The River Barrow is one of the counties most valuable but often unrecognised assets. Now chiefly used for pleasure activities such as swimming, canoeing and fishing it was once used for transport by way of the Barrow Navigation system. The Barrow Navigation is the stretch of river from Athy, Co. Kildare to St. Mullins, Co. Carlow. Above Athy the Barrow Line of the Grand Canal links the Barrow Navigation to the main line of the Grand Canal at Lowtown, Co. Kildare. From there the Grand Canal crosses the country west to the River Shannon, the backbone of Irelands inland waterways network and east to Dublin City. The Barrow itself is a picturesque navigation with short canal cuts bypassing shallow stretches of the river. It winds its way though a wooded valley, past small and friendly towns and open farmland linking the still water canal with the tidal waters of the estuary. One of the three main arterial rivers of this corner of Ireland, a navigation system was constructed on the Barrow with locks and short canals in the 1800s. The second longest river in Ireland the Barrow is navigable for 69 kilometres (43 miles) between Athy and St Mullins. There are 17.7 kilometres (11 miles) of canals with 22 locks on the navigation. The history of the Barrow Navigation is a long one and dates back to 1537. In 1537 an act of parliament was passed which referred to the Barrow and other waters in the county of Kilkenny. Under this act it became illegal to build a weir across the river to raise water levels for fishing or milling without putting a Kings Gap or flash lock into the weir to allow boats to pass. In 1703 a committee was appointed in the Irish House of Commons to bring in a bill to make the Barrow navigable. In 1709 Colonel Smithwick stated that following investigations the Barrow could be made navigable from Athy to the sea for £3,000. In 1715 work to make the Barrow and other waterways navigable was sanctioned. In 1751 the Commissioners of Inland Waterways was established. The Burgesses of Carlow and other counties sought £2,000 from the Commissioners to remove obstructions in the river at Monasterevin to the sea in 1759. Work commenced at Carrigleade in 1761. It continued during the 1760s and 1770s completing the stretch of navigable waters between St. Mullins and Graiguenamangh. By 1783 work was completed upstream as far as Clashganny and in 1790 the Barrow Navigation Company incorporated and took over the completed works. Total tonnage carried on the river was 16,000 at that time. In 1800 the river trackway between St. Mullins and Athy was completed, ten lateral canals and locks finished and four of the original locks were enlarged to accommodate boats of up to 80 tonnes. Total tonnage carried now was 19,828. In 1803 a contract was agreed with the Directors General of Inland Navigation to complete the navigation to a depth of five feet and to reduce tolls in return for an additional grant. By 1812 it was estimated that more than £220,000 had been spent on the navigation, more than half of which had come from public funds. The navigation had been completed as far as Athy but the depth of the rive r was still considered to be very unsatisfactory. The total tonnage carried on the river in 1830 was 58,100 but the depth of the river was still reported to be unsatisfactory. In 1834 a new lateral canal and lock were constructed in Clogrennan. By 1845 tonnage had increased to 88,000 which was evenly distributed between upriver and downriver traffic. Half of the total tonnage carried consisted of corn, meal, malt and flour. A dividend of six percent was paid to shareholders in 1871. In 1894 the Grand Canal Company became responsible for the Barrow Navigation. They paid £32,500 to the Barrow Navigation Company. In 1922 the Canals and Inland Waterways Commission reported frequent delay caused by defects in the navigation and low water levels in the summer. The Upper Barrow Drainage Scheme increased silting in the lateral canals in 1935. This in turn lead to an increase in currents in winter. The Grand Canal Company received £18,000 in compensation. In 1950 navigation was transferred to Coras Iompair Eireann (CIE) but they ceased commercial trade on the Barrow in 1959 due to the increased use of trains. In 1986 the Office of Public Works took responsibility for Barrow Navigation. Now the responsibility lies with Waterways Ireland. Waterways Ireland is the North/South Implementation Body for the inland navigable waterway systems of Ireland and was established on December 2 1999 under the British-Irish Agreement, 1999. The Statutory remit of Waterways Ireland is to manage, maintain, develop and restore the inland navigable waterways principally for recreational purposes. Their aim is to develop the potential of the inland waterways and hence provide the incentive for local development to complement the boating industry and general tourism industry. It aims to maximise the potential of the waterways resource by attracting visitors to local areas and thus enhancing local development opportunities. The group seeks to facilitate the consolidation and expansion of the tourism market (both from home and abroad) for the waterways as well as associated holidays and activities, including walking and fishing on the canals and help spread the benefits to many small rural communities as well as larger urban communities along the waterway corridors. The waterways are a unique feature of the Irish landscape providing links between the physical, the historic, the environment and individuals.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Sep 2014 20:27:34 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015