Northwest Ireland’s largest town is situated in the middle of Yeats Country, where it has miraculously retained all the rural charm of the original small village, even as it has grown in leaps and bounds both physically and economically.
Sligo Town sits on the strip of land that protrudes between Lough Gill and Sligo Bay. It is bounded by the Hyde Bridge and New Bridge, both of which span the River Garavogue. Sligo Town’s attractive pedestrian zone affords expansive river views, and scenic Benbulbern Mountain, with its flat top and appearance that evolves along with the changing light of the day provides an interesting backdrop.
Sligo Town offers worshippers a diverse selection of churches, in denominations from Presbyterian to Methodist, Roman Catholic and Anglican (Church of Ireland).
The recent history of Sligo Town is popularly centered on the Yeats Brothers, who spent many holidays with their cousins in the area and have claimed the area as an important inspiration for many of their works of poetry and painting.
The ancient history of Sligo Town is much more painful and violent. The area was prone to regular invasion, first by Vikings in 807, and followed by Anglo Normans and various rival Irish factions over the years. It was a frequent battleground. In 1642, British forces led by Sir Fredrick Hamilton destroyed the abbey, killed virtually everyone in sight and then burned the entire town.
The potato famine arrived in Sligo Town with a vengeance between 1845 and 1849, when over one million citizens died from starvation and illness or emigrated. The future looked extremely bleak for residents in those days, as evidenced by the following sentiment, written by Owen Larkin in 1850 to his son in America and inscribed on a brass plaque near the riverfront:
“I am now may I say alone in the world, all my brothers and sisters are dead and children but yourself. We are all ejected out of Lord Ardilaun’s ground, the times was so bad and all Ireland in such a state of poverty that no person could pay rent. My only hope now rests with you, as I am without one shilling and I must either beg or go to the poorhouse.”
Today’s SligoTown presents a sharp contrast to the years of the Potato Famine. It is the industrial centre of the Irish plastics industry, and this energetic town features plenty of pretty, traditional style buildings that actually contain functional spaces such as shopping malls, apartments, and cineplexes. The streets are usually a busy place, filled with residents, tourists and college students. All enjoy the historical buildings, pubs, unique shops, and restaurants.