Monasterevan, the Venice of the west

This is a considerably expanded and updated version of an article I wrote years ago, with lots of photos. There are traces of three lost waterways to be seen in Monasterevan (my favoured spelling) and lots of other interesting waterways artefacts as well. There is even an operational puzzle: in the days when boats locked down from the canal to the Barrow, and locked back up on the far side, how were they propelled (and controlled) when crossing the river?

Dry hurries on Dukart’s Canal

Dukart’s inclined planes, on the canal from Coalisland to the Drumglass colliery, are known as dry hurries. It may be that the term derives from coal-mining; I’ve published some extracts from Richard Griffin’s 1814 report on the Leinster coalfield.

Steam on the Grand Canal

I have uploaded a report by Sir John MacNeill on experiments with steam boats on the Irish Grand Canal in 1851. The Grand Canal Company evidently asked him to compare two vessels; interestingly, one of them was a twin-screw boat. His recommendations include a change to the use of canal-boats with a beam of 6′ 6″ and the use of turf (peat) as a fuel.

The Mountmellick Line revisited

I’ve added a few photos to this short item.

The River Finnery navigation

Another neglected navigation: the River Finnery in Co Kildare.

The Little Brosna

I’ve updated the page about the Little Brosna, with some photos of Riverstown and of the site of the old quay.

Moscow

I’m off tomorrow in search of more almost-forgotten aspects of Irish waterways history. This trip will take me to Moscow and Bilbao.

The Canal at the World’s End

I’ve added an account of one of Ireland’s shortest canals, the Canal at the World’s End, to the Lost Irish Waterways page. There are several photos.

Castle Archdale

I’ve uploaded an article about the WW2 flying-boat base at Castle Archdale on Lough Erne, the place from which the Bismarck was spotted after it sank HMS Hood. I’ve included a few recent photos of the flying-boat dock.

Boat-building

I’ve uploaded an article about a boat-builder that I wrote in 2002. It includes some nice photos. There’s a link from this page.