Mullingar (An Muileann gCearr in Irish, meaning "the left-handed, or wry, mill") is the administrative centre of County Westmeath, Ireland and the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath. Local government affairs are administered for the county from the town and county council buildings.

Introduction

From the year 1542, Henry VIII of England made Westmeath a county, separating Eastmeath from Westmeath, and thus distinguishing the two counties. Mullingar became the administrative centre for County Westmeath. The town was originally named Maelblatha, and takes its modern name from a mill noted in the legend of Colman of Mullingar.

Mullingar now possesses amenities such as libraries, secondary schools, gymnasiums, snooker halls, internet-cafes, an Arts Centre, and railway station. The town had a tradition of cattle-trading up until 2003, when its cattle market was finally closed for development of a mixed commercial and residential scheme called the Market Point.

Mullingar is famous for the neighbouring lakes, Lough Owel and Lough Ennell, which attract many anglers, as well as Lough Derravaragh. Lough Derravaragh is best known for its connection with the Irish legend of the Children of Lir. Having being turned into swans, the four children of King Lir spent three hundred years on Lough Derravaragh before moving to other locations around Ireland. Lough Lene has a reputation for its clear water, historic ringforts, and wind-surfing. After a day enjoying the best of what Mullingar has to offer, why not relax in the comfort of a Town and Country Homes Bed and Breakfast. Our B&B's in Mullingar offer a warm Irish welcome.

In recent times one of Mullingar's major exports has become the items of pewterware produced by the firm of Mullingar Pewter located near the town. Genesis fine art is also produced locally and sold worldwide - one of its sculpures of the "Pilgrims" dominates the dispensary house at Austin Friars St where once there was an Augustinian Friary.

The town, as of 2006, is the most populated town in the Irish Midlands.The current total zoned area within the town and environs is approximately 1,280 hectares, based on the Westmeath County Development Plan 2002-2008. Mullingar also forms part of the Midlands Gateway, in association with Athlone and Tullamore.

Commerce

Mullingar's commercial sector has expanded in recent years from just a few shops on the town's main thoroughfares - Oliver Plunkett Street, Austin Friars Street, and Mount Street - to several major shopping areas. There is an out-of-town retail park at Lakepoint (about a mile from the town centre), the Harbour Place shopping centre near the town centre and a new development at the Green - on the site of the former Avonmore and Pennys units. Relax and unwind in a Bed and Breakfast in or around Mullingar after a day shopping in the town.

The town has a mix of local retailers and chain stores (Tesco, Dunnes Stores, O2, Penneys, Lidl, SuperValu, Boots, Specsavers, Lifestyle Sports, Butterfly Kisses, Atlantic Homecare, Marks and Spencer and others). The town also has branches of all the major banks - AIB, Bank of Ireland, Halifax, Ulster Bank, National Irish Bank, Permanent TSB - and branches of First Active and EBS building societies. The town also has one of the country's largest Credit Unions (St Colemans Credit Union), aswell as a selection of quality Bed and Breakfast accommodation in Mullingar and all over County Westmeath. A Farmers' Market is held in Mullingar every Sunday and a further small market is run near Penneys/Marks and Spencer by The Green.

Transport

Roads

Mullingar lies near the national primary route N4, the main Dublin - Sligo road, 79 km (49 miles) from the capital. The town is served by Bus Éireann services to Dublin,Athlone (where passengers can catch connecting buses), Sligo, Cavan, Tullamore and Ballina.

Waterways

In the 19th century the town was served for a time by the Royal Canal - however displaced first by the railway and then the car, it is no longer commercially used for the transport of goods or people.

Railways
 
The Midland Great Western Railway line to Mullingar from Dublin opened in stages from 1846 to 1848, arriving in Mullingar on 2 October 1848. This was to a temporary station, adjacent to the greyhound stadium. The original mainline ran from Dublin (Broadstone Station) to Galway via Mullingar and Athlone, the Mullingar to Galway section opening in August 1851. The present station opened with the branch line to Longford on 14 December 1855. There were two secondary stations in Mullingar, Canal Crossing cattle bank was on the Sligo Line and on the Athlone Line, Newbrook racecourse had its own station. This was unique in that it was a two platformed station with both platforms on the Down Line. 

Nowadays, the line northwest to Longford and Sligo is the mainline, Galway is accessed from Heuston Station via Portarlington and the line between Mullingar and Athlone is currently disused. Mullingar station is served by national rail company Iarnród Éireann's Arrow commuter services to Dublin and InterCity trains to/from Sligo.

Tourism

Mullingar's main tourist attractions are its lakes - Lough Owel, Lough Lene and Lough Ennell - which are popular with anglers - and Belvedere House and Gardens which is heavily promoted for its beauty. The town has a selection of Bed and Breakfasts, which are available to book on this website.

The town is also known for its connections to Irish author James Joyce, who was an occasional visitor to Mullingar during his youth. Joyce's father, John, was a civil servant posted from Dublin to compile an electoral register of Mullingar and the surrounding townlands. He often stayed in the Greville Arms Hotel.

Architecture

Mullingar's most notable building is the cathedral of Christ the King Mullingar, the cathedral of the Diocese of Meath. The Cathedral was dedicated on the day World War II broke out. Columb Barracks is a major military base in the county comprising of the 4th Field Artillery Regiment and the HQ of the 54 Reserve Field Artillery Regiment (Army Reserve) formally the FCA (9 FAR).

Music

The Stables is one of the purpose built music venue in the county dedicated to original live music. It was opened in 1990 and to date has had acts such as The Frames, Damien Rice, Bell X1, Damien Dempsey and a whole range of other big Irish acts. It tends to catch acts on the way up as it's not the biggest venue. More recently acts such as Delorentos, The Blizzards, The Immediate and Director have taken the stage alongside older acts such as Kila and Declan O'Rourke. Apart from The Stables Danny Byrne's is pretty good for music at the weekends too. Some cover bands and Dj's alongside some lesser known original acts.

The Mullingar Town Band was founded in 1879 by Fr. Polland as a Holy Family Confraternity Band. The local Military Barracks supplied many of the early members who themselves were serving members of the British Regimental bands stationed in Mullingar. Many of the members of these bands settled in the town and joined the band. The Mullingar Confraternity Band remained under the auspices of the Confraternity until the 1940s when it was handed over to a committee who continued under the title of Mullingar Brass and Reed Band. And thus it remained until membership had dwindled to 3 or 4 members in 1957 when the present Director Hubert Magee was asked to take the helm. In 1979 the centenary was celebrated with a membership of 100 - one member for every year of the band's existence.

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