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Ballitore
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Ballitore is located
in south Kildare 42 kilometres from Dublin. This quaint village was
established by the Quakers in the 1700's. In fact, Ballitore is the
only planned and permanent Quaker Settlement in Ireland.
Today, Ballitore is home to a Meeting House, Museum and Shaker
furniture store. To the south is the Meeting House, built from local
stone in 1708. A Quaker burial ground is preserved in a field on the
edge of the valley. There is a pleasant riverside walk nearby and a
possibility of trout fishing.
In the centre of the village is the ancestral home of Mary
Shackleton Leadbeater. Due to the writings of Mary Leadbeater and
her correspondence with such people as Mary Edgeworth and Edmund
Burke, Ballitore is widely known. In 1975, her house was restored
and contains a branch of the County Library and a museum of Quaker
artefacts and writings.
Across the road from Mary Leadbeaters house is the Shaker Store.
This store has the largest selection of Shaker Furniture in Ireland
on permanent display. Visitors can see the beauty and simplicity of
Shaker design at its best. The store also contains a wonderful
variety of hand-crafted toys.
Ballitore is also the site of an incredible 18th century school
which educated together boys and girls of all religions and none.
Amongst its famous past pupils were the parliamentarian Edmund
Burke, the Cardinal Paul Cullen and the republican leader Napper
Tandy. |
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Ballitore Holiday Homes - County Kildare, Ireland