placenames1901 census
1,065People recorded
197Households recorded
Most frequent surnames in this year’s matched records
- Gibney 41
- Farrelly 30
- Lynch 22
- Sherwood 22
- Lowndes 21
Oldcastle
An Seanchaisleán
Three buildings record work, finance and entertainment beyond Oldcastle’s market-square and internment histories.
Recorded locationOldcastle53.77171° N · 7.16518° WInteractive map supplied by OpenStreetMap.
Recorded place location · Logainm.ie
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
- An Seanchaisleán · Irish · main form
- Oldcastle · English · main form
Place & story
The cinema years
Castle Cinema on Oliver Plunkett Street opened in 1944 and closed in 1981. Its entrance block used a concrete canopy, narrow windows, raised lettering and terrazzo steps to announce a modern entertainment venue. Behind it stood the much larger auditorium. The architectural inventory records the building as disused in its 2002 survey, preserving evidence of a period when cinema-going formed part of Oldcastle’s social life. [2]
A horseshoe marks the forge
The former forge on Cavan Street bears the date 1864. Its large horseshoe-shaped opening identifies the building’s original trade through the shape of its entrance. Rough-faced stone blocks frame the arch and corners, while dressed surrounds finish the smaller side openings. Although modernised by the time of the survey, it retained the stonework that distinguishes it from an ordinary small roadside building. [3]
Banking in carved stone
A bank built around 1880 on Oliver Plunkett Street reflects another kind of investment in the town. Its entrance has Tuscan columns beneath a curved pediment, with elaborate stone surrounds to the windows. A later stained-glass sash window, dated to about 1910, survives in the rear wing. The inventory places its construction within the wider expansion of banking in nineteenth-century Ireland. [4]
Geographic information
People & family history
Census figures refer to the matched historical census area for each year. Boundaries and spellings can change over time.
1911 census
No verified place match is available for this year. This does not indicate a population of zero.
1926 census
236People recorded
56Households recorded
Most frequent surnames in this year’s matched records
Explore the 1926 records ↗Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Oldcastle. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Castle Cinema, NIAH14306013 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- Cavan Street forge, NIAH14306070 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- Oliver Plunkett Street bank, NIAH14306015 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- Boundary geometry retains its source attribution and licence in the downloadable geographic record. Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2021-11-10. How this page was prepared.