placenamesMeanus
Méanas
A church begun in 1845 preserves carved stonework, stained glass and evidence of local support for its interior.
The name
A reliable full-name meaning has not been established here. The recorded Irish and English forms are given without an unsupported translation.
Recorded forms
- Méanas · Irish · main form · validated name
- Meanus · English · main form
Place & story
The foundation stone
Saint Mary's Church in Meanus was built in 1845–46. The diocesan heritage account records that Lord Guillamore, who supplied the site without charge, laid its first stone on 20 July 1845 at the invitation of parish priest Dr. Cussen. The church became a prominent building at the village's T-junction, where its square entrance tower rises above the nave. [2] [3]
Stonework and timber
The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage records limestone walls with carefully worked corner stones and a tower rising through three stages to battlements and pinnacles. Pointed windows have carved stone tracery; the east window includes carved faces at the ends of its hood moulding. Inside, a timber gallery faces towards the altar, whose marble reredos stands beneath a scissor-braced timber roof. [3]
Gifts to the church
The stained glass connects the interior with named local benefactors. The diocesan project identifies gifts from Joseph and Mary Clancy, Timothy Hartigan of Crean House, and Stephen and Mary Gleeson. It also records a contribution from the Meanus Dramatic Class in 1915. These donations brought support from a local performance group alongside individual patrons. The church underwent renovation in 1999. [2]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Limerick
- Barony
- Smallcounty
- Civil parish
- Glenogra
- Coordinates
- 52.51892, -8.60406 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 1414150 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Meanus. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Meanus Church, Churches of Bruff–Meanus–Grange · Limerick Diocesan Heritage Project
- Saint Mary's Catholic Church, Meanus,21903120 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2017-12-01. How this page was prepared.