Survey Data
Reg No
15401809
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Technical
Original Use
Bridge
In Use As
Bridge
Date
1805 - 1810
Coordinates
236952, 252662
Date Recorded
17/11/2004
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Single-arch hump-backed canal bridge previously carrying main road over Royal Canal, built c.1808. Bridge now gives access to a modern bungalow and has been superceded by (adjacent) modern concrete bridge with steel railings. Constructed of coursed dressed limestone with ashlar limestone parapets and detailing, including projecting string course at parapet base level/road level and voussoirs to arch. Western parapet wall damaged and repaired with concrete cavity blocks. Bridge has incised benchmark dating to the original Ordnance Survey work in the 1830s. Tow path runs under bridge to east side. Located to the west of Mullingar Town on main Ballymahon Road.
Appraisal
A typically well-built canal bridge, which is a valuable part of the architectural heritage of Westmeath and the industrial heritage of Ireland. Although humble in form, this structure has a simple and functional elegance. It is robustly built in fine stone masonry, which is testament to the long term ambitions of the Royal Canal Company at the start of the nineteenth century. The use of locally sourced material gives it a distinctive visual appeal and helps to integrate this feature into the local landscape. The incised Ordnance Survey benchmark adds further technical interest to this appealing bridge.