The village of Kilsheelan is located on the banks of the River Suir and is nestled in the shadow of the Comeragh Mountains and Slievenamon. Kilsheelan (Cill Sioláin as Gaeilge) has shown evidence of early settlement as far back as the Neolithic period and the name of the village is derived from that of St Sillan, an abbot of Bangor Abbey in Co. Down. The ruin of a church along the banks of the river, which is believed to have been dedicated to St Sillan, gave rise to the name Cill Sioláin (Church of St Sillan) which in turn was anglicised to the name Kilsheelan.
 
Kilsheelan is also home to one of the finest examples of Baronial architecture in Ireland with the spectacular Castle Gurteen de la Paor located on the southern banks of the Suir and directly across the river from the village. Dating back to the early 19th century, Gurteen Castle was originally designed by Samuel Ussher Roberts for the De La Paor family, whose origins trace back to the time of Strongbow. The castle bears a similar design to that of the famous Kylemore Abbey in Galway, another Roberts design. More recently, the castle was bought by renowned artist Gottfried Helnwein and Mr Helnwein and his family continue to reside there.
 
Around the same time as the building of Gurteen Castle, the church in Kilsheelan was built. St Mary's Church in Gambonsfield dates back to the 1830's and is a fine example of a well maintained and welcoming rural church. The present Parish Priest is Fr. Brian Power who also has responsibility for nearby Kilcash Church.
 
The current school building was built in 1960 comprising of three classrooms. A further two classrooms were added in the late 1980's and it is hoped that renovations and developments will take place in the not so distant future to modernise the school.
 
The community of Kilsheelan is extremely proud of its local area and aesthetic and this is reflected in the various organisations and clubs that contribute to the life and look of the village. GAA plays a central role in the village and the local club has a proud history of hurling and football with good success in divisional and county competitions in both codes. Added to this, the club has produced both hurlers and footballers that have represented Tipperary with great distinction over the years. 
The local Tidy Towns Committee work extremely hard to ensure that Kilsheelan is immaculately presented year round. Located on the main Limerick to Waterford road, the visual presentation of Kilsheelan has won plaudits from not only people passing through, but judges from the National Tidy Towns Competition where Kilsheelan has experienced huge success over the years.