NatCathedral · 1860–1865Catholic Cathedral of the AssumptionCathedral Street, ThurlesPhoto: JohnArmagh · Public domain · Commons file
Catholic Cathedral of the Assumption · Photo: JohnArmagh · Public domain103buildings on the National Inventory
History of Thurles · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Thurles has 103 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance
Thurles is a historic town on the Sites and Monuments Record, which lists 26 archaeological sites inside it. The oldest record dates from 1575. Thurles has 126 buildings on the record for every 10,000 residents, against 48 in the typical town.
On the National Inventory
103
126 per 10,000 residents
typical town: 48
typical town: 48
Of national importance
1
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
26
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1575
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
3.9%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures
7 photos of Thurles’s landmarks
Two to begin with: Catholic Cathedral of the Assumption and Barry's Bridge. Of the places on Thurles’s record, 7 have a photo here. Barry's Bridge, dated 1575, is the oldest pictured in Thurles.
Barry's BridgeRegional rating (NIAH)
Hotel, Liberty Square, ThurlesRegional rating (NIAH)
Holy Family Confraternity HallRegional rating (NIAH)
Thurles CourthouseRegional rating (NIAH)
1798 MonumentRegional 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 Thurles’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 103, by rating
1 National and International102 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 Thurles
Buildings the National Inventory rates National or International: of significance across Ireland or beyond. Each one opens its own page.
Regional and other sites
102 more historic places in Thurles
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
All 46, A to Z
16th Heavy Mortar Battery Hall1798 MonumentArchbishop Croke MonumentArdeenArdfort HouseBank of IrelandBarry's BridgeBishop's palace, Catholic Cathedral of the AssumptionButlerChabot HouseDevlin's Medical HallFlynn'sGates, Saint Patrick's CollegeGlenmorgan HouseHoly Family Confraternity HallInnisfailJ. ButlerJ. DempseyM. RyanMcGrathMount Saint BenedictP. KeanePark Avenue HousePresentation ConventRosendaleSaint Mary's Church (Thurles)Saint Mary's Health CentreSaint Patrick's CollegeSchool, Presentation ConventSchool, Ursuline ConventSchool, Ursuline ConventSlievenamon HouseStation HouseT. MasonT. MorrisThe CapitolThe ClassicThe Cottage (house)The PresbyteryThurles CourthouseThurles LibraryThurles Post OfficeThurles Railway StationThurles Railway Station (foot bridge)Ursuline ConventW. Brophy
56 recorded by their type and address
56 are recorded only by their type and address: 49 homes, 3 inns, shops and warehouses and 2 street furniture; most date from the 19th century.
18th century1
19th century49
20th century6
Historic streets
Liberty Square has the most
Streets with three or more buildings on the record, by the address it gives.
Liberty Square25 on the record
Cathedral Street16 on the record · 1 of national importance
Friar Street13 on the record
Slievenamon Road11 on the record
Parnell Street6 on the record
Croke Street3 on the record
Mathew Avenue3 on the record
Of the 103 records, 93 give a street address.
What’s recorded
73% of Thurles’s recorded buildings are homes
The runner-up group is public buildings: 7 records. That mix has few churches and chapels: 5% in Thurles, against 7% across the National Inventory. Leading the record by rating: Catholic Cathedral of the Assumption and Barry's Bridge.
Homes75
Public buildings7
Churches and chapels5
Walls, gates and bridges4
Inns, shops and warehouses4
Memorials and tombs2
Street furniture2
Mills, stations and works1
Other buildings3
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
How old
Most of Thurles’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
1500–1799 three centuries2
19th century 1800–189977
1900 and later to today24
2 of the 103 dated ones were built before 1800. The oldest is Barry's Bridge, from 1575.
Archaeology and around
Archaeology in Thurles
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
26 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.
| Ringfort - rath2 records |
| Castle - tower house2 records |
| Church2 records |
| Gateway2 records |
| Graveyard2 records |
| Enclosure2 records |
| Historic town1 record |
| Castle - motte1 record |
| Sheela-na-gig1 record |
| Bridge1 record |
| Town defences1 record |
| Religious house - Carmelite friars1 record |
| Tomb - effigial1 record |
| Graveslab1 record |
| Memorial stone1 record |
| 5 more kinds5 records |
Just outside Thurles: 10
| Archerstown HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.5 km outside the town |
| The Cottage (house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.9 km outside the town |
| Cabragh BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
| Brittas Castle (country house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town |
| Turtulla HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 400 m outside the town |
| Brittas Castle (country house)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.4 km outside the town |
| Brittas Castle (gate lodge)Regional rating (NIAH) · 1.8 km outside the town |
| Brittas Castle (demesne walls / gates / railings)Regional rating (NIAH) · 900 m outside the town |
| Glengarriff HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 200 m outside the town |
| Bridge, CabraghRegional rating (NIAH) · 400 m outside the town |
Homes by age
Thurles has added few homes since 2011: 2.4%, where most towns have 5.8%
In Thurles, homes from before 2001 outnumber all those built since. Against a typical 3.9%, 12% of Thurles’s homes went up between the wars. Building in Thurles peaked from 1946 to 1980: 32% of the homes now standing.
3.9%
Before 1919
12%
1919–45
32%
1946–80
27%
1981–2000
23%
2001–10
2.4%
Since 2011
ThurlesTypical 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
25 notable people born in Thurles before 1900
The 20 best known on one timeline, earliest first.
Michael Joseph Quin
Patrick Charles Keely
John Dalton
Julia Kavanagh
Daniel Burke
William Bradshaw
Patrick John Ryan
Paddy Ryan
Jer Dwyer
Matty Maher
Jim Stapleton
Martin McNamara
Hugh Shelly
Martin O'Brien
Paddy Brolan
Tom Kerwick
Joe McLoughney
James Keogh
Anthony Carew
John Cunningham
175017751800182518501875190019251950
Julia Kavanagh1824–1877 · Irish author
Paddy Ryan1853–1900 · American boxer
Patrick John Ryan1831–1911 · Catholic archbishop
MQ
Michael Joseph Quin1796–1843 · Irish journalist
John Dalton1821–1869 · Franciscan priest and Roman Catholic Bishop of Harbour Grace, Newfoun…
Patrick Charles Keely1816–1896 · American architect
WB
William Bradshaw1830–1861 · Recipient of the Victoria Cross
DB
Daniel Burke1827–1927 · Australian politician
Everyone born in Thurles → Birthplaces from Wikidata, each checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Neighbours
Thurles and its neighbours
| Town | People | National Inventory | National | Archaeological sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thurles | 8,185 | 103 | 1 | 26 |
| Templemore | 2,005 | 46 | 0 | 8 |
| Urlingford | 1,196 | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| Cashel | 4,805 | 90 | 6 | 159 |
In brief
Thurles in brief
Old houses are part of Thurles’s character: 3.9% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. In all there are 103 places on the record, 1 of them in the top tier, including Catholic Cathedral of the Assumption. Per resident, it has more recorded buildings than 78% of Irish towns of 2,500 or more. On Liberty Square alone there are 25 places on the record.
Of the whole list, 73% are homes. Most of its dated monuments come from the 19th century: 77 of 103. The oldest, Barry's Bridge, dates from 1575. The rest is about typical: it has 103 recorded buildings, about typical for a town its size (the middle one has 86).
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 Thurles’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Thurles?
103 buildings on the National Inventory, one of them of national importance, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
Which places in Thurles are of national importance?
Catholic Cathedral of the Assumption.
What is the oldest building in Thurles?
Barry's Bridge: the first date on its record is 1575.
Are there archaeological sites in Thurles?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 26 archaeological sites inside Thurles.
How old are the homes in Thurles?
3.9% 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).