Sligo, town, Ireland

Sligo, town (1991 pop. 17,964), county seat of Sligo, N Republic of Ireland, at the mouth of the Garavogue River on Sligo Bay. It is a seaport and fishing center, with a woolen trade and other industries. Sligo also imports coal, iron, and timber; it exports cattle. There are remains of a Dominican monastery (Sligo Abbey), built in the 13th cent. under Maurice Fitzgerald, earl of Kildare. The abbey burned in 1414, was rebuilt, and again burned in 1641 when the town was sacked by the parliamentarians. Other interesting features are the Church of St. John and the Roman Catholic cathedral, college, and bishop's palace.

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