NatMartello tower · 1800–1810Balbriggan Martello TowerBath Road, BalbrigganPhoto: Jonjobaker · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons file
Balbriggan Martello Tower · Photo: Jonjobaker · CC BY-SA 4.043buildings on the National Inventory
History of Balbriggan · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Balbriggan: 43 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance
Balbriggan’s oldest recorded building dates from 1740. The Sites and Monuments Record adds 19 archaeological sites inside the town. Balbriggan has 18 buildings on the record for every 10,000 residents, against 48 in the typical town.
On the National Inventory
43
18 per 10,000 residents
typical town: 48
typical town: 48
Of national importance
1
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
19
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1740
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
2%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures
Balbriggan’s landmarks in 10 photos, with 1 old views
The photos cover 9 of Balbriggan’s recorded places; the rest have a record card. From 1920 come the old photographs of Balbriggan. Balbriggan Martello Tower and Balbriggan Courthouse lead the set.
Balbriggan CourthouseRegional rating (NIAH)
Balbriggan Harbour (lighthouse)Regional rating (NIAH)
Balbriggan Railway StationRegional rating (NIAH)
Saint George's Church (Balrothery)Regional rating (NIAH)
Balbriggan Carnegie Free LibraryRegional rating (NIAH)+5See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its licence; names open the place’s page. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Through time
Balbriggan in old photos
1 old photograph, made before 1950.
1920From Wikimedia Commons, copied to our own server: public domain, or from the National Library of Ireland’s collections (Lawrence, Poole, Eason and others) with no known copyright restrictions. Each credit opens the image’s page.
The map
Where Balbriggan’s history is
Every building and site on the record inside the town, by its rating.
National and InternationalRegional and other sites
Hover a dot for its name; tap one to open its page.
The 43, by rating
1 National and International42 Regional and other sites
The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage is the State’s survey of buildings from 1700 to today, county by county; each record gives a rating, dates, a type and an appraisal. Being on it is not legal protection: that is each council’s Record of Protected Structures.
Points from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage and the Sites and Monuments Record, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (CC BY 4.0).
National and International
One place of national importance in Balbriggan
Buildings the National Inventory rates National or International: of significance across Ireland or beyond. Each one opens its own page.
Regional and other sites
42 more historic places in Balbriggan
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
All 21, A to Z
Balbriggan Carnegie Free LibraryBalbriggan CourthouseBalbriggan Harbour (lighthouse)Balbriggan Market HouseBalbriggan Railway StationBalbriggan Railway Station (goods shed)Balbriggan Railway Station (station master's house)Bedford HouseBremore CottageCatholic Church of Saint Peter and Saint PaulCroom HouseForesters' HallGeorgevilleLoreto ConventMaryville HousePresbytery, Catholic Church of Saint Peter and Saint PaulRectory, Saint George's Church (Balrothery)Saint George's Church (Balrothery)Saint George's National SchoolSeapoint HouseThe Fashion Hall
21 recorded by their type and address
21 are recorded only by their type and address: 11 homes, 5 mills, stations and works and 3 other buildings; most date from the 19th century.
18th century1
19th century17
20th century3
Historic streets
Dublin Street has the most
Streets with three or more buildings on the record, by the address it gives.
Dublin Street6 on the record
Railway Street5 on the record
Church Street5 on the record
Bath Road3 on the record · 1 of national importance
Drogheda Street3 on the record
Seapoint Lane3 on the record
Of the 43 records, 39 give a street address.
What’s recorded
Balbriggan’s largest group: homes, 56% of the record
The second-largest group on the record is mills, stations and works, with 6. Among the highest-rated: Balbriggan Martello Tower and Bedford House. Counted by type, Balbriggan’s record runs to 6 kinds of building.
Homes24
Mills, stations and works6
Public buildings4
Churches and chapels3
Street furniture1
Other buildings5
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
How old
Most of Balbriggan’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
1500–1799 three centuries3
19th century 1800–189933
1900 and later to today7
3 of the 43 dated ones were built before 1800. The oldest is Bedford House, from 1740.
Archaeology and around
Archaeology in Balbriggan
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
19 archaeological sites inside the town
Sites on the Record of Monuments and Places, the statutory list drawn from this record, are protected by law: anyone planning work at or near one must give the National Monuments Service two months’ notice.
| Enclosure5 records |
| Excavation - miscellaneous2 records |
| Ritual site - holy well1 record |
| House - Neolithic1 record |
| Industrial site1 record |
| Kiln - corn-drying1 record |
| Martello tower1 record |
| House - 16th/17th century1 record |
| Field system1 record |
| Mound1 record |
| Burnt spread1 record |
| Sundial1 record |
| Brickworks1 record |
| Water mill - unclassified1 record |
Just outside Balbriggan: 9
| Balbriggan Harbour (harbour / dock / port)Regional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
| Catholic Church of the AssumptionRegional rating (NIAH) · 800 m outside the town |
| Whitestown House (gate lodge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.6 km outside the town |
| Whitestown House (country house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.3 km outside the town |
| Whitestown House (gate lodge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.3 km outside the town |
| Balscaddan HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 1 km outside the town |
| Graveyard, BalscaddanRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.2 km outside the town |
| House, BalscaddanRegional rating (NIAH) · 800 m outside the town |
| Bridge, BalbrigganRegional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
Homes by age
Balbriggan is still building: 12% of its homes are from 2011 or later, against 5.8%
Only 2% of Balbriggan’s homes predate 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. The busiest building years in Balbriggan were in the 2000s, which account for 46% of today’s homes. Balbriggan built little between the wars: 2.1% of its homes, where most towns have 3.9%.
2%
Before 1919
2.1%
1919–45
18%
1946–80
21%
1981–2000
46%
2001–10
12%
Since 2011
BalbrigganTypical town
Census 2022, households by the year their home was built (CSO, Small Area Population Statistics, CC BY 4.0); the typical town is the middle Irish town of 2,500 or more.
Born here
6 notable people born in Balbriggan before 1900
From Jimmy Corcoran (1819) to Jack Carvin (1878): their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
Jimmy Corcoran
Myles O'Reilly
Charles W. Jones
Harry Reynolds
Sinéad de Valera
Jack Carvin
1800182518501875190019251950
CJ
Charles W. Jones1834–1897 · American politician
Harry Reynolds1874–1940 · Irish racing cyclist
SV
Sinéad de Valera1878–1975 · Wife of Eamon de Valera
Myles O'Reilly1825–1880 · British politician
JC
Jimmy Corcoran1819–1900 · Founder of the New York Irish enclave of "Corcoran's Roost" and Kip's…
JC
Jack Carvin1878–1943 · Irish Gaelic footballer
Everyone born in Balbriggan → Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Neighbours
Balbriggan and its neighbours
| Town | People | National Inventory | National | Archaeological sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balbriggan | 24,322 | 43 | 1 | 19 |
| Balrothery | 2,282 | 3 | 1 | 30 |
| Stamullen | 3,720 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Skerries | 10,743 | 35 | 2 | 36 |
| Lusk | 8,806 | 14 | 1 | 30 |
| Laytown-Bettystown-Mornington-Donacarney | 15,642 | 46 | 0 | 21 |
| Rush | 10,875 | 25 | 1 | 5 |
In brief
Balbriggan in brief
The official list counts 43 places on the record in Balbriggan, 1 of them in the top tier, including Balbriggan Martello Tower. Most entries on the list, 56%, are homes. Most of its dated monuments come from the 19th century: 33 of 43. The oldest, Bedford House, dates from 1740.
Charles W. Jones (1834), Harry Reynolds (1874) and Sinéad de Valera (1878) are among the 6 people born here before 1900. Its homes are mostly newer: 2% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. It also has 19 archaeological sites on the record. Otherwise the figures are ordinary: it has 43 recorded buildings, about typical for a town its size (the middle one has 81); and per resident it sits near the middle of Irish towns of 2,500 or more.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The National Inventory. The State’s survey of post-1700 buildings, made county by county since 1990 (NIAH); a few records are older. It records; it does not protect.
- Ratings. International and National: of significance across Ireland or beyond. Regional: in its region. Local and record-only buildings get no page here.
- Archaeology. The Sites and Monuments Record (National Monuments Service) lists known archaeological sites; the national monuments to visit and the sites with an encyclopedia article get pages here.
- Protection. Both registers are surveys, not protection: a building is protected by its council’s Record of Protected Structures, and no national open list joins the 31 councils’ records.
- The grade. Ireland’s History grade is not built yet: the page describes, and gives no grade.
Questions about Balbriggan’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Balbriggan?
43 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
Which places in Balbriggan are of national importance?
Balbriggan Martello Tower.
What is the oldest building in Balbriggan?
Bedford House: the first date on its record is 1740.
Are there archaeological sites in Balbriggan?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 19 archaeological sites inside Balbriggan.
How old are the homes in Balbriggan?
2% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town.
Are the buildings on this page protected?
Being on the National Inventory or the Sites and Monuments Record is a record, not protection by itself: buildings are protected by their council’s Record of Protected Structures, which each council keeps and no national open list gathers, so this page can’t say which are on it.
This page describes its history; it gives no grade.
Source: National Inventory of Architectural Heritage and Sites and Monuments Record, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (CC BY 4.0); Wikidata (CC0).
Sources: National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (buildingsofireland.ie) · Sites and Monuments Record and the National Monuments Service’s monuments to visit · CSO Census 2022 (homes by the year built) · Photos: Wikimedia Commons, including the National Library of Ireland’s collections, each credited with its licence and copied to our own server · Wikidata and English Wikipedia for people born here · Wikidata (CC0) for other names and articles. Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).