Legan, County Longford Explained

Legan
Native Name:An Liagán
Other Name:Lenamore (An Léana Mór)
Settlement Type:Village
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 Longford
Unit Pref:Metric
Population As Of:2016
Population:215
Population Footnotes:[1]
Coordinates:53.6167°N -44°W

Legan [2] [3] is a village in County Longford, Ireland. As of the 2016 census, the village population was 215.[1]

Name

The village of Legan, situated in the townland of Smithfield, is also known as Lenamore [4] after the local watercourse the Lenamore Stream. Legan comes from 'Legan Bridge', a bridge which crosses the stream and which takes its name from the adjoining townland of Legan on the other side of the stream. The bridge spans the stream at the entrance to the village and has been a local feature since about 1775.[5] The names therefore come from the proximity of the village to the bridge and the stream. The actual townland of Legan had an ancient enclosure called 'Legan Rock' which gives rise to the meaning of the name.[6]

Transport

Legan is approximately 3 km from the N55 and 10 km from the N4 roads. It is approximately 11 km from Edgeworthstown railway station.

Tidy towns

Legan received a total of 271 marks in category A of the Tidy Towns Competition 2016,[7] placing it fourth of 13 villages in that category in County Longford.[8]

Sport

The local GAA club is Legan Sarsfields, which was fielding teams in the Longford Intermediate Football Championship as of 2017.[9]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Legan (Ireland) Census Town . City Population . 3 February 2020 .
  2. Web site: Towns and Villages - Legan. 9 April 2013. Longfordtourism.ie. 8 October 2017.
  3. Web site: An Liagán / Legan . Irish Placenames Commission . logainm.ie . 3 February 2020 .
  4. Web site: An Léana Mór / Lenamore . logainm.ie . Irish Placenames Commission . 6 February 2018.
  5. Web site: Legan Bridge, County Longford . National Inventory of Architectural Heritage . buildingsofireland.ie . 6 February 2018.
  6. Web site: Towns & Villages - Legan . Longford County Council . longford.ie . 3 February 2020 . Legan Rock [..] is the site of a mud-walled thatched church used in Penal Times [..] The present church was built in the village of Leanamore, it brought its Legan name, and now the village is generally known as Legan.
  7. Web site: Tidy Towns Competition 2016 - Adjudication Report - Legan . TidyTowns.ie . 8 October 2017 .
  8. Web site: Tidy Towns: Full list of winners in each county. Irish Times. 8 October 2017.
  9. Web site: Successful Appeal: Legan Sarsfields and Young Grattans can continue to play in this year’s Longford Intermediate Football Championship. Longford Leader. 8 October 2017.