Ballaugh

Coordinates: 54°18′40″N 4°32′38″W / 54.311°N 4.544°W / 54.311; -4.544

Ballaugh (/bəˈlɑːf/ bə-LAHF;from Manx Balley ny Loughey, meaning "town of the lake") is a small village on the Isle of Man in the parish of the same name. It is the only village in the parish.

Village

The village is situated on the main A3 Castletown to Ramsey road (this part of which forms part of the Snaefell Mountain Course used during the annual TT and Manx Grand Prix races) about seven miles west of Ramsey. The road crosses Ballaugh Bridge, a hump-backed bridge, in the village. It is a favourite spectator spot, and is always accessible via the A10 road and A13 road when the TT Course is closed for racing.

There is one pub in Ballaugh - the "Raven" - and one convenience store, operated by Spar, which incorporates a post office.

The village has one primary school, Ballaugh School, for children between the ages of 4 and 11. Currently the school has about 80 pupils. After year six pupils generally attend either Queen Elizabeth II High School in Peel or Ramsey Grammar School in Ramsey.

Ballaugh (parish)

Coordinates: 54°18′36″N 4°32′31″W / 54.310°N 4.542°W / 54.310; -4.542

Ballaugh (Manx: Balley ny Loughey) is a parish in the Isle of Man.

Parish

Ballaugh is a mainly agricultural district on the north-western coast of the island. The parish is one of three divisions of the sheading of Michael. The other two are Jurby and Michael District. Ballaugh runs for some 3 miles (5 km) along the north-west coastline of the island. The average breadth of the parish is about 3 miles (5 km) and it covers an area of around 9 square miles (20 km²). The south-east corner is hilly and the remainder is low, including part of the marshy depression of the Curraghs. The only village in the parish is Ballaugh.

The current Captain of the Parish is Charles Edgar Cowin, who has held the post since 1993. The local authority is Ballaugh Parish Commissioners.

Demographics

The Isle of Man census 2006 lists the population of the parish as 1,042, an increase from the population of 868 in 2001.

History

There are in Ballaugh a number of sites of historical interest. There is a heritage group who hold regular meetings and arrange walks around the area. Research into the social history of the area, in particular the isolated Glen Dhoo, is being carried out. The name 'Ballaugh' derives from the Manx "Balley-ny-Loghey" or "the place of the lake". The Ballaugh Curraghs is all that remains of this lake. The lake, which measured up to a mile in length, was drained by the excavation about 300 years ago of the silted-up Lhen trench which, during the ice-age, is believed to have been a melt-water channel flowing north to south from the melting ice front.