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Viscount de Vesci Memorial HallViscount de Vesci Memorial Hall · Photo: LoriStrang · CC BY-SA 4.0
35buildings on the National Inventory
History of Abbeyleix · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage

Abbeyleix has 35 buildings on the National Inventory

Old homes stand out in Abbeyleix: 14% were built before 1919, where the typical town has 3.4%. The oldest record dates from 1780.

1780oldest record
On the National Inventory
35
Of national importance
0
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
0
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1780
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
14%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures

Landmarks of Abbeyleix, in 14 photos

Of the buildings pictured in Abbeyleix, Preston House is the oldest, from 1800. The photos cover 15 of Abbeyleix’s recorded places; the rest have a record card. First come Viscount de Vesci Memorial Hall and Heritage House.

Heritage HouseHeritage HouseRegional rating (NIAH)Catholic Church of the Holy RosaryCatholic Church of the Holy RosaryRegional rating (NIAH)Abbeyleix CourthouseAbbeyleix CourthouseRegional rating (NIAH)Building misc, Abbeyleix CourthouseBuilding misc, Abbeyleix CourthouseRegional rating (NIAH)Abbey LeixAbbey Leix (country house)National rating (NIAH)+9See all photos

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.

The map

Where Abbeyleix’s history is

Every building and site on the record inside the town, by its rating.

Abbeyleix Courthouse · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1815–1825Bank of Ireland · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1905–1915Bramley · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1870–1890Building misc, Abbeyleix Courthouse · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1905–1915Building, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1885–1900Building, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1880–1900Building, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1890–1910Building, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1875–1895Building, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1850–1890Building, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1780–1800Building, Market Square, Ballinakill Road, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1820–1860Building, Pembroke Terrace, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1810–1850Catholic Church of the Holy Rosary · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1890–1900Church of Saint Michael and All Angels (Abbeyleix) (church / chapel) · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1860–1870Epworth Hall · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1820–1830Gai Line · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1990–1995Heritage House · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1880–1890Leinster House · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1880–1900McDonnell · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1875–1900McEvoy · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1880–1900Medical Hall · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1875–1885Mooney · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1840–1890Moran · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1840–1870Morrissey · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1850–1900Post office, Pembroke Terrace, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1810–1850Preston House · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1800–1830RIC barracks, Pembroke Terrace, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1810–1850RIC barracks, Pembroke Terrace, Main Street, Abbeyleix · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1810–1850South School · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1835–1845Station House · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1860–1865The Old Manse · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1840–1865Viscount de Vesci Memorial Fountain · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1875–1880Viscount de Vesci Memorial Hall · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1835–1840Viscount de Vesci Monument · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1855–1860Wingfield Memorial Fountain · Regional rating (NIAH) · 1870–1890
Regional and other sites

Hover a dot for its name; tap one to open its page.

The 35, by rating
35 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).

Regional and other sites

35 historic places in Abbeyleix

Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.

All 24, A to Z
Abbeyleix CourthouseBank of IrelandBramleyBuilding misc, Abbeyleix CourthouseCatholic Church of the Holy RosaryChurch of Saint Michael and All Angels (Abbeyleix) (church / chapel)Epworth HallGai LineHeritage HouseLeinster HouseMcDonnellMcEvoyMedical HallMooneyMoranMorrisseyPreston HouseSouth SchoolStation HouseThe Old ManseViscount de Vesci Memorial FountainViscount de Vesci Memorial HallViscount de Vesci MonumentWingfield Memorial Fountain

11 recorded by their type and address

11 are recorded only by their type and address: 8 other buildings and 3 public buildings; most date from the 19th century.

18th century1
19th century10

See all 11 on the map

Historic streets

Main Street has the most

Streets with three or more buildings on the record, by the address it gives.

Main Street17 on the record
Ballycolla Road5 on the record
Market Square5 on the record
Pembroke Terrace4 on the record

Of the 35 records, 35 give a street address.

What’s recorded

Abbeyleix records more public buildings than most of Ireland: 20%, against 6%

The newest record in Abbeyleix dates from 1990. 4 records make memorials and tombs the second group. Leading the record by rating: Preston House and Abbeyleix Courthouse.

Public buildings7
Memorials and tombs4
Homes3
Churches and chapels3
Mills, stations and works1
Other buildings17

Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.

How old

Most of Abbeyleix’s dated buildings come from the 19th century

Each building by the first date on its record.

1500–1799 three centuries1
19th century 1800–189931
1900 and later to today3

1 of the 35 dated ones were built before 1800.

Archaeology and around

Just outside Abbeyleix

Places on the record just outside the town that belong to it, nearest first.

Just outside Abbeyleix: 21

Abbey Leix (country house)National rating (NIAH) · 1.5 km outside the town
Poorman's BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.4 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (bridge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town
Church of Saint Michael and All Angels (Abbeyleix) (church / chapel)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.2 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (icehouse)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.2 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (stables)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town
Blackhill HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 900 m outside the town
Fruit LawnRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.4 km outside the town
NorefieldsRegional rating (NIAH) · 900 m outside the town
Abbey Leix (farmyard complex)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.1 km outside the town
FarmleighRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.6 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (tunnel)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (building misc)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.5 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (bridge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.1 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (boathouse)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.6 km outside the town
Millbrook Hall (mill (water))Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.1 km outside the town
Old LaundryRegional rating (NIAH) · 1 km outside the town
Abbey Leix (house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.1 km outside the town
Bluegate HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.8 km outside the town
Bluegate CottagesRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.9 km outside the town
Homes by age

Little new building in Abbeyleix: 3% of homes date from 2011 on, against 5.8%

More of the homes standing in Abbeyleix today were built in the 2000s than in any other period: 37%. Before 2001, Abbeyleix had already built more than half of the homes it has now. About as many of Abbeyleix’s homes as usual date between the wars: 4.2%, against 3.9%.

14%
Before 1919
4.2%
1919–45
21%
1946–80
21%
1981–2000
37%
2001–10
3%
Since 2011
AbbeyleixTypical 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

5 notable people born in Abbeyleix before 1900

From Jonah Barrington (1760) to Ned McEvoy (1886): their lives on one timeline, earliest first.

Jonah Barrington
William S. O'Brien
Joseph Ferguson Peacocke
Sarah Venie Barr
Ned McEvoy
175017751800182518501875190019251950
JB
Jonah Barrington1760–1834 · Irish lawyer, judge and politician
WO
William S. O'Brien1825–1878 · American banker, Mining millionaire
SB
Sarah Venie Barr1875–1947 · Irish political activist and philanthropist
JP
Joseph Ferguson Peacocke1835–1916 · Irish bishop
NM
Ned McEvoy1886– · Irish hurler

Everyone born in Abbeyleix → Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.

Neighbours

Abbeyleix and its neighbours

TownPeopleNational InventoryNationalArchaeological sites
Abbeyleix1,8973500
Mountrath2,0702404
Ballyragget1,1162014
Portlaoise23,494185617
Castlecomer1,4966410
Stradbally1,4042501
Rathdowney1,3682004
In brief

Abbeyleix in brief

Old houses are part of Abbeyleix’s character: 14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. In all there are 35 places on the record. On Main Street alone there are 17 places on the record.

Most of its dated monuments come from the 19th century: 31 of 35. The oldest, Preston House, dates from 1800. Jonah Barrington (1760), William S. O'Brien (1825) and Sarah Venie Barr (1875) are among the 5 people 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 Abbeyleix’s history

How many historic buildings are recorded in Abbeyleix?

35 buildings on the National Inventory, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.

What is the oldest building in Abbeyleix?

Building, Main Street, Abbeyleix: the first date on its record is 1780.

How old are the homes in Abbeyleix?

14% 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).