Ballintra is a village in the parish of Drumholm in the south of County Donegal, Ireland, just off the N15 road between Donegal town and Ballyshannon. Ballintra lies on the northern bank of the Blackwater river (sometimes referred to as the Ballintra River). The river rises in the hills that lie inland from the town, and flows through a number of small lakes before spilling over a small waterfall in a gorge behind the village. The Irish meaning of Ballintra, Baile an tSratha, means town by the low-lying land along a river, the village is situated close to Rossnowlagh and Murvagh beaches. The village is situated in a limestone area, and there are a number of quarries in the area.

History

Built heritage

Evidence of prehistoric settlement in the area include a number of ringforts (for example in nearby Moneymore townland) and a megalithic wedge tomb (in Ballymagrorty townland). Much of the village itself was laid-out in the late 18th and early 19th century, with the town's bridges dating from the 1780s and 1790s, and Ballintra's Anglican, Catholic and Methodist churches dating to 1795, 1845 and 1896 respectively.

Irish language decline

The 1911 census records only a handful of people in Ballintra who were Irish speakers. In his paper "Irish Speaking in the Pre-famine Period", Dr. Garret Fitzgerald remarks that "near Ballintra the language seems to have disappeared by the time of the Famine. Around Ballyshannon it also seems to have been almost extinct". As late as 1960, up to a few dozen native Irish speakers remained in Tamhnach a' Mhullaigh (known in English as Townawilly or Tawnawully). The Irish scholar and campaigner Máirtín Ó Cadhain visited the area in 1957 to record folklore stories in Irish from a family in the area.

Developments

The 2016 census indicates that approximately 35% of homes in Ballintra were built in the early 20th century or prior, with a further peak in building (20% of homes) built in the 1970s. The latter includes a number of social housing units built by Donegal County Council in the 1970s. Other developments include a bypass road built in the early 1980s. In the 20 years between the 1996 and the 2016 census, the population of the village decreased by 12%, from 217 to 191 residents.

Amenities

Ballintra has one public house, a grocery store, a takeaway, a hairdresser, two primary schools (St. Ernan's NS and The Robertson NS), and three churches (Methodist, Church of Ireland, and Roman Catholic).

Sport

The Ballintra Races is an annual horse race run on a field close to the nearby Murvagh beach. Proceeds from the event go to support amenities in the area. The local Gaelic Athletic Association club is called Naomh Bríd (a club which also takes players from Laghey). The local association football (soccer) club is called Copany Rovers (and also represents Laghey).

Transport

Ballintra railway station opened on 21 September 1905, but finally closed on 1 January 1960. The station was on the County Donegal Railways Joint Committee network. By road, Ballintra lies just off the N15 national primary route from Lifford to Sligo.

People