placenamesMonasterredan
Mainistir Réadáin
Usually written Monasteraden locally, this south Sligo village has a richly detailed church and a school history linking several surrounding communities.
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
- Mainistir Réadáin · Irish · main form · validated name
- Monasterredan · English · main form
Place & story
Saint Aidan’s Church
Saint Aidan's Catholic Church dates from about 1885. Cream sandstone, grey limestone and red sandstone combine in its walls and window surrounds, giving the building a varied palette. A tall bellcote rises above the west gable, while the steep roof is covered in green slate. The architectural inventory also records a timber choir balcony and pointed timber roof trusses inside. [2]
Coolavin school
The school's own history records separate boys' and girls' sections at Monasteraden in 1870. Coolavin National School followed in 1871, probably replacing those earlier schools. Its two sections became a single school in 1936. When Townaghbrack closed in 1967, its remaining pupils transferred to Coolavin. That school, in turn, closed in December 1973 as education moved to a new village building. [3]
A new school for several communities
Bishop James Fergus officially opened Saint Aiden's National School in 1974 as a school with three teachers. Its history identifies Coolavin, Clooncunny, Townaghbrack and Cross as the schools brought together in the new institution. An extension followed in 2008 and was officially opened that November by education minister Batt O'Keeffe. The village school thus served a catchment extending beyond Monasteraden itself. [3]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Monasterredan. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Saint Aidan's Catholic Church,32321007 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- School History, St. Aiden’s National School, Monasteraden · St. Aiden’s National School, Monasteraden
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.