Knightstown Irish: Baile an Ridire / An Chois | |
---|---|
Village | |
Coordinates: 51°55′31″N10°17′38″W / 51.92532°N 10.293846°W | |
Country | Ireland |
Province | Munster |
County | County Kerry |
Population | 243 |
Time zone | UTC+0 (WET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-1 (IST (WEST)) |
Irish Grid Reference | V422773 |
Knightstown (Irish : Baile an Ridire, also An Chois), [2] alternatively called Knight's Town, is a village and the largest settlement on Valentia Island, County Kerry, in Ireland. It lies within the townland of Farranreagh, at the eastern tip of the island. As of the CSO census of 2016, Knightstown had a population of 243. [1]
In 1830 Maurice FitzGerald, the 18th Knight of Kerry, commissioned Scottish engineer Alexander Nimmo to draw up plans for a new village. During the 1840s, development began on what was initially known as the New Town of Valentia. [3]
The local RNLI lifeboat station moved to Knightstown in 1869 from Reenard Point and has since been known as the Valentia Lifeboat Station. [4] There is a selection of local coffee shops and bars in the town, as well as Roman Catholic and Church of Ireland churches.
Knightstown is also the location of the car ferry connection between Valentia Island and Reenard Point on the mainland.
The area served as a base of operations for the laying of the first successful Transatlantic telegraph cable to Heart's Content, completed in 1866. A cable station operated until it was closed in 1966. The history of the transatlantic cable and artifacts from it can be seen at the local history museum located in Knightstown. [5]
Knightstown participates in the annual "Tidy Towns" competition where it is regularly recognized for the quality and cleanliness of its environment. [6]
County Kerry is a county in Ireland. It is in the Southern Region and the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the county was 156,458 at the 2022 census.
Baltimore is a village in western County Cork, Ireland. It is the main village in the parish of Rathmore and the Islands, the southernmost parish in Ireland. It is the main ferry port to Sherkin Island, Cape Clear Island and the eastern side of Roaring Water Bay and Carbery's Hundred Isles.
Valentia Island is one of Ireland's most westerly points. It lies off the Iveragh Peninsula in the southwest of County Kerry. It is linked to the mainland by the Maurice O'Neill Memorial Bridge at Portmagee. A car ferry also departs from Reenard Point to Knightstown, the island's main settlement, from April to October. Another, smaller village named Chapeltown sits at roughly the midpoint of the island, three kilometres from the bridge. Valentia Island's permanent population is 658 .It is about 11 kilometres long by almost three kilometres wide, making it the fifth-biggest island off the Irish coast.
The Iveragh Peninsula is located in County Kerry in Ireland. It is the largest peninsula in southwestern Ireland. A mountain range, the MacGillycuddy's Reeks, lies in the centre of the peninsula. Carrauntoohil, its highest mountain, is also the highest peak in Ireland.
Killorglin is a town in County Kerry, Ireland. As of the 2016 CSO census, the town's population was 2,199. Killorglin is on the Ring of Kerry tourist route, and annual events include the August Puck Fair festival, which starts with the crowning and parading of a "king" wild goat.
Cahersiveen, sometimes Cahirciveen, is a town on the N70 national secondary road in County Kerry, Ireland. As of the 2016 CSO census, the town had a population of 1,041.
Ballycotton is a coastal village in County Cork, Ireland, situated about 25 miles (40 km) east of Cork city. It is a fishing village that sits on a rocky ledge overlooking Ballycotton Bay and has a sandy beach that stretches for about 25 kilometres (16 mi) east to Knockadoon Head. The current village is actually a re-settlement of an older village which is now entirely underwater. Ballycotton experiences severe coastal erosion with metres of land crumbling into the sea every few years. It is a site of international research interest on coastal erosion.
Mountshannon is a village in east County Clare, Ireland. It is part of the Catholic parish Mountshannon-Whitegate. The village is on the western shore of Lough Derg, north of Killaloe. Mountshannon won the Irish Tidy Towns Competition in 1981.
Portmagee is a village in County Kerry, Ireland. The village is located on the Iveragh peninsula south of Valentia Island, and is known locally as 'the ferry', in reference to its purpose as a crossing point to the island. Access to Valentia Island is now via the Maurice O'Neill Memorial Bridge from Portmagee, which was built in 1970 and named in memory of a member of the IRA executed in 1942 for his part in the shooting dead of Detective George Mordaunt in Dublin.
Waterville, historically known as Coirean, is a village in County Kerry, Ireland, on the Iveragh Peninsula. The town is sited on a narrow isthmus, with Lough Currane on the east side of the town, and Ballinskelligs Bay on the west, and the Currane River connecting the two.
The village of Rosslare Harbour, also known as Ballygeary, grew up to serve the needs of the harbour of the same name, first developed in 1906 by the Great Western Railway and the Great Southern and Western Railway to accommodate steamferry traffic between Great Britain and Ireland. This port also serves France and Spain, traffic is mainly roll-on roll-off (RoRo). Rosslare Harbour railway station opened on 30 August 1906.
Kilmore Quay is a fishing village near Kilmore, in County Wexford, Ireland. As of 2016, it has a population of 372. It is a fishing village, but its leisure facilities such as sailing, and sea angling charters are also of economic importance.
Clogherhead is a fishing village in County Louth, Ireland. Located in a natural bay on the east coast it is bordered by the villages of Annagassan to the north and Termonfeckin to the south. It has a population of 2,145 according to the 2016 census. It is located in the townlands of Clogher and Callystown, about 12 km (7 mi) northeast of Drogheda. As a seaside village, its main industries are fishing and farming, and there has been an RNLI lifeboat stationed in the village for over 100 years.
Malin is a village in County Donegal, Ireland, situated 6 km (4 mi) north of Carndonagh. A further 13 km (8 mi) north further is Malin Head, the most northerly point of the island of Ireland . Malin won the Irish Tidy Towns Competition in 1970 and 1991. It was a planned settlement plotted around a triangular green.
Duagh is a village in County Kerry, Ireland, located approximately 9 km southeast of Listowel and 7 km northwest of Abbeyfeale on the R555 regional road.
Geokaun Mountain is the highest mountain on Valentia Island, County Kerry.
Reenard is a townland in County Kerry, Ireland. It is located in north central Iveragh Peninsula on the southwest coast of Ireland opposite Valentia Island about 5 miles west of Cahersiveen. Reenard is connected to the Irish road network by a road crossing the N70 national secondary route at Point's Cross.
The Valentia Lifeboat Station is located at Knightstown, Valentia Island, County Kerry, Ireland.
Chapeltown is a village on Valentia Island in the south-west of County Kerry. It is the second major settlement on the Island, the other being Knightstown 4 kilometers away. Chapeltown is located in the centre of the Island, approximately 3 kilometers from the bridge which links the island to the mainland at Portmagee.
The R565 road is a regional road in County Kerry, in south-western Ireland. It is 18.5 km (11.5 mi) long and runs along the Iveragh Peninsula and Valentia Island. The road has two crossings to the island; the permanent Maurice O'Neill Memorial Bridge, and a seasonal vehicle ferry at Knightstown.