Town Buildings
Although many towns like Ferns, Roscrea and Trim are early historic f oundations, most are dominated by eighteenth and nineteenth-century buildings. From the mid-eighteenth century cattle fairs underpinned much of the urban economy, and the manner in which the centres of Irish towns and villages were given over to markets and fairs is evident in wide streets. More often than not, towns and villages were planned. They were given formal layouts, with market places, malls and squares, and important key buildings or monuments, carefully and prominently sited. The best examples include Mitchelstown, Birr , Hillsborough and Stradbally, where a general uniformity of character reflects the guiding influence of the resident landlord. The position of the landlord as proprietor of the town is often made explicit, such as at Strokestown, where houses line an exceptionally wide main street, forming a grand approach to the Gothic entrance of Strokestown House. Railways brought a new impetus to urban expansion, which was particularly evident in seaside towns like Dun Laoghaire and Bray. In most cases, the lasting legacy of the railway age is an exceptionally good housing stock, as rows of good-quality brick and stuccoed houses were built in the closing decades of the nineteenth century.
Gallery
Hillsborough
This substantial red brick terrace lines the approach to Hillsborough Castle.
Image courtesy of Kevin MulliganHillsborough - Image courtesy of Kevin Mulligan
Clones
A terrace of stuccoed houses in Clones, built in the late nineteenth century following the arrival of the railway.
Image courtesy of Kevin MulliganClones - Image courtesy of Kevin Mulligan
Birr town
The town is characterized by attractive houses and formal open spaces built under the guiding hand of the Parsons family.
Image courtesy of Kevin MulliganBirr town - Image courtesy of Kevin Mulligan
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Content
History & Heritage
- History of Ireland
- Architecture
- Big Houses of Ireland
- Built Heritage 1700 - Today
- Built Heritage 1700 - Today
- The Eighteenth Century
- The Nineteenth Century
- The Country House
- Country House Design
- The Demesne Landscape
- Town Buildings
- Market Houses, Courthouses, Shops and Banks
- Post Offices, Police Stations and Town Houses
- Religious Buildings, Schools and Workhouses
- Jails, Railway Stations and Bridges
- Buildings of the Countryside
- Vernacular Houses, Mills and Limekilns
- Windmills, Canals and Lighthouses
- The Twentieth Century
- Related Notes
- Buildings of Ireland
- The Mills of South Dublin County
- Built Heritage 1700 - Today
- Folklore of Ireland
- Heritage Towns
- Irish Genealogy
- Monuments & Built Heritage
- Pages in History
- Poor Law Union
- Special Collections
- Traditional Crafts