placenamesLettermore Island
Leitir Móir
Lettermore Island’s documented past includes the building of its causeway connections and the local concerns that reached newspapers and Parliament in 1916.
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
- Leitir Móir · Irish · main form · validated name
- Lettermore Island · English · main form
Place & story
Across Carrickalegan Pass
The architectural inventory dates Carrickalegaun Bridge and its curving causeway to about 1895. Built over an earlier crossing known as Carrickalegan Pass, it linked Lettermore with Gorumna and improved the island communities’ communications and trade. Battered drystone walls support the narrow roadway, with a raised central section and concrete bridge spans. The structure follows an older route through the tidal landscape, turning a former track or ford into a more dependable road connection. [2]
A dispute over the school residence
InFebruary 1916 the Galway Express reported that Lettermore’s national school had been closed for over a month following a dispute over its attached residence. Principal Margaret Kineavey had died the previousNovember. Her brother Martin, who taught at Lettercallow, sought a transfer so that he and his sisters could remain in the house. When another teacher was appointed, local parents withheld their children from school in support of the family. The report left the outcome unresolved. [3]
Fever and the demand for better water
On 22 August 1916 the district’s recurring fever outbreaks were debated in the House of Commons. Connemara’s MP William O’Malley called for improved housing and water supplies, describing the rising cost of a seven-well scheme and the burden on the Oughterard Union. He asked for additional help from the Congested Districts Board. Chief Secretary Henry Duke acknowledged the outbreaks and promised preventive action. The exchange records the local campaign for basic services alongside the national political debates of that year. [4]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Lettermore Island. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Carrickalegaun Bridge, NIAH 30407809 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- The Lettermore School: Peculiar Situation, Galway Express,19 February 1916 · Galway Express; Galway County Council Heritage Office transcription
- Irish Administration: Lettermore district debate,22 August 1916, HCvol 85 cc 2577–81,2586 · House of Commons, Historic Hansard
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.