Mountbellew is situated in pleasant countryside with many agreeable walks. It was originally part of the old Bellew estate and the history of Mountbellew is deeply influenced by this family, and many of the amenities of the present town are legacies of their presence.
Bobbyjo
In the square is the very fine equestrian statue of Bobbyjo. This is the work of the noted Galway sculptor John Coll and was erected in 2002 as part of the Millennium celebrations and to commemorate the life of the racehorse Bobbyjo, owned and reared by the Burke family of Mullaghmore near Moylough. Bobbyjo, after being reared by Eugene Burke on the farm, was handed over to Tommy Carberry for training. It was his son, Paul, who rode him to victory in the Grand National at Aintree in April 1999. This ended a 24 year drought of Irish winners at the National. Not only that, but the winner of the 1975 race, on L'Escargot, was Tommy Carberry himself!
The Bellew Demesne
The Griffiths Valuation map of 1855 shows a well-wooded estate and today there is a pleasant wood with a picnic area, very popular in summer, on the grounds of the old demesne, which also contains a deerpark in the old walled garden. Some fine old walls remain, but the site of the house itself is hard to discern. It was pulled down in the late thirties and the stone used for road building. The wood itself is a sanctuary for birds and animals and Coillte has an office there, a striking building designed with advice from Duncan Stewart, with red timber walls and a curving slate roof. Many kinds of wildlife including wild mink, red squirrels, bats, badgers, otters and rabbits as well as various kinds of duck such as the widgeon, teal and mallard live in Mountbellew Forest.
The Demesne extends all the way from the western end of the town to the Catholic church, St. Mary's, at the east and part of the grounds is taken up with a lake containing a bird sanctuary. There are several small islands in the lake and dances used to be held on one of these during the last century to raise money for the annual agricultural show. The water is frequented by swans and other birds. A frequent visitor is the heron which can often be seen flying over the river and lake. Its rather Victorian, Tennysonian atmosphere will appeal to many.
The Forge Museum
Another item from those days is the 200 year old forge of the estate. This has now been doubled in size, with the help of FAS, and contains exhibits of the old forge equipment such as a huge bellows and anvil, Bobbyjo's horseshoe, old farm implements, and an ancient flat bottomed wooden boat a thousand years old recovered from near Eskerstephen graveyard. It is well worth a visit just to wonder at the size of the old bellows used in the forge and the hefty wooden and metal machinery - simply churning the milk would require some strength. By contrast, the dugout boat is a delicate thing, its oak shell (hollowed out from a single tree trunk) barely an inch thick in most places.
Hours of opening are Sunday in the summer months 3-5pm.
As this is a micro please bring your own writing implement!