Muine Bheag (Bagenalstown)

Bagenalstown was founded by Lord Walter Bagenal (1670 – 1745) who was a member of the prominent family, who resided in Dunleckney Manor, Co. Carlow. The town sprang up within the townland of Moneybeg, or Muine Bheag in Irish (meaning “small thicket”). The town only began to grow and prosper with the arrival of the railway in 1848. After Irish Independence, the town commissioners chose to drop the English name in favour of the Irish Muine Bheag. The decision proved an ineffective one, and Bagenalstown remained in common use among locals. In a 1975 plebiscite 77% of residents polled voted to change the name back, but the proposal failed due to insufficient voter turnout.