Famine roads

HH Barbara Allen

Hi all. Could anyone point me in the direction of a good reference work or history book that explains the history of famine roads?

MOD EDIT>>>>

Following correspondence with OP Can anyone help with initial query.
As I see it there could be a number of things that are relevant as follows:

-Why were these roads built?
-Where were they built and what remains of them?
-Who built them?

jonniebgood1

Thread opened

HH Barbara Allen

In addition to general history, I'm curious about the definition of the term in general. My husband and I were driving on a road in Kerry that traversed fairly level ground yet took sharp turns approximately every thirty feet. When I commented, he explained to me that this type of construction was common during the famine years as it made the road longer and thus provided more work for the builders.

Later, on another day, I saw a road that ran up a hillside and then stopped before getting anywhere. He told me this was another example of a famine road.

I'd very much like to know more about this. I understand it has to do with a Poor Law back in the 1830s?

roundymac

AFAIA these were built to provide work for people during the famine, also I remember my father telling me about walls that were built as well, these would have been in West Cork I think, sorry I can't be more helpful.

Poor Uncle Tom

An old post on a specific road built during the famine

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=89810483&postcount=2

This may be helpful, it's about building in general during the famine in Limerick.

http://www.limerickcity.ie/media/Media,4087,en.pdf

HH Barbara Allen

Poor Uncle Tom wrote: »

An old post on a specific road built during the famine

There's a road called "The New Line" quite near us - it's quite well-used, and I wouldn't have connected it with the famine without this post. It is nice to learn that some of these roads are actually in use.

Edit:removing url because new users cannot post them.

HH Barbara Allen

roundymac wrote: »

AFAIA these were built to provide work for people during the famine, also I remember my father telling me about walls that were built as well, these would have been in West Cork I think, sorry I can't be more helpful.

Nearly all the examples I've seen to date are in West Cork or Kerry. I didn't know about the walls, though there may be something in the book I have.

Fratton Fred

Killiney Hill has several walls and a couple of "Follies" built during the famine of 1742 for much the same reason, to provide work for the hungry.

Rox_88

I can't post links I'm afraid but, if you go to the DIPPAM website and look for Papers Relating to the Relief of Stress (1848) it has a few mentions of road building.

paul71

Fratton Fred wrote: »

Killiney Hill has several walls and a couple of "Follies" built during the famine of 1742 for much the same reason, to provide work for the hungry.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conolly%27s_Folly

Conolly folly, between Maynooth and Celbridge is the most immpressive one I know of. Built to provide relief work in 1740.

pesmfor

HH Barbara Allen wrote: »

Hi all. Could anyone point me in the direction of a good reference work or history book that explains the history of famine roads?

MOD EDIT>>>>

Following correspondence with OP Can anyone help with initial query.
As I see it there could be a number of things that are relevant as follows:

-Why were these roads built?
-Where were they built and what remains of them?
-Who built them?

They were built by the poorest and hungriest in the country, so the Government of the time could be seen to be getting something in return for feeding a starving population. It would, of course, been far too benevolent of them to have simply fed the population for nothing in return, considering how much food they were actually exporting during the "famine". Most roads were built in areas hardest hit by the famine so in the West & South.

Macy0161

There's one in Drumlish, Co Longford. It is the main Drumlish - Ballinalee road.

When I was growing up, it was always referred to the "New Line Road", although in recent years I was told that only the old timers refer to it by that (so I must be getting old!).

For as long as I remembered there were only houses at either end - no one really built on that road. Obviously in recent years no one gave a crap about the history or superstition or whatever that stopped people wanting to live on the road, and now it's fairly built up, including housing estates!

4ensic15

The Shannon navigation works in Athlone were a famine relief project which involved cutting a canal, building and artificial island, a lock and a weir. It was done one year and failed and so was repeated the following year.

Bog Man 1

The Burren Drainage Scheme in county Carlow was a famine relief project . I think if you calculate the Cubic yards of soil moved it equates to something like 8 tonnes per day per man , There were 808 men working in June falling to 466 in December and this was in a County that was not as badly hit by the famine. In recent years The Burren Drainage scheme was administered by the County Council and had Two employees and was a perk for Councillors to be Chairman of the committee . In the 70,s there were up to 10 men working on the various streams as summer work . The two men who were working on it in recent years were usually keeping an eye out for pollution as well as clearing small blockages . The various depths of the Channells were by Act of Parliament much to the annoyance of the fisheries so they could not restrict drainage works or deepening of silted channells .

https://webmail.eir.ie/service/home/~/?auth=co&loc=en_GB&id=62820&part=2

https://webmail.eir.ie/service/home/~/?auth=co&loc=en_GB&id=62821&part=2

HH Barbara Allen

pesmfor wrote: »

They were built by the poorest and hungriest in the country, so the Government of the time could be seen to be getting something in return for feeding a starving population. It would, of course, been far too benevolent of them to have simply fed the population for nothing in return, considering how much food they were actually exporting during the "famine". Most roads were built in areas hardest hit by the famine so in the West & South.

There do seem to be a lot of them in Cork and Kerry, which are nearest to where I live.

HH Barbara Allen

Macy0161 wrote: »

There's one in Drumlish, Co Longford. It is the main Drumlish - Ballinalee road.

When I was growing up, it was always referred to the "New Line Road", although in recent years I was told that only the old timers refer to it by that (so I must be getting old!).

For as long as I remembered there were only houses at either end - no one really built on that road. Obviously in recent years no one gave a crap about the history or superstition or whatever that stopped people wanting to live on the road, and now it's fairly built up, including housing estates!

Macy, that is interesting. Did anyone ever talk about why they would or wouldn't build there?

HH Barbara Allen

Many of the books I've since read say that work was paid per project rather than by time. So....the windy roads, what's the story there?