Athea

Athea ( ; or ''Áth Té'') is a village in west County Limerick, Ireland. Athea has a Roman Catholic church, and is the centre for the parish of Athea, which encompasses several nearby townlands.

History

The community was dependent on agriculture and a creamery was built near the River Galey which acted as the centrepoint for local trade. A primary school was built near the creamery to cope with the rising younger population. Over time, cottages and workshops lined the main road to create the village of Athea. New local roads were built to neighbouring Moyvane and off the main Listowel-Limerick and Glin-Abbeyfeale roads. The river was the primary water source as well as its use for drainage.

The Catholic population were forbidden to practise their faith under Penal Laws, and the first church wasn't built in Athea until the early 19th century. Prior to this locals congregated each Sunday at a Mass rock to the east of the village.

Geography

Topography

Athea is situated on the river Galey and the crossroads of the R523 (Reens - Listowel) and R524 (Glin - Abbeyfeale) regional roads. It is a 3 km east of the Limerick/Kerry border in the hills of west Limerick. Its highest point, at 220 m above sea level, is in Parkanna townland.

The river Galey is a tributary to the larger River Feale. The name is derived from the Irish language ''"Abhainn na Gáile"'', River of the Gaille, a tribe who lived along its banks. There are two bridges across the river; the R523/R524 intersection bridge just east of the village and ''Barry's Bridge'', 2 km northwest of the village. Athea has suffered damage and disruption over several years, when the River Galley flooded in 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2015. Proposals and funding to address the issue had been muted for several years, and a civil engineering consultancy were appointed by Limerick County Council in October 2019 to "assess, develop and design" a flood relief scheme.

Townlands

The large parish of Athea is divided into 25 townlands:
* Athea Lower �th an tSléibhe Íochtair - the fort of the mountain* Athea Upper �th an tSléibhe Uachtar - the fort of the mountain* Clash North n Chlais - the trench* Clash South n Chlais - the trench* Coole East n Chúil - the corner* Coole West n Chúil - the corner* Cratloe East n Chreatalach - a sallow wood* Cratloe West n Chreatalach - a sallow wood* Direen Lower n Doirín - the small thicket* Direen Upper n Doirín - the small thicket* Dromada rom Fhada - long ridge* Glashapullagh laise an Phollaigh - the stream of the place of holes* Glenagore leann an Ghabhair - the glen of the goat* Gortnagross ort na gCros - the field of the crosses* Keale North n Caol - the narrow feature* Keale South n Caol - the narrow feature* Knockdown noc Donn - brown hill* Knockfinisk noc Finnisce - hill of bright water* Knocknagorna noc na gCoirneach - the hill of the clerics* Parkanna n Pháirc - the field* Rooskagh úscach - marshy place* Templeathea East eampaill an tSléibhe - The church of the mountain* Templeathea West eampaill an tSléibhe - The church of the mountain* Tooradoo a Tuara Dubha - the black animal enclosures* Tooreendonnell uairín Dónaill - the small animal enclosure of Dónall

Electoral division

Athea is situated in the constituency of Limerick West; the parish itself is subdivided into two electoral areas - the Newcastlewest electoral area (predominantly south of the river Galey) and the Rathkeale electoral area (north of the river) which are used mainly in local elections. At European level, Athea is in the constituency of Ireland South.

Built heritage

Colbert Street and Dalton Street are the main streets in the village. St. Bartholomew's Church is located on Colbert Street and the village has two graveyards, Holy Cross on the outskirts of the village and The "Old Graveyard" in Templeathea just over a mile away.

Con Colbert Memorial Hall

Opened in January 1974 by Erskine Hamilton Childers, Con Colbert Memorial Hall is named after one of the executed leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising. The hall is used for meetings, sports events and other gatherings. Since its opening, it has been extended to incorporate a sports complex.

John Paul II Footbridge

Athea's only pedestrian bridge was opened by Donal Murray, Bishop of Limerick, in 2005. The bridge is located next to the existing road bridge at the eastern end of the main street. It had been proposed for years for the local school pupils who were crossing the busy road bridge and was seen as a health and safety hazard sharing the bridge with cars. The bridge is 2m wide and 11m long.

St. Bartholomew's Church

St. Bartholomew's Roman Catholic Church is located on the main street and was built in 1832. It underwent renovations in 1862 and 1980s.

Monuments

The ''Goold Monument'', located in Upper Athea commemorates James Goold, a landlord who, at the time of the Great Famine refused to evict tenants who couldn't pay rent. Dated to 1863, the monument comprises a 4 m high Celtic cross which stands just off the road to Listowel.

The ''Olympic Statue'', colloquially called "the feet" is a monument in The Square commemorating two Irish olympic medalists who were originally from Athea - Tim Ahearne and Dan Ahearne. Tim Ahearne won gold in the triple jump in the 1908 Olympics, while his younger brother Dan Ahearne is known for setting a world record in 1909. The sculpture depicts two golden feet with wings spread out.

Culture

Events

Annually large events such as the Vintage Rally, TradFéile and Athea Motorcycle Road Races are held during summer months. The latter, the Athea Motorcycle Road Races, is a two-day event taking place on a Saturday and Sunday at the end of June. In 2007, the race attracted an estimated 18,000 visitors to the village. Racers such as Martin Finnegan and William Dunlop have previously taken part in the event. A fun fair is usually brought to the village the week before the festival.

Parklands

The "Giant's Garden" is a walk from the Memorial Hall to Holy Cross Cemetery in Templeathea. It is named after a legend that incorporates a giant carrying his deceased mother on his shoulders to be buried. The Giant's Garden overlooks Athea Village as well as the hills and river southwest of the village.

Media

The ''Athea & District News'' newsletter is published by local print company Cáirde Dúchais on a weekly basis. It features local columnists and current affairs. It also contains articles for the neighbouring towns and villages of Knockdown, Carrigkerry and Abbeyfeale. The ''Weekly Observer'' newspaper, which contains articles for towns over much of West Limerick, contains an "Athea Notes" column.

Sport

Athea GAA (''Áth an tSléibhe CLG'') is the local Gaelic Athletic Association club, and its team colours are maroon and white. The club is located in Templeathea, 1 km east of the village on the R523.

Athea United Athletic Football Club is a local soccer club. It moved to a new site in 2000, and its clubhouse is located in Lower Dirreen on the Glin Road (R524).

The local basketball club was formed in 2005 and has its base at Con Colbert Memorial Hall. Fishing also takes place in the area.

Demographics

At the time of the 2022 census, the population of the village was 418. Approximately 90% of the population were born in Ireland, with 5% born in the UK, 1% in Poland, and the remainder from elsewhere in the world. 89% of census respondents in Athea listed their religion as Catholic, 7% other stated religions and 4% had either had no religion or no stated religion.

Education

The primary school - Athea National School (Athea NS) - was built in 1921. Prior to this, a small thatched schoolhouse was located centrally in the village (now no longer in use). Athea NS is located in Templeathea townland, just east of the village centre. When opened in 1921, it had a capacity of 100 students. A large extension to the school was officially opened in 2009. Today's building houses five classrooms with toilet facilities in each room, a principal's office, a secretary's office, a library, a computer room and a preschool.

While there are no post-primary schools in Athea, bus transport is provided to secondary schools in nearby Abbeyfeale and Tarbert.

Transport

A Limerick-Tralee bus service operates via Athea every Wednesday. The closest train stations to Athea are Limerick Colbert railway station in Limerick city and Charleville railway station in County Cork.

Notable people

* Con Colbert, the youngest man to be executed by the British after the Easter Rising in 1916, lived on the family farm in Athea.
* Kevin Danaher, folklorist and historian, was born in Athea. His early education was at Athea National School and Mungret College, County Limerick. In 1934, Danaher became a part-time collector for the Irish Folklore Commission.Gailey, Alan, and Lynch, Chris. "Obituary", ''Folk Life'', Summer 2002
* Tim Ahearne and Dan Ahearn were brothers who competed in the 1908 and 1920 Olympics respectively.
* Con Greaney, traditional Irish singer, is from Athea.
* Lisa Murtagh, whose mother is an Athea native, was crowned 48th Rose of Tralee. She represented New York, but acknowledged Athea as her "second home" in her speech at the pageant in 2008.

See also

* List of towns and villages in Ireland

References

{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Limerick

Towns and villages in County Limerick