St. Bridgers Well

In marshland, near N bank of the Castlegar River. 'On the boundary of the townlands of Longford and Castlegar, lies St. Brigid's well, at which a patron was held on the first Sunday in August' (O'Flanagan 1927, Vol. 1, 106). This spring well was enclosed by a rectangular drystone chamber (L 5.6m, Wth 5.3m) of which only the foundation courses are extant. A hawthorn bush grows from W wall; a small stream flows from the well to the river (Claffey 1983, 147). The above description is derived from the published 'Archaeological Inventory of County Galway Vol. II - North Galway'. Compiled by Olive Alcock, Kathy de hÓra and Paul Gosling (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1999). Date of upload: 05 August 2010

St. Brigid's Well is associated with St. Brigid of Kildare, a prominent early Irish saint linked to fertility, healing, and poetry. The well was historically visited during a local patron festival on the first Sunday in August, reflecting longstanding traditions of pilgrimage and communal celebration tied to holy wells in Ireland.