Architecture in County Carlow

Architecture is the art or practice of designing and constructing buildings. It also incorporates the style in which a building is designed in relation to a particular period, place or culture. The Browneshill Dolmen dates from the Early Neolithic period and features a large granite capstone.

Carlow castle, an important Anglo-Norman castle was built where the rivers Barrow and Burren meet to enable the garrison to control the crossings. The late eighteenth century and the first half of the nineteenth century saw the erection of many significant buildings in and around Carlow. This development is noted by Samuel Lewis in the 1830's.

The Topographical Dictionary of Ireland, published in 1837, describes Carlow as an incorporated borough market and post town situated on the east bank of the River Barrow in the province of Leinster. It refers to the newly erected Courthouse, built of hewn granite and forming a "striking ornament" to the town. The nearby County gaol is described as well adapted for the classification and employment of prisoners.

The Roman Catholic Cathedral is described as a cruciform structure in the later English Style. Also mentioned is the District Lunatic Asylum, built in 1831 to accommodate 104 lunatics and the County Infirmary, supported mainly by Grand Jury presentments and local subscriptions aided by a parliamentary grant.

Carlow was described as being surrounded by "pleasingly varied" scenery with many handsome seats. Oak Park formerly "Paynestown", then the residence of Colonel Bruen, was a handsome spacious building situated to the north of the town in a "fine demesne".

In his report upon the proposed municipal boundary of the borough of Carlow, Thomas R. Mould described the population of the town as amounting to about 11,000 in 1831. The reason for the rise in population was "a great influx of mechanics and labourers with their families into the town, who were employed in building the Lunatic Asylum, Court-house and other public buildings." In fact Carlow was experiencing a building construction boom during this period which was to leave a permanent mark on the streetscape of the town.

The driving forces behind the construction were Government policy, the Grand Jury and the church. Private landlords were also eager to take advantage of the pool of ready labour to remodel or construct mansions for themselves, particularly in the vicinity of the town.

 

Carlow Courthouse, Carlow

Carlow Courthouse – Front approach. Architect: William Vitruvius Morrison (1794-1838). Carlow Courthouse was designed by William Vitruvius Morrison and completed in 1834. It was built under the patronage of the Grand Jury and the Bruen Family of Oak Park, Carlow. It is built of Carlow Granite and set on a high podium, approached by nineteen steps. The Courthouse is designed in the classical style with a projecting central block, screened by an Ionic portico of eight columns with pediment and cornice. On either side of the main hall are the courtrooms covered by half domes and lit through diocletian windows. The courthouse is surrounded by fine cast iron railings and is strategically situated at the junction of the Athy Road and the Old Dublin Road. The interior was refurnished c. 1995 but some of the original features remain intact. Carlow Courthouse is considered to be one of the finest courthouses in Ireland.

Carlow County Library
Carlow Courthouse, Carlow
Carlow County Library

Carlow Courthouse, Carlow

Carlow Courthouse – Front approach. Architect: William Vitruvius Morrison (1794-1838). Carlow Courthouse was designed by William Vitruvius Morrison and completed in 1834. It was built under the patronage of the Grand Jury and the Bruen Family of Oak Park, Carlow. It is built of Carlow Granite and set on a high podium, approached by nineteen steps. The Courthouse is designed in the classical style with a projecting central block, screened by an Ionic portico of eight columns with pediment and cornice. On either side of the main hall are the courtrooms covered by half domes and lit through diocletian windows. The courthouse is surrounded by fine cast iron railings and is strategically situated at the junction of the Athy Road and the Old Dublin Road. The interior was refurnished c. 1995 but some of the original features remain intact. Carlow Courthouse is considered to be one of the finest courthouses in Ireland.

Carlow County Library
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Several architects such as W. V. Morrison, John B. Keane, Francis Johnston, Thomas Cobden and others contributed to the design of Carlow's most prominent buildings. This resulted in a variety of architectural styles being adopted for the construction of individual projects. The most prominent and most important was the Courthouse which was designed in the classical style.

Carlow has many fine examples of architecturally designed buildings, but it also has a rich heritage of vernacular architecture. Vernacular architecture is concerned with the ordinary rather than with monumental buildings. It is concerned with the buildings of everyday life. They can be to be found in farm buildings and forges and especially in the tradition of the Carlow Fence.

The main focus of this module will be the decades between 1820 and 1850. Some buildings from earlier and later periods will also be referred to.


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