Most Depressing Towns & Villages in Ireland

chosen1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120747579#Comment_120747579

Very few when discussing this acknowledge that Ireland is probably unique culturally in this mindset and the tendency for not just farmers to live in the countryside. This goes back thousands of years and only changed slightly with the arrival of the Vikings who introduced urban settlements for themselves.

Likewise happened with the Norman's and English and it was rare to have native Irish inhabitants living within the confines of city walls and the closest they might have lived was settlements called Irishtown on the outskirts of these walls.

I also hear people blaming the independent Irish government for this since 1922 but if that was the case, Northern Ireland's landscape would look totally different where in fact it's broadly similar with one off housing.

I do see issues with it unfortunately and I'm a rural dweller myself who wouldn't consider living in an estate in my closest town. I use the services of the town during the day and sometimes for socialising at night, but the town is totally unliveable with an increasing ratio of problem families opposed to normal families where huge amounts of them have moved out the country.

I know it's a chicken and egg problem but local authorities are happy to invite all sorts to live in their town and the justice system won't deal with the problem families either.

It would be nice if good families grouped together and didn't let their area decend in this way, but the reality is that individuals can't be the solution to this problem and I wouldn't blame anyone one bit for choosing to live in a one off house away from daily problems.

Butson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120747313#Comment_120747313

Come on then, spill the beans - where are you from?

I'm sharpening the pen in anticipation.

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120744395#Comment_120744395

It's a very boards.ie thread.

Allowed name as many towns as you like but not the reason they are the way they are.

Yet absolutely everybody here knows the reason.

Bizarre auld world we're living in.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120747830#Comment_120747830

The photographer was Liz Wildes. I remember back quite a bit and could name out some of the larger employers, and in relation to many other areas the jobs were poorly paid. Anyway, times change for everyone and everywhere, l guess Gorey being closer to Dublin has been to its advantage ( many would say disadvantage)

josip

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120746593#Comment_120746593

A work colleague from England was in Coleraine visiting relatives last month. Hadn't been there before or even to the north. He initially thought all the Union Jacks were left up after the coronation 🙂. But was puzzled why they were at half mast lampost.

AyeGer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120747313#Comment_120747313

Aughnacloy is terrible, we were driving from Dublin to Donegal late one evening and were discussing stopping at a chippy somewhere as we were starving. We arrived in Aughnacloy and couldn’t bring ourselves to stop there it was so grim. Ended up driving on till we reached Omagh.

thomas 123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120747313#Comment_120747313

But are you factoring in the dark windy and wet evenings with the sea air battering in constantly for half the year or more?

Nigel Fairservice

I passed through Mullinahone last summer. If I haven't been somewhere in Ireland and I'm passing through on my way to somewhere I like to stop for a few minutes for a bit of a walk around town. I didn't stop in Mullinahone.

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120748121#Comment_120748121

Very good points , unfortunately people can’t trust the state to enforce compliance with social norms when it comes to problem creators in housing and so choosing to live privately on a plot of land is a lot more reassuring

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120748612#Comment_120748612

Tyrone is the Alabama of the north , nothing but rubes

brokenbad

Cloughjordan and Borrisokane in North Tipp are two towns whose only redeeming features are the roads out of them....

Slideways

Gurteen (or Gorteen as it’s now known) in Sligo

A long string of misery with a history of depressing incidents during my life time in close proximity to it.

And I’m from Ballymote so not in a great position to throw stones

Wildly Boaring

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120748089#Comment_120748089

Oh that bit is plenty hilly too. Nothing but countours.

Ballyoughal to Oldtown pretty flat.

I love the whole area. Amazing how quickly the area becomes countryside outside the M50

Hungry Burger

Tipperary has a few stinkers.

Tipp Town

Clonmel

Roscrea is a particularly bad hole of a place.

cj maxx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120748612#Comment_120748612

Why would you go to Omagh if driving to Dublin ?? A bit out of the way is it not ?

chosen1

Donegal is a huge county and all depends on where you are going. Did the Omagh route several times from Dublin as it's the quickest way to the North Donegal area.

Omagh the middle pin.

AyeGer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120749888#Comment_120749888

I was going from Dublin to Donegal. What other way would I go?

cj maxx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120750114#Comment_120750114

Monaghan or if south Donegal Cavan

AyeGer

I went Dublin to Monaghan and onto Donegal through Aughnacloy to Donegal. Fairly standard journey from Dublin up to Donegal.

magicbastarder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120749365#Comment_120749365

yeah, 'the naul is not hilly' is quite a take given it's literally built on the side of a hill. one where the gradient on the main road to dublin reaches 7% IIRC.

BagofWeed

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120749683#Comment_120749683

Clonmel is off the richter for violence and animal cruelty. Both of these were there a long time before the arrival of a certain people Irish society likes to blame for it's ills.

The local business people got together in the interests of the town's good name, lol, and had a chat with the editors of the local rag, The Nationalist, so they haven't reported from the Clonmel district court in years as their previous reports were dragging the town down and the newspaper of course needs its advert revenue so there you go !

EchoIndia

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120750208#Comment_120750208

The very name "The Naul" is a translation from the Irish "An Aill", meaning "the cliff". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naul,_Dublin

cj maxx

It’s a long time since I drove it so maybe Omagh is on the route

Hungry Burger

Carrick-On-Suir. Really bad.

Benmann

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120747796#Comment_120747796

Four Country Roads it was called

Benmann

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120750221#Comment_120750221

They do report from the District Courts sometimes. The nationalist now is like all the so called papers. crap like psychic column and press releases and food. someone who is a 'nutritionist ' .rubbish opinion about nothing by the editor. You are right though the town is a crap no energy dead hole

JupiterKid

Tipperary really does have some run-down towns for a county with such agricultural wealth and wealth in general. Tipperary Town seems to be the worst of them and is a consistent contender for the title of worst town in Ireland. Cahir and Cashel are notable exceptions.

Midlands towns with the exception of Athlone, Birr and maybe Tullamore don't measure up well in terms of being pleasant places to live.

Tuam and Athy were pretty grim places to drive through a couple of years ago.

Economics101

Many of the places cited here are not towns: some hare hardly even villages (for example Kilmeaden is a few celtic tiger and other houses strung along a main raod with a creamery/cheese factory at the centre. We could have had a meaningful competition among real towns which had urben district councils and thereofre someone with real responsibility for the place being a kip.

But no: some years ago Urban District Councils aere abolished apparently to save money. It just show you that officialdom cares nothing about towns or local pride.

retalivity

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120746593#Comment_120746593

I see your Coleraine, and give you Articlave, 10mins outside it in the road to castlerock. Its just an estate in the middle of nowhere, and seemingly populated by hardcore unionists that are too hotheaded for a bigger town. Literally everything there is painted blue white and red.

See also, Magheramason outside Derry.

NIMAN

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120752021#Comment_120752021

2 good calls. Know the latter well having grown up in Derry.

Perhaps add Macosquin to the Articlave shout.