NatCathedral · 1825–1840Saint Muredach's Catholic CathedralCathedral Road, Ballina originally ArdnareePhoto: JohnArmagh · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons file
Dolmen of the Four Maols · Photo: Mike-kinsella · CC BY-SA 4.0104buildings on the National Inventory
History of Ballina · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Ballina: 104 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance
History in Ballina goes back at least to 1600, the date of its oldest recorded building. The Sites and Monuments Record adds 21 archaeological sites inside the town. Ballina has 99 buildings on the record for every 10,000 residents, against 48 in the typical town.
On the National Inventory
104
99 per 10,000 residents
typical town: 48
typical town: 48
Of national importance
1
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
21
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1600
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
3.7%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures
Look around Ballina: 7 photos
You can start with Saint Muredach's Catholic Cathedral and Dolmen of the Four Maols. 5 of Ballina’s recorded places are photographed. The oldest building in Ballina’s set dates from 1825: Saint Muredach's Catholic Cathedral.
Saint Muredach's Catholic CathedralNational rating (NIAH)
Ballina Railway StationRegional rating (NIAH)
Lower BridgeRegional rating (NIAH)
Humbert Memorial MonumentRegional rating (NIAH)
Belleek Manor (monument)Regional rating (NIAH)+2See 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 Ballina’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 105, by rating
1 National and International104 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 Ballina
Buildings the National Inventory rates National or International: of significance across Ireland or beyond. Each one opens its own page.
Regional and other sites
104 more historic places in Ballina
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
All 48, A to Z
Ardnaree AbbeyArdnaree HouseAuburnAvalonBallina CourthouseBallina Garda Síochána StationBallina HouseBallina Library and MuseumBallina Methodist ChurchBallina Military BarracksBallina Presbyterian ChurchBallina Railway StationBallina Union WorkhouseBank of IrelandBel SitoBelleek Manor (gate lodge)Bunree BridgeConvent of the Immaculate ConceptionCross, Saint Muredach's Catholic CathedralDolmen of the Four MaolsGlenroweGraveyard, Convent of the Immaculate ConceptionHarrison'sHeffernan'sHumbert Memorial MonumentJordan and SonLismoyne HouseLower BridgeLoyolaM. FergusonManse, Ballina Presbyterian ChurchMoymonaOrphanage, Ballina Presbyterian ChurchSaint Michael's Church (Kilmoremoy)Saint Muredach'sSaint Muredach's Catholic CollegeSan RemoSchool, Convent of the Immaculate ConceptionSocial Bar or P.J. MulherinStandertonThe Fashion ShopThe GemThe HazelThe Ice HouseThe Moy ClubUpper BridgeVaughan Jackson MonumentWoodbine House
56 recorded by their type and address
56 are recorded only by their type and address: 41 homes, 6 street furniture and 4 public buildings; most date from the 19th century.
17th century4
18th century16
19th century21
20th century15
Historic streets
Pearse Street has the most
Streets with three or more buildings on the record, by the address it gives.
Pearse Street20 on the record
Kevin Barry Street7 on the record
Abbey Street7 on the record
Dillon Terrace7 on the record
Bury Street6 on the record
Cathedral Road4 on the record · 1 of national importance
Walsh Street4 on the record
Tone Street4 on the record
O'Rahilly Street4 on the record
Plunkett Road3 on the record
Lord Edward Street3 on the record
Station Road3 on the record
Of the 105 records, 95 give a street address.
What’s recorded
Ballina’s record leans to homes: 63%
In Ballina, street furniture weigh more than nationally: 6%, against 3%. Second on the record: public buildings, 9 of them. Leading the record by rating: Saint Muredach's Catholic Cathedral and Ardnaree House.
Homes66
Public buildings9
Walls, gates and bridges6
Street furniture6
Churches and chapels5
Inns, shops and warehouses3
Memorials and tombs3
Farm and estate buildings1
Mills, stations and works1
Other buildings4
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
How old
Most of Ballina’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
1500–1799 three centuries14
19th century 1800–189959
1900 and later to today31
14 of the 104 dated ones were built before 1800. The oldest is Ardnaree House, from 1600.
Archaeology and around
Archaeology in Ballina
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
21 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.
| Enclosure2 records |
| Megalithic tomb - unclassified2 records |
| Castle - unclassified2 records |
| Fulacht fia2 records |
| Excavation - miscellaneous1 record |
| Mound1 record |
| Ritual site - holy well1 record |
| Cross1 record |
| Ritual site - holy/saint's stone1 record |
| Bridge1 record |
| Gatehouse1 record |
| Religious house - Augustinian friars1 record |
| Building1 record |
| Graveyard1 record |
| Barrow - mound barrow1 record |
| 2 more kinds2 records |
Just outside Ballina: 14
| Croftonpark HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town |
| Carrowmore House (country house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.8 km outside the town |
| Carrowmore House (farmyard complex)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.9 km outside the town |
| Carrowmore House (walled garden)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.8 km outside the town |
| Belleek Manor (country house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 400 m outside the town |
| Belleek Manor (stables)Regional rating (NIAH) · 500 m outside the town |
| Coolcran CottageRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.7 km outside the town |
| Glen LodgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.1 km outside the town |
| KnocksbarrettRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.1 km outside the town |
| Belleek Manor (monument)Regional rating (NIAH) · 200 m outside the town |
| Quignamanger National SchoolRegional rating (NIAH) · 300 m outside the town |
| SS CreteboomRegional rating (NIAH) · 200 m outside the town |
| Bridge, BallynarahaRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.3 km outside the town |
| Worker's house, RathroeenRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.8 km outside the town |
Homes by age
32% of Ballina’s homes were built from 1981 to 2000
New building has been slow in Ballina: 4.1% of homes date from 2011 on, where most towns have 5.8%. 8.9% of Ballina’s homes were built between the wars, more than the typical town’s 3.9%. Ballina’s share of pre-1919 homes, 3.7%, is near the 3.4% of the typical town.
3.7%
Before 1919
8.9%
1919–45
26%
1946–80
32%
1981–2000
26%
2001–10
4.1%
Since 2011
BallinaTypical 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 Ballina before 1900
From Richard M. Hooley (1822) to James Donnelly (1899): their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
Richard M. Hooley
Edward Whelan
P. J. Ruttledge
Phelim Calleary
James Donnelly
1800182518501875190019251950
James Donnelly1899–1959 · Irish association football player and manager
Edward Whelan1824–1867 · Canadian politician
P. J. Ruttledge1892–1952 · Irish politician
PC
Phelim Calleary1895–1974 · Irish politician
Richard M. Hooley1822–1893 · American theatre manager
Everyone born in Ballina → Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Neighbours
Ballina and its neighbours
| Town | People | National Inventory | National | Archaeological sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballina | 10,556 | 104 | 1 | 21 |
| Crossmolina | 1,134 | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| Enniscrone | 1,291 | 8 | 0 | 5 |
| Foxford | 1,452 | 15 | 0 | 7 |
In brief
Ballina in brief
More of Ballina’s homes are old than in most places: 3.7% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. In all there are 105 places on the record, 1 of them in the top tier, including Saint Muredach's Catholic Cathedral. On Pearse Street alone there are 20 places on the record. Most entries on the list, 63%, are homes.
Most of its dated monuments come from the 19th century: 59 of 104. The oldest, Ardnaree House, dates from 1600. Of the 5 people born here before 1900, the best known include James Donnelly (1899), Edward Whelan (1824) and P. J. Ruttledge (1892). The rest is about typical: it has 104 recorded buildings, about typical for a town its size (the middle one has 53); 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 Ballina’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Ballina?
104 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
Which places in Ballina are of national importance?
Saint Muredach's Catholic Cathedral.
What is the oldest building in Ballina?
Ardnaree House: the first date on its record is 1600.
Are there archaeological sites in Ballina?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 21 archaeological sites inside Ballina.
How old are the homes in Ballina?
3.7% 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).