NMReligious house - Cistercian monksBoyle AbbeyKnocknasheePhoto: Digital Eye · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons file
Boyle Abbey · Photo: Digital Eye · CC BY-SA 4.055buildings on the National Inventory
History of Boyle · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Boyle, recorded since 1190: 55 buildings on the National Inventory
Boyle has kept more old homes than most towns: 9.8% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. It is a historic town on the Sites and Monuments Record, with 35 archaeological sites inside it. The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage records 55 buildings in Boyle, 3 of them of national importance. Per 10,000 residents that makes 189; the typical town has 48.
On the National Inventory
55
189 per 10,000 residents
typical town: 48
typical town: 48
Of national importance
3
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
35
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1190
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
9.8%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures
6 pictures of Boyle today and 2 from before 1950
From 1889 to 1905, old photographs record Boyle. 4 of Boyle’s recorded places are photographed. The set includes 1 of Boyle’s nationally rated places.
King-Harman MonumentRegional rating (NIAH)
Boyle Federal ChurchRegional rating (NIAH)
Boyle Railway StationRegional rating (NIAH)
Inchmacnerin AbbeyArchaeological monument (SMR)
Rockingham House (gate lodge)Regional rating (NIAH)+1See 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.
Through time
Boyle from 1889 to 1905
2 old photographs, in date order. All made before 1950.
1865–1914
c. 1905From 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 Boyle’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
Middle Ages 500–14991
1500–1799 three centuries8
19th century 1800–189942
1900 and later to today4
9 of the 55 dated ones were built before 1800.
The map
Where Boyle’s history is
Every building and site on the record inside the town, by its rating.
National and InternationalRegional and other sites400 m from Boyle Abbey
3 of 3within 400 m of Boyle Abbey, the heart of the town’s history
Hover a dot for its name; tap one to open its page.
The 56, by rating
3 National and International53 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
3 places of national importance in Boyle
Buildings the National Inventory rates National or International: of significance across Ireland or beyond. With one national monument the State cares for and opens to visitors. Each one opens its own page.
Regional and other sites
53 more historic places in Boyle
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
All 32, A to Z
Abbey HouseAbbey View (gate lodge)Abbey View (house)Bank of IrelandBellmontBoyle CourthouseBoyle Federal ChurchBoyle Methodist ChurchBoyle MillsBoyle Post OfficeBoyle Railway StationBoyle Railway Station (building misc)Boyle Railway Station (foot bridge)Boyle Railway Station (signal box)Brendan SheerinConvent of the Sisters of MercyFrybrookHeran'sJames CandonJames MullanyKing-Harman MonumentLaundry, Convent of the Sisters of MercyLedford ParkMillmontMount Saint JosephPresbytery, Saint Joseph's Catholic ChurchRockingham House (gate lodge)Saint Beaidh's Church (Ardcarne)Saint Joseph's Catholic ChurchSchool, Convent of the Sisters of MercyThe ShamblesW.J. Sloan
21 recorded by their type and address
21 are recorded only by their type and address: 10 homes, 6 other buildings and 2 street furniture; most date from the 19th century.
18th century2
19th century19
Historic streets
Main Street and Bridge Street have the most
Streets with three or more buildings on the record, by the address it gives.
Main Street9 on the record
Bridge Street9 on the record
Military Road7 on the record · 1 of national importance
Patrick Street5 on the record
Station Road4 on the record
Sligo Road4 on the record
Abbeytown Road4 on the record
Carrick Road3 on the record
Green Street3 on the record
Of the 56 records, 51 give a street address.
What’s recorded
In Boyle, homes lead the record (49%)
The second-largest group on the record is churches and chapels, with 5. Two of the highest-rated records are King House and Frybrook. Counted by type, Boyle’s record runs to 8 kinds of building.
Homes27
Churches and chapels5
Public buildings4
Mills, stations and works4
Walls, gates and bridges3
Memorials and tombs2
Street furniture2
Other buildings8
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
Archaeology and around
Archaeology in Boyle
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
35 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.
| Graveslab8 records |
| Road - road/trackway4 records |
| Field system2 records |
| Ringfort - rath2 records |
| House - indeterminate date2 records |
| Ford1 record |
| Church1 record |
| Souterrain1 record |
| Ritual site - holy well1 record |
| Ritual site - holy/saint's stone1 record |
| Historic town1 record |
| Bastioned fort1 record |
| Barrow - unclassified1 record |
| House - 18th/19th century1 record |
| Religious house - Cistercian monks1 record |
| 7 more kinds7 records |
Just outside Boyle: 16
| Holy Trinity AbbeyArchaeological monument (SMR) · 1.7 km outside the town |
| Inchmacnerin AbbeyArchaeological monument (SMR) · 1.5 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (demesne walls / gates / railings)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.4 km outside the town |
| Carrigard HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 900 m outside the town |
| Rockingham House (quay / wharf)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.9 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (icehouse)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.9 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (quay / wharf)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.7 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (quay / wharf)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.6 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (quay / wharf)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (country house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.7 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (stables)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.8 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (gate lodge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 800 m outside the town |
| Rockingham House (gate lodge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.8 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (bridge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.2 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (church / chapel)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.8 km outside the town |
| Rockingham House (foot bridge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 2.3 km outside the town |
Homes by age
New homes are rare in Boyle: 2.9% since 2011, against a usual 5.8%
8% of Boyle’s homes were built between the wars, more than the typical town’s 3.9%. Building in Boyle peaked in the 2000s: 33% of the homes now standing. Before 2001, Boyle had already built more than half of the homes it has now.
9.8%
Before 1919
8%
1919–45
26%
1946–80
21%
1981–2000
33%
2001–10
2.9%
Since 2011
BoyleTypical 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
4 notable people born in Boyle before 1900
From Henry Cuthbert (1829) to Caitlín Ní Thoirbheird (1891): their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
Henry Cuthbert
Grace Rhys
Margaret Cousins
Caitlín Ní Thoirbheird
1800182518501875190019251950
Margaret Cousins1878–1954 · Irish-Indian suffragist and feminist
CT
Caitlín Ní Thoirbheird1891–1969 · Gaelic League activist
Grace Rhys1865–1929 · Irish writer
Henry Cuthbert1829–1907 · Australian politician
Everyone born in Boyle → Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Towns its size
Boyle has the 3rd most of 16 towns its size
Towns of 2,800 to 3,000 residents, by buildings on the record.
Boyle55
#3 of 16for buildings on the record per resident (189 per 10,000). Skibbereen, Bantry and Boyle lead.
Only Skibbereen and Bantry have more. The typical town its size has 9. 2 of the 16 have none.
Neighbours
Boyle and its neighbours
| Town | People | National Inventory | National | Archaeological sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boyle | 2,915 | 55 | 3 | 35 |
| Carrick-On-Shannon | 4,743 | 57 | 0 | 15 |
| Drumshanbo | 1,240 | 23 | 0 | 0 |
In brief
Boyle in brief
Old houses are part of Boyle’s character: 9.8% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. In all there are 56 places on the record, 3 of them in the top tier. Per resident, it has more recorded buildings than 85% of Irish towns of 2,500 or more. Boyle Abbey sits at the heart of it all, with 3 of the town’s places of national importance within 400 m.
Only 2 of the 16 towns nearest its size have more recorded buildings. Main Street alone has 9 places on the record. Of the 55 with a date, 42 come from the 19th century.
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 Boyle’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Boyle?
55 buildings on the National Inventory, 3 of them of national importance, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
Which places in Boyle are of national importance?
Boyle Abbey, King House and Bridge, Boyle.
What is the oldest building in Boyle?
Bridge, Boyle: the first date on its record is 1190.
Are there archaeological sites in Boyle?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 35 archaeological sites inside Boyle.
How old are the homes in Boyle?
9.8% 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).