Saint Mary's Church (Blessington) · Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0Blessington: 27 buildings on the National Inventory
History in Blessington goes back at least to 1675, the date of its oldest recorded building. Inside the town, the Sites and Monuments Record lists 19 archaeological sites. Of its homes, 1.3% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. For every 10,000 residents, Blessington has 48 buildings on the record; the typical town has 48.
typical town: 48
6 photographs of Blessington’s heritage
Go back furthest in Blessington with Saint Mary's Church (Blessington): 1675. 3 recorded places in Blessington have a photo. Two to begin with: Saint Mary's Church (Blessington) and “Gates, Main Street, Blessington”.
Gates, Main Street, BlessingtonRegional rating (NIAH)
St. Mark's CrossArchaeological monument (SMR)
Russborough House (country house)National rating (NIAH)
Blessington BridgeRegional rating (NIAH)
Catholic Church of Our Lady of MercyRegional 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.
Where Blessington’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).
28 historic places in Blessington
Buildings rated Regional, of significance in their region, and archaeological monuments with an encyclopedia article.
All 17, A to Z
11 recorded by their type and address
11 are recorded only by their type and address: 9 homes, 1 walls, gates and bridges and 1 memorials and tombs; most date from the 19th century.
More homes than anything else in Blessington: 70%
The highest-rated include Saint Mary's Church and T. Dempsey. 3 records make public buildings the second group. All of Blessington’s recorded buildings carry a regional rating.
Types as the National Inventory records them, grouped; a building keeps the type it was built as.
Most of Blessington’s dated buildings come from the 19th century
Each building by the first date on its record.
4 of the 27 dated ones were built before 1800. The oldest is Saint Mary's Church (Blessington), from 1675.
Archaeology in Blessington
The Sites and Monuments Record lists every known archaeological site; most are field monuments with little to see. By kind:
19 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.
| Headstone8 records |
| Graveslab (present location)3 records |
| Cross - High cross (present location)2 records |
| Stone circle1 record |
| Barrow - unclassified1 record |
| Mound1 record |
| Font (present location)1 record |
| Graveyard1 record |
| Burial ground1 record |
Just outside Blessington: 6
| Russborough House (gates / railings / walls)National rating (NIAH) · 2 km outside the town |
| Russborough House (country house)National rating (NIAH) · 2.4 km outside the town |
| Baltyboys HouseRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.2 km outside the town |
| Presbytery, Catholic Church of Our Lady of MercyRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.7 km outside the town |
| Catholic Church of Our Lady of MercyRegional rating (NIAH) · 1.8 km outside the town |
| Blessington BridgeRegional rating (NIAH) · 200 m outside the town |
Most of Blessington’s homes went up in the 2000s: 50%
The last decade or so added 5.9% of Blessington’s homes, much as in most towns (5.8%). Building between the wars left Blessington with 1.9% of its homes, below the usual 3.9%. Few of Blessington’s homes date from 1946 to 1980: 12%, the norm 24%.
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.
Blessington and its neighbours
Blessington in brief
Blessington has 28 places on the record. Of the whole list, 70% are homes. Of the 27 with a date, 18 come from the 19th century. The oldest is Saint Mary's Church (Blessington), from 1675.
Its homes are mostly newer: 1.3% were built before 1919, against 3.4% in the typical town. The archaeological record adds 19 sites. The rest is about typical: it has 27 recorded buildings, about typical for a town its size (the middle one has 27); per resident it sits near the middle of Irish towns of 2,500 or more; and Ninette de Valois (1898) and Edward Ernest Bowen (1836) were born here before 1900.
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 Blessington’s history
How many historic buildings are recorded in Blessington?
27 buildings on the National Inventory, from the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage.
What is the oldest building in Blessington?
Saint Mary's Church (Blessington): the first date on its record is 1675.
Are there archaeological sites in Blessington?
Yes: the Sites and Monuments Record lists 19 archaeological sites inside Blessington.
How old are the homes in Blessington?
1.3% 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.
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).