Saint Patrick's Cathedral (Killala) · Photo: Andreas F. Borchert · CC BY-SA 4.0Killala has 19 buildings on the National Inventory
Killala has kept more old homes than most towns: 7% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. Its oldest building dates from 1700. Inside the town, the Sites and Monuments Record lists 10 archaeological sites.
Look around Killala: 3 photos
Go back furthest in Killala with Saint Patrick's Cathedral (Killala): 1815. The set opens with Saint Patrick's Cathedral (Killala) and Moyne Abbey.
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.
Where Killala’s history is
Every building and site on the record inside the town, by its rating.
Hover a dot for its name; tap one to open its page.
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).
19 historic places in Killala
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
All 12, A to Z
7 recorded by their type and address
7 are recorded only by their type and address: 4 homes, 2 street furniture and 1 other buildings; most date from the 17th century.
Killala’s record leans to homes: 58%
In second place come churches and chapels, with 2. Among the highest-rated: The Close and The Lodge. The rating keeps Killala’s record at regional importance throughout.
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
Most of Killala’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
7 of the 19 dated ones were built before 1800. The oldest is The Close, from 1700.
Archaeology in Killala
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
10 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.
| Round tower1 record |
| Ritual site - holy well1 record |
| Cathedral1 record |
| Graveslab1 record |
| Souterrain1 record |
| Ecclesiastical enclosure1 record |
| Burial1 record |
| Battlefield1 record |
| Cross-slab1 record |
| Graveyard1 record |
Just outside Killala: 17
| Moyne AbbeyArchaeological monument (SMR) · 1.8 km outside the town |
| Rathfran PrioryArchaeological monument (SMR) · 2.8 km outside the town |
| CastlereaghRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.6 km outside the town |
| Ballysakeery Church (Ballysakeery)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.4 km outside the town |
| Mullafarry Presbyterian ChurchRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.3 km outside the town |
| Ross Coastguard StationRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.8 km outside the town |
| Ross Coastguard StationRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.2 km outside the town |
| Killala House (gates / railings / walls)Regional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
| Farm house, KillalaRegional rating (NIAH) · 300 m outside the town |
| School, LisglennonRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.4 km outside the town |
| Rectory, MullafarryRegional rating (NIAH) · 2 km outside the town |
| Building misc, KillalaRegional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
| Manse, MullafarryRegional rating (NIAH) · 2 km outside the town |
| Grave monument, CrosspatrickRegional rating (NIAH) · 900 m outside the town |
| Bridge, Carrowreagh [Tira. By.], NewtownwhiteRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.1 km outside the town |
| Bridge, Kilroe, Moyne [Tira. By.]Regional rating (NIAH) · 300 m outside the town |
| Post box, Castlereagh [Tira. By.]Regional rating (NIAH) · 3 km outside the town |
Few of Killala’s homes are newer than 2011: 2.9%, against 5.8%
The busiest building years in Killala were from 1946 to 1980, which account for 40% of today’s homes. Of the homes in Killala now, the larger half dates from before 1981. In Killala, 4.5% of homes date between the wars, much as in most towns (3.9%).
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.
3 notable people born in Killala before 1900
From Patrick McHale (1826) to James Wills (1899): their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
Everyone born in Killala → Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Killala and its neighbours
| Town | People | National Inventory | National | Archaeological sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Killala | 587 | 19 | 0 | 10 |
| Enniscrone | 1,291 | 8 | 0 | 5 |
| Ballina | 10,556 | 104 | 1 | 21 |
| Crossmolina | 1,134 | 10 | 0 | 4 |
Killala in brief
More of Killala’s homes are old than in most places: 7% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. In all there are 19 places on the record. Of the whole list, 58% are homes. Of the 19 with a date, 10 come from the 19th century. The oldest is The Close, from 1700.
Kathleen Lynn (1874), Patrick McHale (1826) and James Wills (1899) were all born here before 1900. The archaeological record adds 10 sites.
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 Killala’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Killala?
19 buildings on the National Inventory, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
What is the oldest building in Killala?
House, Market Street, Killala: the first date on its record is 1700.
Are there archaeological sites in Killala?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 10 archaeological sites inside Killala.
How old are the homes in Killala?
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.
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).