Collinstown Village
by Lesley Gleeson
Collinstown village is a village in north county Westmeath, overlooking the beautiful Lough Lene.
The name of the village in Irish is Baile na gCailleach, which means ‘town of the veiled women’, owing to a convent once established on an island on Lough Lene.
The area has been inhabited since pre-Christian times. The townland of Ranaghan, to the west of the village contains the remains of several ringforts- at least one of which is linked to the Viking chief Turgesius, who is said to have conquered Dublin!
Turgesius also had another fort upon the largest island on Lough Lene, which still bears his name, Turgesius Island.
The area also contains ancient burial grounds associated with St. Colman, dating from penal times
Collinstown also has historic links with several religious orders; There is a convent on Nun’s Island, Lough Lene, to the north is the monastic complex of Fore Abbey.
The Lough Lene Bell
Adapted from the Collinstown Faith History Project
A very important ecclesiastical find was made in the summer of 1881. A boy who was out searching for eels made an amazing discovery of a bronze bell on Castle Island. The boy then sold the bronze bell to the Royal Irish Academy.
The bell is very like two other mid seventh century bells, one,which was found in Bangor, Co. Down, and the other in Cashel. The bells are a similar size and shape, and have similar decorative finish. It is believed that the bells all came from the same foundry.
The bell has a faint outline of the Christian Cross on each side and an ornamental border, which is thought to have been unusual and reserved for shines of the era.
The bell may have belonged to St. Feichan of Fore who lived in the mid seventh century and that the bell was taken to the Island to be hidden either to keep it safe or by a thief, and that the safe keeper/thief did not survive to get the bell from it’s hiding place
The original bell is in the National Museum. And a second replica holds pride of place in Dail Eireann as the Ceann Comhairle’s bell. It was presented to the Dail, by the widow of Major Bryan Cooper (a former member of the house) in 1931. There is a copy of the bell in the Cathederal Museum in Mullingar and in both St. Mary's Church Collinstown and St. Fechin’s Church, Fore.
Churches of Collinstown and Fore
Schools In and around Collinstown
THE TURNING WHEEL
A video by Little Cloud Productions in conjunction with local artist Teresa Doyle
In early 2018, Collinstown, Co. Westmeath, resident, Writer & Broadcaster Manchán Magan, conducted a series of interviews with four older members of the Collinstown community. Local Artist Teresa Doyle then played these interviews to 5th & 6th class of St. Mary’s N.S. in Collinstown, asking them to interpret what they heard through drawing and clay work. Artist/Film-makers Nicola Lane & Karl Somers were invited to use this project as a springboard to create a film.
ash and boot leather
A video by Little Cloud Productions in conjunction with local artist Teresa Doyle
An artists look at the game of hurling. Little Cloud Productions were invited by artist Teresa Doyle to make a film about the rhythm of the game at her local Gaa club, The Lough Lene Gaels in Collinstown, Co. Westmeath. Its an oblique look through the artists eye eye at the game of hurling, a game played in Ireland.