Dunshaughlin

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Commuter town in County Meath, Ireland

title: "Dunshaughlin" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["towns-and-villages-in-county-meath", "townlands-of-county-meath", "civil-parishes-of-county-meath"] description: "Commuter town in County Meath, Ireland" topic_path: "general/towns-and-villages-in-county-meath" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunshaughlin" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Commuter town in County Meath, Ireland ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

FieldValue
nameDunshaughlin
native_nameDún Seachlainn/Domhnach Seachnaill
native_name_langga
settlement_typeTown
image_skylineDunshaughlin, County Meath (geograph 1794614).jpg
image_captionThe Drumree Road in Dunshaughlin
pushpin_mapIreland
pushpin_label_positionright
pushpin_map_captionLocation in Ireland
subdivision_typeCountry
subdivision_nameIreland
subdivision_type1Province
subdivision_name1Leinster
subdivision_type3County
subdivision_name3County Meath
unit_prefMetric
population_as_of2022 census
population_footnotes
population_total6644
population_density_km2auto
timezone1WET
utc_offset1+0
timezone1_DSTIST (WEST)
utc_offset1_DST-1
coordinates
elevation_m105
blank_nameIrish Grid Reference
blank_info
::

| name = Dunshaughlin | native_name = Dún Seachlainn/Domhnach Seachnaill | native_name_lang = ga | settlement_type = Town | image_skyline = Dunshaughlin, County Meath (geograph 1794614).jpg | image_caption = The Drumree Road in Dunshaughlin | pushpin_map = Ireland | pushpin_label_position = right | pushpin_map_caption = Location in Ireland | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = Ireland | subdivision_type1 = Province | subdivision_name1 = Leinster | subdivision_type3 = County | subdivision_name3 = County Meath | established_title = | established_date = | unit_pref = Metric | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = | population_as_of = 2022 census | population_footnotes = | population_total = 6644 | population_density_km2 = auto | timezone1 = WET | utc_offset1 = +0 | timezone1_DST = IST (WEST) | utc_offset1_DST = -1 | coordinates = | elevation_m = 105 | blank_name = Irish Grid Reference | blank_info =

Dunshaughlin ( or locally ) is a town in County Meath, Ireland. A commuter town for nearby Dublin, Dunshaughlin more than tripled in population (from 2,139 to 6,644 inhabitants) between the 1996 and 2022 censuses. The town is in a townland and civil parish of the same name.

History

Foundation

Dunshaughlin is named for Saint Seachnall, who established a church there in the 5th century, where he is said to be buried. The oldest reference to the place name is an entry in the Annála Uladh from the year 801, where the name takes the form "Domnaig Sechnaill". The word "Domnach", used in this way, can be attributed to churches which originate from the beginnings of Christianity in Ireland. North of the ruins of the original church, on the site, there is a Church of Ireland church built in 1814 with funds from the Board of First Fruits. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Dunshaughlin_Church_of_Ireland.jpg" caption="Dunshaughlin Church of Ireland"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Dunshaughlin_Church_of_Ireland_Interior.jpg" caption="Dunshaughlin Church of Ireland interior"] ::

Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill was an ancestor from which the principal family of Brega, Ó Maoilsheachlainn, is descended. Dunshaughlin (or more specifically, the townland of Lagore) is famous for an ancient crannóg or settlement from the 7th century where a number of Irish antiquities were discovered.

Workhouse

Approximately 2 km from the village is a preserved workhouse from the Great Famine. This workhouse was erected in 1840–41 on 2 ha, south of Dunshaughlin. Designed to accommodate 400 inmates, it cost about £6,000 to build, all told. It was declared fit for habitation on 12 May 1841 and received its first admissions on 17 May. During the famine period, in the mid-1840s, elements of the workhouse were converted to accommodate additional inmates, and a burial ground was located to the rear. Occupancy declined after the famine. During the First World War, the building was used to house Belgian refugees, some of whom died there and were buried in the paupers' graveyard. In 1920–21, the building was taken over by the Black and Tans, who used it as a barracks during the Irish War of Independence. After the workhouse system was abolished in 1922, following the conclusion of the war and the establishment of the Irish Free State, the facility served as a school, courthouse, and factory (among other things). As of 2002, parts of the building were being used as a guest residence.

Demographics

Dunshaughlin is 29 km from Dublin on the R147, and is a growing satellite town of that city. In the 20 years between the 1991 and 2011 census, the town's population had more than tripled from 1,275 inhabitants to 3,903 people. By the time of the 2022 census, this had further increased to 6,644.

Amenities

Several housing estates centre on the main street, with multiple retail units consisting of newsagents, pubs, takeaway food outlets, clothing stores, and banks. There is also a business park on the outskirts of the town.

Dunshaughlin houses a number of public amenities, including a library, a health centre, and the Meath County Council civic offices. A community and sports centre was opened on the grounds of Dunshaughlin Community College in 2000. The centre is operated by a voluntary board of management.

Education

Dunshaughlin has three primary schools, Gaelscoil na Ríthe, St. Seachnall's and Dunshaughlin Community National School. It has two secondary schools, Dunshaughlin Community College and Coláiste Ríoga. St. Seachnall's was founded in 1835. As of 2019, it had 552 students, both boys and girls. Gaelscoil na Ríthe (an Irish medium school) was established in 1985 by a group of parents from the Dunshaughlin, Drumree, and Culmullen areas. A new building was constructed in 1996 and, as of 2019, the school had an enrollment of 226 pupils. Dunshaughlin Community College (DCC), established in 1933, is a co-educational school which is part of the Louth and Meath Education and Training Board. Construction was completed on an extension to the school in 2013, and was officially opened on 29 November 2014.

Transport

Dunshaughlin is located at a junction between the R147 and R125 regional roads, approximately 1 km from the M3 motorway. It is served by Bus Éireann commuter bus services to Dublin, including route 109, which generally runs at a frequency of every half-hour.

Sport

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/GAA_grounds_Dunshauglin_(cropped).jpg" caption="Dunshaughlin GAA grounds"] ::

The town is represented in sport by men's and women's Gaelic football teams. The Dunshaughlin GAA men's team were Meath Senior Football Championship for three consecutive seasons (2000 to 2003). The local soccer club, Dunshaughlin Youths, fields teams in the North Dublin Schoolboy's League.

The local basketball club, Dunshaughlin Rockets, compete in both the North East Basketball League and the Dublin Ladies Basketball League. Dunshaughlin Community College has won a girl's under 16's All-Ireland title, a second-year girl's All-Ireland and a boy's under 19's All-Ireland title.

Dunshaughlin Athletic Club is traditionally considered a long-distance running club. However, club members have also entered juvenile sprinting competitions. The town's golf course is the "Black Bush Golf Club". Around 3 km outside the village, a new golfing resort designed by Jack Nicklaus has been created at Killeen Castle. The course hosted the 2011 Solheim Cup.

The town also has a strong association with horse racing, in particular National Hunt racing. The leading flat race sprinter Sole Power, dual winner of both the Nunthorpe Stakes and the King's Stand Stakes, is trained near the town by Edward Lynam.

Events

The Dunshaughlin Harvest Festival is a three-day culture festival, usually taking place towards the end of September. It is a non-profit event, organized and run by local volunteers.

Gallery

File:Entrance to Saint Seachnall's Church of Ireland, Dunshaughlin, Ireland.jpg|Entrance to Saint Seachnall's Church of Ireland, site of the village's original ecclesiastical foundation in the fifth century AD File:CroppygraveDomhnachSeachnaill (4).JPG|Waterfall next to the old mill on the Killeen Road File:1798 Croppy Commemoration, Dunshaughlin.jpg|1798 Croppy Commemoration, Croppy Lane, Trim Road File:Seachnall's church.JPG|Remains of the monastic site of Saint Seachnall, Domhnach Seachnaill, from which the town's name derives File:G-DUNS.JPG|A hot-air balloon over north-west Dunshaughlin

References

References

  1. (April 2022). "F1015: Population and Average Age by Sex and List of Towns (number and percentages), 2022". Central Statistics Office.
  2. "Dunshaughlin / Dún Seachlainn". Placenames Database of Ireland.
  3. While ''Domhnach Seachnaill'' remains the common name among the natives, since the Placenames Order, 1975 the alternative recorded Irish name for the town, ''Dún Seachlainn'', is designated as the official name. Both names are equally legitimate with Domhnach Seachnaill appearing in ecclesiastical records and Dún Seachlainn appearing in secular records.
  4. (26 April 2019). "More than 900 housing units approved for Dunshaughlin, Co Meath".
  5. "Dunshaughlin (Ireland) Census Town".
  6. Archdall, Mervyn. (1786). "Monasticon Hibernicum or A history of the Abbies Priories and Other Religious Houses in Ireland". Luke White Press.
  7. (25 May 2017). "Dún Seachlainn/Dunshaughlin".
  8. Jones, SE. (2024-12-01). "Life, death and environment at Lagore Crannog: Parasites, land-use and a royal residence in later prehistoric and early medieval Ireland". Journal of Archaeological Science.
  9. "The Workhouse in Dunshaughlin, Co. Meath".
  10. "Dunshaughlin Local Area Plan 2009-2015". Meath County Council.
  11. (2011). "Area Profile For Town - Dunshaughlin Co. Meath". Central Statistics Office.
  12. (13 January 2019). "Changing face of Dunshaughlin as development takes off again". Meath Chronicle.
  13. "About us - Dunshaughlin Community Centre Ltd".
  14. "Find a school - St Seachnall's National School". Department of Education.
  15. "Find a school - Gaelscoil Na Rithe". Department of Education.
  16. "Principal Message".
  17. "Timetable / Route 109 / Kells - Navan - Dunshaughlin - Dublin". Bus Éireann.
  18. "DUNSHAUGHLIN YOUTHS FC".
  19. "Welcome to North Dublin Schoolboys/Girls League".
  20. "Basketball Club". Dunshaughlin Rockets.
  21. Kelly, Tom. (5 October 2011). "Dunshaughlin students praised for Solheim Cup catering role". [[Meath Chronicle]].
  22. "Edward Lynam". Racing Post.
  23. "About - Dunshaughlin Harvest Festival".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

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