Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception

Despite some modern alterations and the reordering of the interior, this simple Roman Catholic church retains much of its early form and character. It was originally built as a typical early nineteenth-century T-plan chapel (Ordnance Survey first edition six-inch map 1838), examples of which were built in great numbers throughout the Irish countryside in the years before and immediately after Catholic Emancipation (1829). Its simple unadorned form is indicative of the relative lack of resources available to the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland at the time of construction. The absence of a belfry may also be the result of the restrictions of the Penal Laws, prior to Emancipation in 1829, when the Roman Catholic Church was not permitted to have a bell for worship. The pointed arch openings lend it the bare minimum of a Gothic Revival character. This church was extensively altered c. 1909, and the chancel to the east was added at this time. These works were carried out by the architect Lucius O'Callaghan (1877 – 1954), a son of James Joseph O’Callaghan (noted church architect) and the building work was obtained by James Coote of Longford Town. The carved limestone Celtic cross finials and the limestone coping, eaves course, and kneeler stones were probably added at this time, and this detailing adds a subdued artistic element to this otherwise plain exterior elevations. The marble altar and altar goods (c. 1909) were executed by the firm Patrick Tomlin and Sons, a Dublin based firm of sculptors; while the attractive figurative stained glass windows to the chancel gable (also 1909) are by Earley and Company of Camden Street, Dublin, a prolific firm of sculptors and stained glass artists who carried out numerous commissions for the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland during the first decades of the twentieth century. The timber gallery, which has a finely carved parapet, and the well-crafted and detailed freestanding confessional box add further interest to the interior. This church is prominently located on the Ballymahon to Mullingar road and together with its bell tower forms a pleasant grouping of Roman Catholic structures in the landscape. The simple modern graveyard adds further to the setting. This graveyard was laid out c. 1917 c. 1917 (date of earliest grave marker) and replaced an earlier graveyard (LF027-036----), which is located to the southwest of the site.