Holy wells are among the most enduring features of the Irish landscape, typically small natural springs or pools that acquired sacred status over centuries, often associated with a local patron saint whose feast day would draw pilgrims to perform rounds, known as turas, along a prescribed devotional path. They are rarely grand, and that is part of their nature; a cleft in a rock, a low stone surround, a scrap of cloth tied to a nearby branch.

The townland name Ballinglen derives from the Irish Baile an Ghleanna, meaning townland of the glen, which suggests a sheltered, low-lying setting of the kind that frequently harboured such sites. Mayo has an exceptional concentration of holy wells, a reflection of the county's deep association with early Christian monasticism and its long tradition of popular religious practice that persisted well beyond the medieval period. Many wells in the region are still visited, particularly around the feast of a local saint, and retain votive offerings left by those who come seeking cures or to fulfil a promise.

Beyond its location in Ballinglen, the specific details of this well, its patron, any associated pattern day, the form of its enclosure, and its condition, remain undocumented in publicly available sources. It is a place that exists, for now, largely as a coordinate and a category; which is itself a reminder of how many such sites across Ireland are still waiting to be properly described.