Kilbeggan
Kilbeggan takes its name from Cill Bheacain or Church of Becan. St. Becan is thought to have founded a monastery here in early Christian times around 600 AD, although no traces of the monastery remain. Today, Kilbeggan is a small market town in South Westmeath, just across the border from Co. Offaly. The River Brosna flows through the heart of the town and the Grand Canal had a spur from Ballycommon to Kilbeggan, until its closure to commercial traffic in 1959. This section of the Grand Canal is now dry and is an ideal place for a scenic walk. Kilbeggan is also well known for its racing tradition and the race course continues to host very popular summer evening meetings. Kilbeggan is also the home of Locke's Distillery Museum, whose origins as a whiskey distillery date back to 1757 and whose story has come full circle, as whiskey is now being distilled again on-site after a hiatus of 50 years
