NMCastle - Anglo-Norman masonry castleFerns CastleCastleland (Scarawalsh By.)Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons file
Ferns Castle · Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.09buildings on the National Inventory
History of Ferns · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Ferns: 9 buildings on the National Inventory, 2 of them of national importance
Ferns is a historic town on the Sites and Monuments Record, which lists 18 archaeological sites inside it. Its oldest building dates from 1700.
On the National Inventory
9
Of national importance
2
NIAH National or International, and national monuments
Archaeological sites
18
Sites and Monuments Record
Oldest building
1700
the first date on its record
Homes built before 1919
5.3%
typical town: 3.4%
In pictures
Look around Ferns: 8 photos
Two to begin with: Ferns Castle and Saint Edan's Cathedral (Ferns). 3 of Ferns’s recorded places are photographed. Photos show 2 of Ferns’s places of national importance.
Saint Edan's Cathedral (Ferns)National rating (NIAH)
Father John Murphy MonumentRegional rating (NIAH)
Ferns AbbeyNational monument to visit
St. Peter's Church, FernsNational monument to visit
Clone ChurchArchaeological monument (SMR)+3See 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 Ferns’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 10, by rating
2 National and International8 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
2 places of national importance in Ferns
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.
NatCathedral · 1815–1820Saint Edan's Cathedral (Ferns)FernsPhoto: Andreas F. Borchert · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons file
Regional and other sites
8 more historic places in Ferns
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
RegMonument · 1925–1950Father John Murphy MonumentFernsPhoto: Thommcg1980 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Commons file
Sexton's house · 1700–1840Saint Mogue's CottageFerns
Farm house · 1810–1815Killoggy CastleFerns
Post office · 1900–1905Ferns Garda Síochána StationFerns
House · 1915–1920KnockardaghFerns
Bank / financial institution · 1925–1950Bank of IrelandFerns
Graveyard / cemetery · 1850–1897Graveyard, Ferns
Post box · 1881–1901Post box, Ferns
What’s recorded
Ferns and its edges: homes first, 47%
The next biggest group is public buildings, 2 in all. Two of the highest-rated records are Saint Edan's Cathedral and Ballintore House. National importance: 1 on Ferns’s record.
Homes9
Public buildings2
Churches and chapels2
Walls, gates and bridges2
Memorials and tombs1
Street furniture1
Farm and estate buildings1
Other buildings1
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped, for the records inside the town and those just outside it that belong to it; a building keeps the type it was built as.
How old
Most of Ferns’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
1500–1799 three centuries1
19th century 1800–18994
1900 and later to today4
1 of the 9 dated ones were built before 1800. The oldest is Saint Mogue's Cottage, from 1700.
Archaeology and around
Archaeology in Ferns
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
18 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.
| Cross - High cross4 records |
| Excavation - miscellaneous2 records |
| Historic town1 record |
| Castle - Anglo-Norman masonry castle1 record |
| Church1 record |
| Cathedral1 record |
| Castle - ringwork1 record |
| Cross-slab1 record |
| Tomb - effigial1 record |
| Flat cemetery1 record |
| Hut site1 record |
| Cross - High cross (present location)1 record |
| Enclosure1 record |
| House - medieval1 record |
Just outside Ferns: 13
| Ferns AbbeyNational monument to visit · 100 m outside the town |
| St. Peter's Church, FernsNational monument to visit · 100 m outside the town |
| Clone ChurchArchaeological monument (SMR) · 1.6 km outside the town |
| Ballintore HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.2 km outside the town |
| Doran's BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 200 m outside the town |
| Milltown BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 700 m outside the town |
| Railway ViewRegional rating (NIAH) · 600 m outside the town |
| Milltown HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 800 m outside the town |
| Saint Edan'sRegional rating (NIAH) · 300 m outside the town |
| Ballyduff HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.9 km outside the town |
| Saint Mogue's WellRegional rating (NIAH) · 100 m outside the town |
| Farm house, CoolatoreRegional rating (NIAH) · 2.3 km outside the town |
| Rectory, FernsRegional rating (NIAH) · 200 m outside the town |
Homes by age
5.3% of Ferns’s homes are older than 1919, against a usual 3.4%
New building in Ferns runs at the usual pace: 5.7% of homes date from 2011 on, the typical town 5.8%. Homes dated between the wars are commoner in Ferns than in most towns: 8.3%, against 3.9%. No period built more of Ferns than in the 2000s: 38% of its homes.
5.3%
Before 1919
8.3%
1919–45
24%
1946–80
19%
1981–2000
38%
2001–10
5.7%
Since 2011
FernsTypical 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.
Neighbours
Ferns and its neighbours
| Town | People | National Inventory | National | Archaeological sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ferns | 1,317 | 9 | 2 | 18 |
| Enniscorthy | 12,310 | 266 | 5 | 28 |
| Bunclody | 2,053 | 57 | 1 | 1 |
| Carnew | 1,233 | 23 | 0 | 3 |
| Gorey | 11,517 | 125 | 1 | 21 |
| Courtown | 4,365 | 19 | 1 | 6 |
In brief
Ferns in brief
Old houses are part of Ferns’s character: 5.3% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. All told, the list holds 10 places on the record, 2 of them in the top tier. It also has 18 archaeological sites on the record. The oldest, Saint Mogue's Cottage, dates from 1700.
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 Ferns’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Ferns?
9 buildings on the National Inventory, 2 of them of national importance, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
Which places in Ferns are of national importance?
Ferns Castle and Saint Edan's Cathedral (Ferns).
What is the oldest building in Ferns?
Saint Mogue's Cottage: the first date on its record is 1700.
Are there archaeological sites in Ferns?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 18 archaeological sites inside Ferns.
How old are the homes in Ferns?
5.3% 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 (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).