archaeological & built heritage assessment - The Heritage Council

Most bridges throughout Europe in the early medieval period were constructed of timber. They were
short-lived and vulnerable to rot, fire, manual destruction and floods. There was no shortage of timber in
most parts of Ireland, especially along the river basins, up to the seventeenth century. In bog areas there
were ample supplies of fallen timber such as bog oak. By the sixteenth century, the country’s supply was
being denuded rapidly for conquest, ship-building, tanneries and iron works etc. The most common native
tree species were oak, ash, hazel, birch, holly, mountain ash, elder (elm had disappeared since the seventh
century; beech and lime were seventeenth century importations). However, given the availability of oak in
Ireland in early times, there was no shortage of materials for bridge builders and, on the larger rivers, no
timber transport problems.
Prior to 1700, river transport, where feasible, was far more economic than road transport. However,
from early times man-made obstructions to boats began to multiply on the river channels, such as weirs,
mills, fords and bridges. With the advent of the Canal Age, it is obvious that the general quality of stone
masonry construction improved, especially in rural areas. This is apparent in the masonry and finish of
small canal bridges erected in the last quarter of the eighteenth century that can be seen at most of the
villages and towns inextricably linked with the waterway of the study area.
Railways
In 1827, the mailboat to Holyhead commenced running from the harbour at Kingstown (Dun Laoghaire)
creating a need for efficient transportation between that port and the capital. A railway was opened from
Dublin to Kingstown in 1834, initiating considerable public debate concerning other possible schemes. In
1836, the British government, anxious to see an orderly development of railways in Ireland, appointed a
commission, and the major Irish railway routes had been completed by 1860 when thirty companies were
operating a network of 2195km with 324 locomotives, 867 carriages and 4777 wagons (Aalen, Whelan &
Stout 1997).
The initial Irish railway routes were built to exceptionally high engineering standards, requiring
considerable earthworks, tunnelling, bridges and viaducts. The stations, even in remote places, were
generally of substantial architectural standard with individual companies favouring particular styles. The
railways were initially financially successful, inevitably leading to numerous suggestions for expansion of
the system. Prosperity would allegedly accrue to even the remotest regions if only they could be reached
by railway. The extension of lines into remote regions by private developers was encouraged by a series
of acts passed in the 1880s and 1890s which, in effect, gave state assistance to their construction in the
same manner as with earlier road building (ibid.). It followed that the Irish narrow gauge lines penetrated
the very heart of rural Ireland. Within the study area, the Cavan and Leitrim Railway opened from
Dromod, Co. Leitrim to Belturbet, Co. Cavan in 1887 with a branch from Ballinamore to Arigna, county
Roscommon, being added the following year.
The railway systems were to have a dramatic effect on waterway traffic. Passenger conveyance virtually
ceased when the railways opened and the transport of freight declined sharply. Yet, the main canal
systems remained open for goods into the twentieth century.
Railways had a significant impact on the economic life of the countryside through which they passed,
especially in transporting large volumes of goods and passengers at hitherto unheard of speeds. The
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