placenamesBallinglen
Baile an Ghleanna
Ballinglen’s bridge recalls the Lacey brothers and the rebellion of 1798, while its former station belongs to the railway history of south Wicklow.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Baile an Ghleanna · Irish · main form · validated name
- Ballinglen · English · main form
Place & story
Philip and Patrick Lacey
The memory of Philip and Patrick Lacey is closely tied to Ballinglen Bridge. In her address at the unveiling of a memorial seat, President Mary McAleese described them as farmers who fought at Vinegar Hill and died while trying to return home after the defeat. Her speech presented their story as a way of remembering the many participants in the rebellion whose names were less widely known than those of its leaders. [2]
A continuing commemoration
A souvenir programme preserved by the National Library records a Lacey brothers commemoration at Ballinglen Bridge on Sunday, 19 June 1960. Published by the Enniscorthy Echo, the forty-eight-page booklet provides evidence of organised remembrance well before the bicentenary. McAleese’s later unveiling of the memorial seat during the bicentennial year continued that tradition at the bridge, linking the local monument with a wider reconsideration of the United Irishmen. [3] [2]
The station on the Shillelagh branch
Ballinglen acquired a railway station in 1876, after the branch from Woodenbridge to Shillelagh was already operating. Niall Kelly’s railway history describes it as a small station compared with the other stops on the line. The route connected south Wicklow with the main Dublin–Wexford railway at Woodenbridge and carried passengers, goods and livestock. Coal shortages during the Emergency brought passenger services to an end in April 1944; the later goods workings served only part of the former branch. [4]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Wicklow
- Barony
- Ballinacor South
- Civil parish
- Preban
- Within
- Ballinglen
- Coordinates
- 52.82439, -6.41247 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 1412570 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Ballinglen. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Remarks by President Mary McAleese at the unveiling of a memorial seat at Ballinglen Bridge · President of Ireland
- 1798 Lacey Brothers Commemoration Souvenir Programme, Ballinglen Bridge,19 June1960 · National Library of Ireland
- Wicklow’s forgotten railway: a look at the Shillelagh branch line,2 September2025 · Niall Kelly, Táilte Tours
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.