Editing Banagher (section)

=== Origins ===

The settlement that grew to become Banagher originated at a ford on the east bank of the River Shannon. The river banks and surrounding countryside were flood-free all year round. Travellers intending to cross the Shannon converged on this point along tracks which were the forerunners of the modern roads, and a community grew at this crossing point.<ref name=CivicWeek>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090725195755/http://geocities.com/bbanagher/ ''Banagher – A Brief History'': Civic Week Booklet (1951).] Retrieved 3 November 2008.</ref>

Many of the early travellers were [[pilgrims]]. North-west of Banagher, on the Connacht side of the river, was the monastic establishment of [[Clonfert]], with the more famous [[Clonmacnoise]] a short distance further north. Not far to the south-west on the same side was another monastic foundation, at [[Meelick, County Galway|Meelick]]. At Meelick, the three provinces, Leinster, [[Munster]] and Connacht meet and just south of Banagher in the direction of Birr, the four [[dioceses]] of Clonmacnoise, [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath|Meath]], [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe|Killaloe]] and [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Clonfert|Clonfert]] meet.<ref name=CivicWeek/>