canal at abbeyshrule

Royal Canal at Abbeyshrule - A Journey through Time.

Ever since we remember, it was known simply as The Canal,- this stretch of slow moving placid water that was
such an important part of our childhood world. The word Royal seemed to be used only when the river and
Aqueduct were part of our conversations. In the scorching summer of 1948 we used its safe waters at Scally`s
Bridge to learn to swim and the previous winter during the long freeze-up of `47 we skated on its unsafe frozen
harbour.
Our early world began near Kit Foley`s house. Kit was an amicable canal gaffer and lived beyond Bog Bridge.
Our world ended at the Draper`s or Keenaghan`s Lock at Tenelick. Outside this stretch of man made water
another world existed whose happenings neither interested nor were known to us during those scarce war years.
We knew the few boats that plied their trade between the Capital and the Shannon enjoying a belated revival during those emergency years.

The Canal entered County Longford around Foley`s house passing through the Great Moor of Monedonogho
called such in medieval times - or in our own times Ballymaglevy Bog in Co.Westmeath or Clonbrin Bog in
Longford.Our small barony of Abbeyshrule could possibly claim more bridges per square mile than any other part of Ireland crossing both the Inny and Canal within its confines.
The river bridges rebuilt over the centuries are, of course, of greater antiquity. Most of these were originally built
circa 1668 by Cromwellian Planters. Piers writing in 1684 gives a graphic account of Agharra Bridge and notes
the construction of crossings at Abbeyshrule and Tenelick. Of these bridges only the latter exist in its original
form. Both of the former were substantially modified and rebuilt around 1800 and are as they appear to-day.

The Canal Bridges , all of like design, can be seen along the banks of this waterway stretching from the Capital to
the Shannon.

Bog Bridge remains an enigma. Called an accomodation bridge it stands starkly in the middle of the great heather
mooreland seemingly bereft of a purpose. Perhaps it had something to do with commercial turf cutting in the
nineteenth century. Then perhaps it may have served the inhabitants of a fertile oasis of land near its south-east
side. Who used it ? To what purpose , remains to me, at any rate a mystery. However it serves as a focal and
destination point for what surely is one of the most attractive nature walks in this County.

Quinn`s Bridge takes its name from a long forgotten family .Landowners nearby in 1820. . It is known today as
Morris`s Bridge after the family of Dick Morris who lived at the bridge since the 1840`s .

The Whitworth Aqueduct is substantially more than your average bridge. As an aquatic structure it can rival the
best in exhibiting the art of 19th century stone-masonry. It deserves better exposure being largely overlooked in
the many books written on the subject. We can only wonder at the toil and labour input into building this
handsome edifice. A quarry at nearby Castlewilder is traditionally given as the source of the large carved limestone
blocks used in its construction. A fine stone plaque is embedded in it`s south wall and needs its lettering
re-defined. The wording gives an account of the canal extension from Mullingar to the Shannon during the three
years around 1817.

Scally`s Bridge poses no problem. A family, Scally by name, from Oregon visited Abbeyshrule five years
ago.They recall their ancestors emigrating on the proceeds of an attractive land sale to The Royal Canal Company
Sure enough this family is listed on documents at the time.

Next on line (figuratively speaking)our modern contribution - the village culvert. We pass on
without comment but in the hope that soon this unlovely creation will be modified to , at least, allow
navigation return.

Webb Bridge fronts the harbour . This was and hopefully will again be a favoured watering place for
aquatic domestic fowl. The attractive stone plaques on either side of the bridge are adorned
with four logos depicting webbed feet. Francis Johnson`s manuscript map of 1803 shows the village little changed
in 200 years .The Inny bridge had just been constructed. It lend the name of “ Newbridge “ to this area .
Thomas McCawley operated a linen factory on a site where our culvert crosses to day. The Canal ,of course, was
some years away but the village fair green was sited on what is to-day - The Harbour. Abbeyshrule had a
medieval patent to hold fairs ,staging an important one on the Feast of Corpus Christi. This tradition was carried on
by the family of Coates until well into the nineteenth century . This family operated the large flour mills here on
the Inny . The Byrne family were the last to operate the mill in the village . The harbour was a major
disembarking point for goods during the commercial heyday of the canal.

Our last stop on our childhood journey takes us to Draper’s Lock at Tenelick. We, however, knew it better
as Keenaghan`s - called after its genial lock-keeper - Jack Keenaghan. Samuel Draper was Secretary to
The Royal Canal during its turbulent years of construction. The Minute Books depict much anguish for
this person and it seems fitting that the Lock should commemorate his memory. There must have been
some temptation by the hard pressed Company to terminate the Canal here. At Tenelick , past the rapids , the
Inny , aided by lock-gates, might have been navigable , to the Shannon.

However, the route taken by the Canal in the days of construction was driven by other considerations
beyond the logistics of the area . To put it in a different context the waterway only arrived through
Abbeyshrule by chance. Powerful vested interests were at work elsewhere. Lord Sunderlin ( A Malone of
Barronstown and a brother of “Shakespeare” Malone ) was a major force. Probably Ballynacargy owes
the canal and its harbour to his influence. Likewise the Shouldham family had the clout to move the canal
towards Ballymahon. But commercial considerations , readily available on the Inny with its water driven
turbines at Agharra, Abbeyshrule and Tenelick and beyond - grinding out its corn for the Capital and export
,would prove irresistible. Tenelick attracted the County Louth miller James McCann whose father , John ,ran the
oatmeal Mill at Beaumont, Drogheda. Some migration from that County into the area was evident in
latter eighteenth century Abbeyshrule and area. Names such as McGee and Dowdall appear. Tradition
relates journeys by horse and cart to Drogheda carrying oatmeal for reprocessing there and export.
Another milling name to operate was Pilsworth, whose family were, until recently, the proprietors of
a large corn mill on the Nore at Thomastown, Kilkenny.

The original progress of the Canal through our area was not, however, without its incidents. Leaving the
harbour the waterway approaches the remains of the once magnificent Tenelick Demesne , home to
the Lord Annaly Gore Family. John Gore had risen to the highest political heights in the country as Lord
Chancellor and Speaker of the Irish House of Lords, albeit in a less than democratic era.
By the turn of the eighteenth century this once celebrated estate was disintegrating . A John Nowlan of
Dublin transferred part to one Val Dillon , a man active in the O`Connell campaign for Catholic
Emancipation in the county. Dillon did not take kindly to his rich lands being dissected by these canal
intruders. The Company found it necessary to station a company of Dragoons along the banks for the
worker’s protection. Of recent interest is the discovery of a partially corroded cavalry type sword found
on the canal bed during the recent dredging by Jim Mitchell ,at Writman`s Turn, and most likely linked
to these “incidents”.

The Canal has also known its tragedies. On 27th January 1904, on a cold winter night, Master
J.J.Masterson ,Principal ,of Colehill School , seemed to suffer an accident under the harbour bridge. His body was
found next morning in the harbour.
Ten years later Bridget Clarke perished in similar circumstances at the same place.
In the year 1880 a tailor named Reynolds drowned off the line on his way home to Tenelick.

On a more cheerful note the Minute Books record an application made on 17th Nov.1819 from the
Catholics of the village for a site to erect a Church. This was readily granted - with a proviso that the
building of the Chapel would not interfere with the erection of stores at the adjacent harbour. Thus Old
St.Mary`s was built by canal workers. This church served our community for close on 170 years only
disappearing in 1982,when the new church became functional. Well not quite ! Some of the original cut
stone has been recycled into the new building.

Of all the places of interest along our stretch of canal none could rival the curiosity and “fame” of Mill
Lane. Writers at the turn of the last century had a particular fascination with this populous enclave. The
Westmeath historian James Woods on writing a history of his native county afforded himself a licence to
enter County Longford , to portray two Icons of interest - Mill Lane and Bevan Slator - an eccentric who
operated a mill at Tenelick on the east bank afterwards known as Blanchfords.
In the 1880`s the Irish/Argentinian William Bulfin, the intrepid traveller and editor of The Southern Cross
approached Abbeyshrule by the towpath from Tenelick . He stopped to chat to a denizen of the locality and
realised to his delight that he was in the notorious Mill Lane of which he had heard many a time and oft far away
on the Pampas in corral or chiquera when the sun-tanned exiles of Longford and Westmeath recalled some
story of Abbeyshrule and it`s Mill Lane. Woods is even more unforgiving “All great cities in their palmy days
had their privileged haunts. London had its Alsatia. Dublin its Coombe and Abbeyshrule has Mill Lane. From a
community formed from such incongruous materials the place is in a state of chronic revolt against
authorities,civil and sanitary. The houses are low structures formed into tenements separated by particians
about six feet high which form admirable barricades for offensive or defensive operations whenever the war
hatchet is exhumed. In times of feud,these people amuse themselves by throwing large quantities of water,stones
and other missiles across the walls at each other and such is the dexterity of these untutored children of
nature that a favourite boast of theirs is - that a neighbour`s hen can be stolen,cooked and eaten before
the owner discovers the loss”
Bulfin, again in romantic vein, wonders if these people might be one of The Lost Tribes of
Erin, descendants of the Firbolgs or Tuatha De Danann maybe.
Yet much later in the 1940`s Rolt, in his book “Green and Silver, “strikes a more realistic note and
rightly points out and indeed photographs that what was on view was the final authentic remnants of
earlier centuries Irish Mud Cabins - of clay and wattle made.
As a young boy I often visited these habitations. I remember the people as being impoverished but very
friendly and hospitable. Some of the interiors, though not all, were pristine , clean, though lacking any
modern creature comforts. There were some skilful artisans here. A Dr. Michael Dunn of
Washington, D.C. is proud of his lineal ancestry to his great-great grandfather, Davy Jones, a
blacksmith, who plied his trade from Mill Lane.
The question of the origin of Mill Lane poses no problems for me. Here were the descendants of poor
canal workers trapped in time by the Great Famine, squatting here and surviving by fishing and the
left overs from the great mill nearby.
I recollect well the demise of this famous location. On a hot June evening in 1948, youngsters , including
myself were conscripted to hold a mid -summer bonfire . Mill Lane had been evacuated some two years
earlier to better quarters. The following day ,whatever remained standing , was levelled, and Ireland`s
only Albaicin vanished forever. Young saplings were planted resulting in the attractive pine wood you
see beside the harbour to-day.

Abbeyshrule is surrounded by water. Benign comparisons have been drawn twixt the Inny and the
Canal. They come together at the Aquaduct , travel side by side for maybe a short two miles and just
south of Tenelick go their separate ways . During the war years and later both waterways teemed with
fish. In the case of the Inny great fish stock was lost in the drainage of the early sixties. The Canal always
had an inexhaustible colony of roach, perch. The carnivorous pike was common to both waters.
The Inny had its summer salmon runs in those early days, a plentiful supply of trout, perch and the
mini-fish of pinkeen and gudgeon. I remember the ingenious methods used for tackle during the
emergency - modified safety pins for hooks and bicycle tubes painted for decoy bait. In the canal I recall a
clever device used - an otter board - a semi-submersible surfing type board that trawled the ubiquitous
wagtail that the lurking pike found irresistible . The river drainage robbed the area of much of the
wildlife habitats and its fish pools. The Canal will easily recover its own particular natural habitats when
the rewatering is complete. Signs are that the fish are quickly stocking up again.

I conclude with my best wishes to the Canal Restoration Committee for a job well done which will earn
the thanks of future generations. In the seasons of heavy rainfall may we again hear in the village the
sound of cascading water rumbling in the distance coming from opposite directions at Keenaghan`s Lough
and the overflow at the Dock. Such would be a fitting Memorial to all who constructed, worked or indeed
played along the canal`s banks.

Addendum
At the time of writing this piece , at the opening of the new slipway at Abbeyshrule , the restoration of the Royal
Canal was at an intermediate stage.This inland waterway now has an attractive hicking facility from Dublin to the
Shannon known as The Royal Canal Way via the old towpaths. Leisure boating from the modest punt to the
luxurious cruiser is becoming increasingly popular. Navigation extends from Dublin to Abbeyshrule.
At this point further progress is impossible due to the first of a series of level crossings or culverts. We are glad to note that work is in progress to remove these impedimenta. New bridges are being built. On completion uninterrupted boating to the Shannon will be a reality.