Walking Tour of Carlow Town Preview

1

Carlow County Museum, Carlow Tourist Office & Carlow Library

The museum brings to life the story of Carlow's development through the ages. Items on display include the original gallows trapdoor from Carlow Gaol used to execute Lucinda Sly for murdering her husband in 1835; the smoking pipe of Captain Myles Keogh of the 7th US Calvary who died at the Battle of Little Big Horn; read about John Tyndall a 19th century scientist who discovered the greenhouse effect. The building also houses the Tourist Office, the County Library and Archive. Monday - Saturday 10 a.m. - 4.30 p.m. September - May Monday - Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. June - August Sundays and Bank Holidays 2 p.m. - 4.30 p.m. Free Admission Opening hours for Carlow Tourist Office Monday - Friday 9.30 a.m. - 5 p.m. year round Saturday 10 a.m. - 4.30 p.m. September - May and 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. June - August Sundays and Bank Holidays 2 p.m. - 4.30 p.m.

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2

Liberty Tree & Potato Market

Carlow was a market town around which areas developed reflecting the goods traded there, like the Potato Market, Coal Market, Butter Market and Haymarket. The Potato Market was the scene of a massacre of over 600 rebels and civilians following an unsuccessful attack on the town by the United Irishmen, known as the Battle of Carlow during the 1798 Rebellion. The Liberty Tree sculpture designed by John Behan, commemorates the 1798 Rebellion and was unveiled in 1998 to commemorate the bi-centenary.

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3

Carlow Gaol / Shopping Centre

This was the town Gaol for much of the 19th century. It was home for most of the 20th century to Thompson's Engineering Works and is now Carlow Shopping Centre. The main gate of the Gaol used local granite to give an impression of great strength and solidity. Immediately inside the main entrance is the substantial Governor's House, a three-bay, three-storey building. The last woman to be publicly hanged in the Gaol was Lucinda Sly who along with her servant had murdered her husband in 1835.

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4

Birthplace of Samuel Haughton

Born in Carlow December 1821, Rev. Samuel Haughton, Trinity College, was an Irish scientist who invented 'Haughton's Drop'. In 1866 Samuel developed a more humane method for execution by hanging, whereby the neck was broken at the time of the drop, so that the condemned person did not slowly strangle to death. His birthplace is marked by a plaque.The building is now in private ownership.

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5

Deighton Hall

This building was the County Courthouse and seat of the Grand Jury, until the early 1830s. In 1909 local businessman Joseph C. Deighton presented this building to St. Mary's Parish for use as a Parochial Hall. The prisoner holding cells were located in the basement with direct access to the courtroom and Lucinda Sly was tried here for the murder of her husband. Leading from Deighton Hall is the remaining section of Bridewell Lane which ran to the Carlow Gaol.

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6

Carlow Castle

Located at the meeting of the Rivers Barrow and Burrin, the castle had four 25 feet thick towers and stood three storeys high, making it a strategic fortress which protected the river crossing and Carlow Town. It was built in the 13th century by William Marshal Earl of Pembroke and Lord of Leinster, who had succeeded Strongbow, leader of the Norman invasion of Ireland. From 1391 to 1395 the Exchequer and Court of Common Pleas were located in and around the Castle, thus making Carlow the capital of Ireland for this period. It remained relatively unscathed until 1814 when Dr. Midleton, accidentally blew it up during works to convert it into a modern lunatic asylum, with only the west wall and two towers surviving.

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7

River Barrow

The River Barrow is Ireland's second longest river flowing for 192km from the Slieve Bloom Mountains to the sea. For centuries the river was used by the large mills along its banks, some owned by the Barrow Milling Company and others by the Shackleton family. The Barrow was a significant commercial waterway until the 1960s, with river ports at Athy, Carlow, Graiguenamanagh and New Ross. Barges carried beet to Ireland's first sugar factory at Carlow and malting barley to the Guinness Brewery, Dublin. Since the demise of river transport, the Barrow Towpath, which stretches some 114km is popular for cycling, walking and nature spotting. www.barrowriver.ie

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8

Wellington/Graiguecullen Bridge

Built in 1815, the five arched bridge, was named after The Duke of Wellington, who had defeated Napoleon that same year. Wellington Bridge is the lowest bridge on the River Barrow and is unusual in that it crosses the end of a small island in the river, and one of the arches, through which the canal traffic passes, is slightly separated from the others. Looking upstream the original canal stores, are now home to Carlow Rowing Club, one of Ireland's oldest sporting clubs.

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9

Old Mill

Mills, such as this one, were dotted alongside the canal lock and weir on the River Barrow in Carlow representing the thriving milling and distillery industry of former times. This mill was formerly one of Shackleton's Mills and is now in private ownership.

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10

Old RIC Barracks

The Old Royal Irish Constabulary Barracks housed Ireland's major police force prior to Irish Independence. It is decorated with grotesque heads and a plaque of Hercules.

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11

St. Clare's Church & Poor Clare Monastery

Originally built as St. Anne's Church in 1852 and located on the Athy Road. It fell into disuse and was sold by the Church of Ireland in 1927 to the Catholic Parish of Graiguecullen. They moved it stone by stone across the River Barrow and rebuilt it on today's site. Unfortunately funds ran out before completion so the church lacks a spire. 'The Poor Clare Sisters' are an enclosed order of nuns who are devoted to a life of prayer and have lived in the monastery since 1893. www.poorclarescarlow.ie

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12

Croppies Grave

Following the bloody battle in the Potato Market in May 1798, the bodies of the dead were buried here in a mass grave. The croppy was the name given to the United Irishmen after the habit of cropping their hair to mark their allegiance. This site is commemorated with a replica high cross which stands as testimony to those who died to further the cause of Irish freedom from a harsh regime.

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13

Town Park

This 12-acre park on the banks of the River Barrow features a safe and secure childrens' playground and many pieces of public art sculpture. Carlow's ancient past is reflected in the shape of the motte in the parkland area, with the river frontage and Millennium Bridge giving a contemporary, urban feel.

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14

Barrow Track Graveyard

The Old Graveyard dates from 1607 and was the main burial ground for the town until St. Mary's Cemetery, Old Dublin Road opened in 1893. There are a variety of headstones, slabs, metal crosses, memorials and some War Commission headstones. Among those buried here is Dr. James Keeffe, Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin and founder of Carlow College.

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15

County Carlow Military Museum

The 'Old Church' in the grounds of St. Dympna's Hospital, houses the Military Museum. The museum displays artefacts from the late 18th century and details the history of the Irish Army, Local Reserve Defence Forces, UN Peacekeeping, Carlow Militia, War of Independence and much more.

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16

Scots Church

Scots Churches are rare, with only four known to be in existence in Ireland. It was designed by architect Thomas A. Cobden, who was also responsible for Carlow Cathedral, Ballykealey House and Duckett's Grove, outside Carlow Town. It is a curiously proportioned building with a tall pediment and no windows on the façade.

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17

Methodist Church

In 1892, this site was secured as the home of the Methodist chapel.The new site had been used as a quarry, so it had to be filled, before building could begin. The site was filled by using rubble from buildings being demolished in the town, for each load dumped at the site the carters were paid one penny, so it cost £5 to fill the site. In 1897, building work began and the church opened Friday, April 15th 1898.

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18

Carlow Courthouse

Designed in the 1820s by architect William Vitruvius Morrison, this building is one of Ireland's finest examples of ancient Greek revivalist architecture. The ancient Roman world is symbolised by the iron railings, which are in the form of the Roman axe, the fasces symbolise judicial power. The Court House has two large court rooms contained within the impressive granite decagonal shaped building. The cannon is a Russian gun, captured during the Crimean War and commemorates all the Carlow people who fought in the conflict. The Courthouse is operated by the Court Services under the Department of Justice.

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19

Assembly Rooms

The Assembly Rooms were built in 1794 and it is thought they were used by nobility and gentry of the county to host dinners, balls and musical performances. In 1899 the famous playwright George Bernard Shaw inherited the Assembly Rooms from his uncle, Walter Gurly. He later donated the building to Dr. Foley, Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin to use as a school and in 1923 it opened as Carlow's Technical School. Nowadays the Assembly Rooms house offices for Carlow County Council.

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20

Town Hall & Haymarket

Carlow Town Hall is situated on the north side of the Haymarket which was a main trading centre in Carlow. The Town Hall was designed by the church architect William Hague in 1884 and opened March 1886. Over the front door is the iron work of the old gas lamp which in 1891 was converted for electrical use. Carlow, after Dublin and London was the third town of the British Empire to have electricity.

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21

St. Marys Church

St. Mary's Church is located in an area of long standing religious settlement, dating all the way back to the 6th century. The main body of the church dates to 1727, but the tower and spire reaching 195 feet was designed by Thomas Cobden, and added in 1834. The interior retains its original galleries and contains several interesting monuments, including ones by neo-classical architect Sir Richard Morrison. His only other known monument is in Clonmel, Co. Tipperary. This is the third St. Mary's Church to have been built on this site. www.stmaryschurchcarlow.com

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22

The Cigar Divan

The Cigar Divan is the older of only two cigar divans in Ireland, with a Victorian shop-front featuring elaborate iron panels below the windows. The name dates from the time when Turkish cigarettes were the height of fashion.

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23

Carlow College

Ireland's oldest third level catholic educational institution, first opened in 1793, once the penal laws which restricted Catholic education were relaxed. The college educated males for the professions and for priesthood, and during 1793 - 2001 over 3,300 ordinations took place. The chapel of the Sacred Heart was erected to mark the centenary of the college but now functions as the College Library. Famous alumni include James Fintan Lalor, the agrarian agitator and social activist, the Fenian John O'Leary and Frank O'Meara, the impressionist painter. The 1990s saw the College return to its original role of educating the lay population. Carlow College is home to the Carlow Art Collection, a permanent public collection of art. www.carlowcollege.ie

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24

VISUAL Arts Centre & George Bernard Shaw Theatre

Situated in the grounds of Carlow College, VISUAL presents the best of local, national and international work in the visual and performing arts. A dynamic, multi-disciplinary arts facility, with four principal exhibition spaces with the main gallery recognised as Ireland's largest and most contemporary art space. The theatre is named after the famed playwright George Bernard Shaw who had strong connections with the area, his mother being a Gurly from the town. www.visualcarlow.ie

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25

Carlow Cathedral

This is the cathedral for the Catholic Diocese of Kildare and Leighlin. In March 1828 the foundation stone was laid by the Diocese's most famous Bishop, James Doyle, known as J.K.L., James of Kildare and Leighlin. The architect was Thomas Cobden and it is regarded as his most outstanding church building. It was among the first Catholic cathedrals consecrated following the act granting Catholic Emancipation in 1829 and it's construction cost £9,000 at the time. The neo-Gothic granite exterior features a magnificent entrance tower which rises 46 metres and may be modelled on the Cloth Hall in Bruges, Belgium and medieval towers in England.

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