The Parish

Welcome to Drumshanbo.

The parish was originally part of Kiltoghert until well into the eighteenth century. The parish name was taken from the pre-Emancipation church which stood at Murhaun, meaning the Mound or Rampart. The parish lies along the Shannon and Lough Allen.  It has an area of 14,000 acres, and includes the mountainous district of Sliabh-an-Iarainn (1,922 feet in height).  The parish is dedicated to St. Patrick.  It is said that the saint first crossed the Shannon into Connacht about a mile and a half north of the Battle Bridge.  This would be at the ford of Drumboylan, that is Drom-Buaidmaoil, which derives it's name from Buaidmaol, the saint's charioteer who died there on the Connacht side where the little church of Cill-Buaidmaoil afterwards preserved his name.

The present parish church, St. Patrick's was erected in 1845.  Before that parishioners worshipped in a church which stood near the site of the Famine Graveyard.  It is said that the stones from this church were used in the foundation of the new building.  Centenary celebrations took place on Sunday, the 5th of August 1945.  On that occasion Bishop James Joseph McNamee presided at the Solemn High Mass.  Reverend Fr. O'Driscoll, O.S.A. preached the sermon.  A procession of the Blessed Sacrament took place through the streets of Drumshanbo at 5pm.  In 1951 major reconstruction work was carried out on St. Patrick's.  On Sunday, the 8th of July of that year a Dedication Ceremony was held.  Once again Bishop McNamee was Celebrant, while the preacher was Bishop Austin Quinn of Kilmore.  In 1985 the church was re-designed according to the guidelines laid down by the Second Vatican Council.  On Sunday, the 17th of March 1985 Bishop Colm O'Reilly re-dedicated the re-styled church and Canon Thomas O'Brien, a native of the parish preached the sermon.

In 1864 three English catholic converts, Elizabeth Law, Mary Anne Hayes and Frances Horne, arrived in Drumshanbo to found the Franciscan Convent of Perpetual Adoration. They were later joined by Marian Grattan, granddaughter of Henry Grattan, who would become the third abbess of the community. In 1973 the sisters adopted the Rule of St. Clare. Today the Poor Clare Convent of Perpetual Adoration is still a powerhouse of prayer in Leitrim’s scenic heartland. The convent bell rings out on the hour as it has done for the past 150 years.

On St. Patrick's Day in Millennium Year 2000 a statue of our patron saint was placed on the pedestal outside the main door of the church.  The statue was carved by a young man with Leitrim roots, Eamon McNulty.  The unveiling ceremony took place at the end of an historical pageant which took place at various venues around the town.  Large crowds of people from the parish and beyond took part in the memorable event to mark the 2000th anniversary of the birth of Christ.