Ballygar
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Ballygar Béal Átha Ghártha
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 Ballygar
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| Coordinates: 53°31′00″N 8°19′00″W / 53.51667°N 8.31667°WCoordinates: 53°31′00″N 8°19′00″W / 53.51667°N 8.31667°W | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Connacht |
| County | County Galway |
| Elevation | 66 m (217 ft) |
| Population (2002) | 642 |
| Irish Grid Reference | M790518 |
Ballygar (Irish: Béal Átha Ghártha) is a town in County Galway, Ireland. It is 11.7 km from Roscommon town.
The name Ballygar, historically Beallagarr, comes from Irish: Béal Átha Ghártha. The town has been a meeting point of the McDermott clan and trading centre throughout the centuries, and was recorded as a townland and farm as far back as 1585.
Although the townland and farm are recorded as far back as 1585, it was not until the 1820s that it became a centre of population. On 6 August 1585 the Chieftains and Landowners of Galway and Roscommon were summoned to a meeting with the Lord Deputy, Sir John Perrot, in Galway City. The object of the meeting was to get the landowners and chieftains to surrender their lands to Elizabeth I and then receive them back from the Crown at a rent of one penny an acre. The landowners accepted the terms, and one of the signatories to that document of surrender was Francis Shane, gent, of Ballygar, and possibly the proprietor of Ballygar Castle at the time.
The next mention of Ballygar is in the book of Survey Distribution; this shows out the Earl of St Albans as being the beneficial owner of the land of Bealagara in Killeroran Parish in 1641. He was dispossessed of this land and Ballygar Castle. It was subsequently granted to the Earl of Clanricarde. A garrison was stationed in Ballygar Castle during the rebellion of the 1640s. Ballygar Castle seems to have disappeared from the scene in the early 18th century. A document, dated 1704, shows the Clanricarde family as having leased Ballygar Farm plus parts of Drinaun and Killeroran, 800 acres (3.2 km2) in all, to Edward Donnellan of Streamstown, Co Westmeath, for two lives i.e. sixty two years at a rent of two shillings per acre per year. In 1820, a toll market was established near the main entrance to Castle Kelly by Denis Henry Kelly who owned 13,500 acres (55 km2) of the surrounding countryside.
The market was a success from the beginning and around this the thriving market the town of Ballygar grew. By 1840 Ballygar market was said to be second only to Athlone market in volume of trade. According to the census of 1841, there was a population of 5,300 living on the Kelly estate. As the market grew, so did the demand for shops and dwellings. Denis had these built and leased them to suitable tenants. Twenty years after its foundation Ballygar had 52 houses and a population of 363. It is not known whether Denis was a teetotaller or not, but it is interesting to note that there were only two public houses in Ballygar in 1839. One of these was located near J. Curley's shop, the other was situated where T. Hanley's drapery shop is now. The town was planned in an orderly fashion, wide main street, market square, a diamond at the main entrance to his estate and two back streets to give access to the rear of all premises.
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