Survey Data
Reg No
15309001
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Social, Technical
Original Use
Bridge
In Use As
Bridge
Date
1800 - 1810
Coordinates
243634, 254016
Date Recorded
06/09/2004
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Single-arch hump-backed canal bridge carrying small road over Royal Canal feeder line, built c.1806. Constructed of dressed limestone with dressed limestone voussoirs to arch. Dressed limestone coping to parapets with modern metal railings over. Located to the northwest of Mullingar Town over feeder line from Lough Owel to the north.
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. This bridge is of a different form and scale to other canal-related bridges in Westmeath as it crosses the narrower canal supply line from Lough Owel rather than the canal itself. It is one of a number of related structures in the area and is an appealing feature in the landscape to the northwest of Mullingar Town.