A visit to Ballyhaunis, Co. Mayo in 2020

A slideshow of photos I took during my first visit to Ballyhaunis in County Mayo on Wednesday 16th September 2020.
Ballyhaunis (Irish: Béal Átha hAmhnais, meaning "ford-mouth of strife") is a town in County Mayo, Ireland. It is at the crossroads of the N60 Castlebar-Roscommon road and N83 Tuam-Charlestown road and on the railway line linking Dublin to Westport and Ballina.
It is thought that the town grew up around St Mary's Augustinian Friary (popularly referred to as "the Abbey"), which was founded in 1348, according to local tradition. The town and its hinterland contain a number of megalithic monuments.
According to the 2016 Census, Ballyhaunis had a population of 2,312. Non-Irish nationals made up 42% of the population, which is much higher than the national average of and is the highest of any town in Ireland. Poles and Pakistanis make up the largest groups of immigrants. Meanwhile, White Irish people make up 40% of the population. There are two Roman Catholic churches in the town, and it is also home to Ireland's first purpose-built mosque, the first mosque in Ireland outside Dublin. Farming, private business and industry are the main sources of employment.
Ballyhaunis is within both the Roman Catholic and civil parishes of Annagh.
On 2 August 1920, during the Irish War of Independence, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) ambushed a British Army lorry on the Claremorris road from Ballyhaunis, seizing weapons and ammunition. A high cross marks the spot of the ambush. On 1 April 1921, Sean Corcoran, O/C of the IRA's East Mayo Brigade, was shot dead by British soldiers after a short gunfight at Crossard crossroads (6 km north of Ballyhaunis). A high cross marks the spot where Corcoran died. Later that same day, a member of the British Black and Tans was killed by a sniper. In retaliation, the Black and Tans executed Michael Coen, a man who was later believed not to have taken part in fighting of any kind. A monument to Coen was placed on the Cloonfad/Galway road from Ballyhaunis.
St. Patrick's Church is the Roman Catholic Church in Ballyhaunis. The foundation stone was laid and blessed on 27th September 1903. It was opened and blessed on l0th October 1909. William Henry Byrne & Sons designed this church and it was built by J.C. Fitzmaurice. Ballyhaunis is a Parish in the Archdiocese of Tuam.
Midwest Radio is based at Ballyhaunis, and is a local radio station for Counties Mayo, Galway, Roscommon, Sligo and Leitrim. Ballyhaunis also has a dedicated internet radio station, Midwest Irish Radio.
Annagh Magazine is an annual publication that appears each December, containing material of local interest. It was established by Ballyhaunis Junior Chamber in 1977, and named after the local parish. The first edition was published at Christmas 1978. It includes articles about local events over the past year, as well as contributions covering Ballyhaunis history and culture.
The town has a single primary school and secondary school; the co-educational primary school was formed by the merging of the town's original two primary schools, St Mary's Boys' National School and St Joseph's Girls' National School, to form Scoil Iosa National School. Ballyhaunis Community School, as was the case with a lot of community schools, was based on the merging of three schools that previously existed independently, St. Joseph's Convent Secondary School, Ballyhaunis Vocational School, and St. Patrick's College; the school first opened in September 1977.
Ballyhooing Railway Station opened on 1st October 1861, and its 150th anniversary was celebrated by a Ballyhaunis Railway Station-themed edition of the local Annagh Magazine in 2011. The station is on the Westport-Dublin railway line.
Ballyhaunis GAA is the main sporting team in the town, fielding teams in both Gaelic football and hurling. Other sports played in Ballyhaunis include rugby, boxing, cricket, and soccer, and the town has three GAA pitches, two football pitches, two rugby pitches, a football astro pitch, a football and basketball court and a cricket training pitch.