Rhode, County Offaly Explained

Rhode
Native Name:Irish: Ród
Native Name Lang:ga
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 Offaly
Unit Pref:Metric
Population As Of:2016
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population:811
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone1:WET
Utc Offset1:+0
Timezone1 Dst:IST (WEST)
Utc Offset1 Dst:+1
Coordinates:53.3495°N -7.1991°W
Blank Name:Irish Grid Reference
Postal Code Type:Eircode routing key
Postal Code:R35

Rhode [2] is a village in County Offaly, Ireland. It is situated on the R400 at its junction with the R441 which leads to Edenderry, 12 km to the east. Rhode village is on an "island" of high ground surrounded by an expanse of raised bog which forms part of the Bog of Allen.[3]

History

The Grand Canal, which was completed in the early 1800s, lies just south of the village, where it is crossed by Rhode Bridge (built c.1797).[4] Several of the village's larger buildings, including Saint Peter's Roman Catholic church (original built 1816), date to the early 19th century.[5]

The modern village of Rhode expanded around a peat-burning power plant operated by the Electricity Supply Board which was supplied with milled peat by Bord na Móna. The plant was shut down in 2003 and its cooling towers were demolished in March 2004, removing a highly visible landmark.[6]

Amenities

The local national (primary) school, Scoil Mhuire Naofa, opened in 1959.[7] As of 2020, the school had over 150 pupils enrolled.[8] The local GAA team, Rhode GAA, has won the most Offaly Senior Football Championship titles of any club in the county.[9] The village has three pubs, two takeaways, two shops, a filling station, several hairdressers and a pharmacy. In the centre of the village is a playground and park.

People

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sapmap Area - Settlements - Rhode . Central Statistics Office . Census 2016 . April 2016 . 29 February 2020 .
  2. Web site: Ród / Rhode (see archival records) . Placenames Database of Ireland . logainm.ie . 29 February 2020 .
  3. Web site: Offaly County Development Plan 2014–2020 . Offaly County Council . offaly.ie . October 2014 . 29 February 2020 . Rhode village is situated in the north‐eastern corner of County Offaly and is surrounded by flat boglands and agricultural land [..] Rhode is situated approximately 12km west of Edenderry.
  4. Web site: Rhode Bridge, County Offaly . National Inventory of Architectural Heritage . buildingsofireland.ie . 29 February 2020 .
  5. Web site: Saint Peter's Roman Catholic Church, Rhode, County Offaly . National Inventory of Architectural Heritage . buildingsofireland.ie . 29 February 2020 .
  6. Web site: Co Offaly power station towers demolished . Irish Times . irishtimes.com . 16 March 2004 . 29 February 2020 .
  7. Web site: About Us - History . Rhode National School . scoilmhuirenaofa.com . 1 March 2020 .
  8. Web site: S N Mhuire Naofa, Rhode National School . Department of Education . education.ie . https://archive.today/20200301004036/https://www.education.ie/en/find-a-school/School-Detail/?roll=18335H . 1 March 2020 .
  9. Web site: Former Portlaoise manager takes job with top Offaly club . Laois Today . laoistoday.ie . 2 December 2019 . 1 March 2020 . Rhode [are] Offaly's most decorated football team with 29 championship titles. subscription . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200301005114/https://www.laoistoday.ie/2019/12/02/former-portlaoise-manager-takes-job-with-top-offaly-club/ . 1 March 2020.
  10. Web site: Dunne, John (1846–1916). Obituaries Australia. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. 4 September 2012.