History of Tralee · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
History in Tralee reaches back to 1400: 283 buildings on the National Inventory
Tralee is a historic town on the Sites and Monuments Record, which lists 119 archaeological sites inside it. Tralee has 283 buildings on the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage, 8 of them of national importance. That is 109 for every 10,000 residents, against 48 in the typical town.
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
119
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1400
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
3.4%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures
Old and new: 7 photos and 7 old views of Tralee
Tralee before 1950 appears in old photographs from 1824 to 1910. There are photos of 5 of Tralee’s recorded places so far. Of Tralee’s places of national importance, 1 are photographed.
Photos 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
Tralee from 1824 to 1910
7 old photographs, in date order. All made before 1950.
182518501875190019251950Before the FamineThe FamineVictorianEdwardianRevolutionFree State
From 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.
How old
Most of Tralee’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
Middle Ages 500–14991
1500–1799 three centuries31
19th century 1800–1899193
1900 and later to today58
32 of the 283 dated ones were built before 1800. The oldest is Castlemorris, from 1400.
The map
Where Tralee’s history is
Every building and site on the record inside the town, by its rating.
National and InternationalRegional and other sites400 m from House, 24 Denny Street, Tralee
7 of 8within 400 m of House, 24 Denny Street, Tralee, the heart of the town’s history
Hover a dot for its name; tap one to open its page.
The 284, by rating
8 National and International276 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
8 places of national importance in Tralee
Buildings the National Inventory rates National or International: of significance across Ireland or beyond. Each one opens its own page.
Streets with three or more buildings on the record, by the address it gives.
Denny Street32 on the record · 1 of national importance
Ballymullen Road19 on the record
Lower Castle Street15 on the record
Rock Street14 on the record
The Mall14 on the record
Strand Street13 on the record
Day Place13 on the record · 1 of national importance
Ashe Street12 on the record · 3 of national importance
Prince's Street11 on the record
Milk Market Lane10 on the record
Caherslee Road9 on the record
Greenview Terrace9 on the record
Of the 284 records, 258 give a street address.
What’s recorded
In Tralee, homes lead the record (80%)
In Tralee, walls, gates and bridges weigh less than nationally: 2%, against 8%. Second on the record: public buildings, 20 of them. Two of the highest-rated records are Church of Saint John the Evangelist and Kerry County Courthouse.
Homes227
Public buildings20
Churches and chapels11
Walls, gates and bridges7
Mills, stations and works6
Inns, shops and warehouses2
Farm and estate buildings1
Memorials and tombs1
Other buildings8
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
Archaeology and around
Archaeology in Tralee
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
119 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.
32% of Tralee’s homes were built from 1981 to 2000
Homes built since 2011 are 4.7% of Tralee’s, about the 5.8% of the typical town. Tralee has an unusual share of homes built between the wars: 5.4%, where most towns have 3.9%. 3.4% of Tralee’s homes predate 1919, close to the typical town’s 3.4%.
3.4%
Before 1919
5.4%
1919–45
30%
1946–80
32%
1981–2000
24%
2001–10
4.7%
Since 2011
TraleeTypical 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
15 notable people born in Tralee before 1900
From Mary O'Connell (1778) to Johnny Connor (1899): their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
Mary O'Connell
John O'Flaherty (politician)
Robert D. FitzGerald
Arthur O'Leary
Gabriel Stokes
Thady O'Gorman
Cecil Moriarty
Austin Stack
Patrick Cahill
Con Clifford
Tom Costelloe
May Gibney
Angela Russell
John Joe Sheehy
Johnny Connor
175017751800182518501875190019251950
Robert D. FitzGerald1830–1892 · Surveyor, ornithologist, botanist and poet
Austin Stack1879–1929 · Irish republican and politician
AO
Arthur O'Leary1834–1919 · Irish composer and pianist
MG
May Gibney1893–1984 · Irish nationalist and republican
PC
Patrick Cahill1884–1946 · Irish Sinn Féin politician and newspaper editor
JC
Johnny Connor1899–1955 · Irish politician
Mary O'Connell1778–1836 · Irish woman, wife of Daniel O'Connell
AR
Angela Russell1893–1991 · Irish physician and social reformer
Everyone born in Tralee → Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Towns its size
Tralee has the 2nd most of 16 towns its size
Towns of 22,700 to 27,900 residents, by buildings on the record.
Old houses are part of Tralee’s character: 3.4% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. All told, the list holds 284 places on the record, 8 of them in the top tier, including Church of Saint John the Evangelist (Tralee). Only one of the 16 towns nearest its size has more recorded buildings. Denny Street alone has 32 places on the record.
Of the whole list, 80% are homes. Of the 283 with a date, 193 come from the 19th century. The oldest is Castlemorris, from 1400. Beyond that, 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 Tralee’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Tralee?
283 buildings on the National Inventory, 8 of them of national importance, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
Which places in Tralee are of national importance?
Church of Saint John the Evangelist (Tralee), Kerry County Courthouse, Collis-Sandes House (country house), Kerry Protestant Hall, Saint John's Catholic Church and Catholic Church of the Holy Cross, and 2 more.
What is the oldest building in Tralee?
Castlemorris: the first date on its record is 1400.
Are there archaeological sites in Tralee?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 119 archaeological sites inside Tralee.
How old are the homes in Tralee?
3.4% 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.
History is described here, not graded.
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).
Nat
Ratass Church · Photo: Kierandoc · CC BY-SA 4.0
Saint John's Catholic ChurchNational rating (NIAH)
Ballyard BridgeRegional rating (NIAH)
Tralee Railway StationRegional rating (NIAH)
The PikemanRegional rating (NIAH)
Annagh ChurchArchaeological monument (SMR)+2See all photos
1824
19th century
1890
1900s
1900
c. 1910
1910
