Civil engineering heritage: country profile – Ireland

Abstract

This paper is a review of the civil engineering heritage of Ireland, one of the series of national profiles being published by Engineering History and Heritage. It is presented under four headings: ‘Ireland’s major civil engineering achievements’, ‘National and regional recognition of engineering heritage’, ‘Exemplar conservation of engineering structures’ and ‘Information sources for engineering heritage’. This profile discusses engineering structures of heritage importance, including the Grand Canal and the Royal Canal; the Suir and the Boyne railway viaducts; Dublin port and John Rennie’s harbour at Dún Laoghaire; the Dublin and Kingstown railway, the world’s first commuter line, which opened in 1834; the Ha’penny Bridge; the Fastnet lighthouse; and the Ardnacrusha hydroelectric scheme on the River Shannon. The profile lists organisations in Ireland active in helping conserve its engineering heritage, including the Department of Arts, Heritage, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, the Heritage Council and the Office of Public Works, and concludes with a short list of websites and books giving further information about Irish civil engineering heritage.