History in Athlone reaches back to 1210: 181 buildings on the National Inventory

Shannon BridgeNational rating (NIAH)Saint Anthony's Catholic Church (church / chapel)National rating (NIAH)Catholic Church of Saint Peter and Saint PaulNational rating (NIAH)Athlone Post OfficeRegional rating (NIAH)Athlone Brigade IRA MemorialRegional rating (NIAH)+8See 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.

1895

1900

1905

From 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.

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).

89 recorded by their type and address

89 are recorded only by their type and address: 59 homes, 9 other buildings and 7 walls, gates and bridges; most date from the 19th century.

See all 89 on the map

Of the 181 records, 162 give a street address.

78 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.

Just outside Athlone: 12

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.

Walter Thomas

Robert Auchmuty Sproule

John Edward Bull

Thomas Duffy

John Rorke

Anna Gaynor

Matthew Harris

Thomas Moffatt

James Fegan

Robert Morris

Jimmy Elliott

Thomas Flynn

John Ellard Gore

Thomas Power O'Connor

Michael Joseph Curley

John McCormack

Billy Halligan

Dinny Hannon

Tommy Muldoon

Frank Ghent

1650170017501800185019001950

John McCormack1884–1945 · Irish tenor

Thomas Power O'Connor1848–1929 · British politician

Michael Joseph Curley1879–1947 · Irish-born Catholic bishop

John Ellard Gore1845–1910 · Irish astronomer and author

DH

Dinny Hannon1888–1971 · Irish footballer

TM

Tommy Muldoon1897–1989 · Irish footballer

FG

Frank Ghent1897–1965 · Irish footballer

Robert Auchmuty Sproule1799–1845 · Canadian painter

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

More of Athlone’s homes are old than in most places: 3.8% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. All told, the list holds 181 places on the record, 6 of them in the top tier. Its places of national importance cluster together: 5 of them stand within 400 m of Athlone Castle. Only 3 of the 16 towns nearest its size have more recorded buildings.

On Magazine Road alone there are 21 places on the record. Most entries on the list, 53%, are homes. Most of its dated monuments come from the 19th century: 123 of 181. The rest is about typical: per resident it sits near the middle of Irish towns of 2,500 or more.