Long ago Ireland was covered in Woodland, and five great forests are traditionally said to have stood in Leitrim, with a 19th century county survey stating- "".
Leitrim was first hit by the recession caused by the mechanisation of linen weaving in the 1830s and its 155,000 residents (as of the 1841 census) were ravaged by the Great Famine and the population dropped to 112,000 by 1851.