NatChurch / chapel · 1870–1875Saint Mary's Church (Gowran)Main Street, GowranPhoto: A.-K. D · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons file
Saint Mary's Church (Gowran) · Photo: A.-K. D · CC BY-SA 4.029buildings on the National Inventory
History of Gowran · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Gowran: 29 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance
Gowran has kept more old homes than most towns: 15% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. It is a historic town on the Sites and Monuments Record, with 59 archaeological sites inside it. Its oldest building dates from 1740.
On the National Inventory
29
Of national importance
1
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
59
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1740
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
15%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures
Historic Gowran through 9 photographs
Among them: Saint Mary's Church (Gowran) and Gowran Courthouse. So far the camera has reached 6 of Gowran’s recorded places. Pictured and oldest in Gowran: Gowran Castle, 1815.
Gowran CourthouseRegional rating (NIAH)
Catholic Church of the AssumptionRegional rating (NIAH)
Gowran National SchoolRegional rating (NIAH)
Gowran Castle (country house)Regional rating (NIAH)
Bastionfort WellRegional rating (NIAH)+4See 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.
The map
Where Gowran’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 29, by rating
1 National and International28 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 Gowran
Buildings the National Inventory rates National or International: of significance across Ireland or beyond. Each one opens its own page.
Regional and other sites
28 more historic places in Gowran
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
All 17, A to Z
Annesley HouseBridge HouseBridge House (outbuilding)Catholic Church of the AssumptionE. ByrneGowran Castle (country house)Gowran Castle (gate lodge)Gowran Castle (gates / railings / walls)Gowran Castle (stables)Gowran Castle (worker's house)Gowran CourthouseGowran HouseGowran National SchoolGraveyard, Catholic Church of the AssumptionLoughlinPresbytery, Catholic Church of the AssumptionTeach Mhuire
11 recorded by their type and address
11 are recorded only by their type and address: 11 homes; most date from the 19th century.
18th century1
19th century10
What’s recorded
The record in Gowran starts with homes, at 76%
In second place come churches and chapels, with 3. At the top of the record: Saint Mary's Church and “Graveyard, Catholic Church of the Assumption”. There are 5 kinds of building on Gowran’s record.
Homes22
Churches and chapels3
Farm and estate buildings2
Walls, gates and bridges1
Public buildings1
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
How old
Most of Gowran’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
1500–1799 three centuries1
19th century 1800–189928
1900 and later to today0
1 of the 29 dated ones were built before 1800.
Archaeology and around
Archaeology in Gowran
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
59 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.
| Graveslab25 records |
| Tomb - effigial11 records |
| Graveyard2 records |
| House - 17th century2 records |
| Armorial plaque2 records |
| Wall monument2 records |
| Historic town1 record |
| Cross - Market cross (present location)1 record |
| Town defences1 record |
| Church1 record |
| Ogham stone1 record |
| College1 record |
| Hospital1 record |
| Chapel1 record |
| Maltings1 record |
| 6 more kinds6 records |
Just outside Gowran: 12
| Bastionfort WellRegional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
| Castle Ellis BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
| Goat's BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 800 m outside the town |
| Mill HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 200 m outside the town |
| Gowran Railway Station (worker's house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town |
| Talbotshill BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town |
| Gowran Castle (gate lodge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.6 km outside the town |
| Gowran Castle (gates / railings / walls)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.6 km outside the town |
| Gowran Railway StationRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.5 km outside the town |
| Kiln, BlanchvillesparkRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.9 km outside the town |
| Unknown, Sheafield North, TalbotshillRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.5 km outside the town |
| Bridge, Mill Road, GowranRegional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
Homes by age
42% of Gowran’s homes were built in the 2000s
Only 2.6% of Gowran’s homes were built between the wars, less than the typical town’s 3.9%. Few of Gowran’s homes date from 1981 to 2000: 17%, the norm 24%. Building from 1946 to 1980 left Gowran with 19% of its homes, below the usual 24%.
15%
Before 1919
2.6%
1919–45
19%
1946–80
17%
1981–2000
42%
2001–10
6%
Since 2011
GowranTypical 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.
Neighbours
Gowran and its neighbours
| Town | People | National Inventory | National | Archaeological sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gowran | 847 | 29 | 1 | 59 |
| Muinebeag (Bagenalstown) | 2,945 | 18 | 0 | 13 |
| Graiguenamanagh-Tinnahinch | 1,506 | 57 | 2 | 14 |
| Thomastown | 2,305 | 95 | 1 | 38 |
| Kilkenny | 27,184 | 586 | 25 | 445 |
In brief
Gowran in brief
More of Gowran’s homes are old than in most places: 15% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. In all there are 29 places on the record, 1 of them in the top tier, including Saint Mary's Church (Gowran). Most entries on the list, 76%, are homes. Most of its dated monuments come from the 19th century: 28 of 29. The oldest, Graveyard, Catholic Church of the Assumption, dates from 1800.
It also has 59 archaeological sites on the record. The rest is about typical: Charles Agar, 1st Earl of Normanton (1736) was born here before 1900.
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 Gowran’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Gowran?
29 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
Which places in Gowran are of national importance?
Saint Mary's Church (Gowran).
What is the oldest building in Gowran?
House, Main Street, Gowran: the first date on its record is 1740.
Are there archaeological sites in Gowran?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 59 archaeological sites inside Gowran.
How old are the homes in Gowran?
15% 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).