Leighlinbridge
Leighlinbridge (/ˈlɔːxlɪn.brɪdʒ/; Irish: Leithghlinn an Droichid, meaning 'half-glen or grey glen of the bridge') is a small town on the River Barrow in County Carlow, Ireland. It is 11 km south of Carlow town, on the R705 road. The N9 national primary route once passed through the village, but was by-passed in the 1980s.
Leighlinbridge
Irish: Leithghlinn an Droichid | |
|---|---|
Town | |
The Black Castle on the River Barrow in Leighlinbridge | |
Leighlinbridge Location in Ireland | |
| Coordinates: 52°44′11″N 6°58′21″W | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Leinster |
| County | County Carlow |
| Elevation | 41 m (135 ft) |
| Population (2016) | 914 |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (WET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-1 (IST (WEST)) |
| Irish Grid Reference | S694654 |
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1831 | 2,035 | — |
| 1841 | 1,748 | −14.1% |
| 1851 | 1,292 | −26.1% |
| 1861 | 1,245 | −3.6% |
| 1871 | 1,066 | −14.4% |
| 1881 | 835 | −21.7% |
| 1891 | 744 | −10.9% |
| 1901 | 646 | −13.2% |
| 1911 | 544 | −15.8% |
| 1926 | 406 | −25.4% |
| 1936 | 425 | +4.7% |
| 1946 | 394 | −7.3% |
| 1951 | 326 | −17.3% |
| 1956 | 375 | +15.0% |
| 1961 | 457 | +21.9% |
| 1966 | 444 | −2.8% |
| 1971 | 379 | −14.6% |
| 1981 | 515 | +35.9% |
| 1986 | 540 | +4.9% |
| 1991 | 510 | −5.6% |
| 1996 | 508 | −0.4% |
| 2002 | 646 | +27.2% |
| 2006 | 674 | +4.3% |
| 2011 | 828 | +22.8% |
| 2016 | 914 | +10.4% |
It covers the townlands of Leighlin (east bank of the river) and Ballyknockan (west bank). The village features narrow winding streets, grey limestone malthouses and castle ruins overlooking a 14th-century bridge across the River Barrow. Leighlinbridge has won the National Tidy Towns Competition, has come first in the Barrow Awards, been an overall national winner in Ireland's Green Town 2000, and represented Ireland in the European "Entente Florale" competition in 2001.