaly County Council is...
. The town and the county was so named after her husband, Philip II of Spain
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
, King consort of Ireland.
The town was once the seat of the O’Connor clan, who were chieftains of the surrounding area of Offaly. Its current name ‘Daingean’ from Daingean Ua bhFáilghe means fortress of the Uí Fáilghe clan, a name that it derived from the medieval island fortress of O'Connor Faly. In 1883 Tullamore replaced Daingean as the focal point of the county. As a result Philipstown was demoted from capital town to village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and as a result lost most of its political status. It was in 1922, with the foundation of the Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
, that the village was renamed Daingean, at the same time as County Offaly
County Offaly
County Offaly is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Midlands Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe and was formerly known as King's County until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. Offaly County Council is...
replaced the old King's County.
Daingean has long boasted a strong status as a Midlands town and this was never more evident than at the start of the 20th century when Daingean displayed at various points a number of important public buildings including the courthouse, the design of which is locally attributed to James Gandon, designer of the Four Courts in Dublin. In addition there is a children's reformatory
Reformatory
Reformatory is a term that has had varied meanings within the penal system, depending on the jurisdiction and the era. It may refer to a youth detention center, or an adult correctional facility. The term is still in popular use for adult facilities throughout the United States, although most...
(mentioned in the Ryan Report
Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse
The Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse is one of a range of measures introduced by the Irish Government to investigate the extent and effects of abuse on children from 1936 onwards. It is commonly known in Ireland as the Ryan Commission , after its chair, Justice Seán Ryan...
), remnants of a military barracks (known as the footbarrack) giving its name to the bridge leading out of the town towards Tullamore - the footbarrack bridge. There are the remnants of a Anglican
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
church and a functioning Roman Catholic church. Of these buildings all can still be seen in various states but few are still used for their original functions within the village. The courthouse has functioned as a town hall, dance hall and bingo palace having been renovated in the 1980s by the state training body ANC, using local labour.
A bog body
Bog body
Bog bodies, which are also known as bog people, are the naturally preserved human corpses found in the sphagnum bogs in Northern Europe. Unlike most ancient human remains, bog bodies have retained their skin and internal organs due to the unusual conditions of the surrounding area...
, given the name Old Croghan Man
Old Croghan Man
Old Croghan Man is the name given to a well-preserved Iron Age bog body found in an Irish bog in June 2003. The remains are named after Croghan Hill, north of Daingean, County Offaly, near where the body was found. The find is on display in the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin.Old Croghan Man...
, was found near Daingean in 2004 and featured on the BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
Timewatch
Timewatch
Timewatch is a long-running British television series showing documentaries on historical subjects, spanning all human history. It was first broadcast on 29th September 1982 and is produced by the BBC, the Timewatch brandname is used as a banner title in the UK, but many of the individual...
programme in January 2006.
A book called From the Quiet Annals of Daingean was written and published by John Kearney, Main St., Daingean, Co. Offaly in December 2006.
While there is a local farming economy, many of the people from Daingean work in Tullamore or as far afield as Dublin or Athlone while commuting daily. Daingean is surrounded by the Bog of Allen and Bord Na Mona (BnM) remains a key employer, however the number employed is much reduced from the heyday when local people made a good living working at the Briquette Factory and on the bog including significant numbers of seasonal workers. The ESB power station at nearby Rhode was also a significant employer before its closure. Even in the period of very high unemployment in the 1980s the ESB and BnM trained local men in their apprenticeship programmes.
Publican Matt Farrell was murdered in this town on 1 April 2009. A €10,000 reward was offered for information when the crime had not been solved several months later.
Tourist attractions
The Grand Canal, which links Dublin and the River ShannonRiver Shannon
The River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland at . It divides the west of Ireland from the east and south . County Clare, being west of the Shannon but part of the province of Munster, is the major exception...
, passes through the village. The village has its own 18-hole golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
course, Castle Barna Golf Club.
Cultural events
The Daingean Homecoming Festival is a week long event hosted at the beginning of each August. One of the most anticipated events at the festivalFestival
A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....
is a raft
Raft
A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is the most basic of boat design, characterized by the absence of a hull...
race on the Grand Canal other events include the parade, traditional threshing, karaoke competition and children's day in recent years the canal gladiators competition was introduced. During the Daingean Homecoming Festival a Festival Queen is selected by a panel of judges. The festival Queen selection is made in a similar style to the Rose of Tralee. On the Friday night of the Homecoming Festival Tullamore Harriers Athletic Club organise the annual Daingean 5KM Road Race. This race makes four loops of the town on a circuit including Main Street, Church Street, Canal View, and Circular Road. A set of Flickr photographs are available for the 2011 race. The race is usually well attended with over 100 runners taking part adding colour and excitement to the town.
Transport
The regional R402 road forms the principal street of Daingean known as Main Street. This road links EnfieldEnfield, County Meath
Enfield or Innfield is a town in south County Meath, Ireland, situated between Kilcock and Kinnegad and very close to the border with County Kildare...
, Edenderry, Daingean, Ballinagar
Ballinagar
Ballinagar is a village in County Offaly, Ireland. It lies on the R402 regional road, roughly midway between Daingean and Tullamore....
and (through the R420
R420 road
The R420 road is a regional road in Ireland, which runs northwest-southeast from the N52/N80 in Tullamore to the R445 just west of Monasterevin.The route is long.-See also:*Roads in Ireland*National primary road*National secondary road-References:...
) Tullamore.
Daingean is served by a Bus Éireann
Bus Éireann
Bus Éireann provides bus services in Ireland with the exception of those operated entirely within the Dublin Region, which are provided by Dublin Bus. Bus Éireann, established as a separate company in 1987, is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann. The logo of Bus Éireann incorporates a red Irish...
commuter bus service through Route 120.
The nearest railway station is Tullamore railway station
Tullamore railway station
Tullamore railway station serves the town of Tullamore in County Offaly, Ireland.The station first opened in Tullamore on 2 October 1854.- Awards :*2004 - 2nd Prize - Intercity Stations Category*2003 - 2nd Prize - Intercity Stations Category...
, approximately 17.5 km (10.9 mi) or 15 to 20 minutes away.
See also
- List of towns and villages in Ireland