The aim was to create a series of railways which would connect Waterford, Cork, Dublin and Galway. The creation of such links was considered a good investment for the stock market but also intended to have a positive impact on businesses in Ireland and links to the rest of the UK.[1]
The first part of the rail line to be completed was the Kilkenny to Thomastown section. Work began in 1846 but the line didn't open until 12 May 1848 due to delays in waiting for other railway companies to finish connecting track. Thomastown station was a Tudor Revival building which opened 1848.[2][3] The line reached Seapoint Hill in 1850 and the rest of the track to Waterford was completed in 1853 with the opening of the station at Dunkitt.[4]
In 1850 the company applied for an Act to allow them to raise further funds. The long term goal being the trunk line to the midlands.[5][6] Another Act was put forward in 1866 to create a new company called the Central Ireland Railways. In anticipation of the increased range of the Waterford and Kilkenny Railway company the name was changed to the Waterford & Central Ireland Railway in 1868. The line from Kilkenny only reached Maryborough in 1867. The line to Mountmellick was opened in 1883 and that was as far as the Waterford & Central Ireland Railway got.
In 1900, as a result of Acts of Parliament, several important lines became part of the GS&WR system, including the Waterford and Central Ireland Railway and the Waterford, Limerick and Western Railway.[7]
Thomastown Viaductedit
The Thomastown Viaduct
The line from Thomastown to Jerpoint Hill, completed in 1850, was the section which needed the viaduct across the river Nore. Captain William Moorsom was the engineer who designed the structure of lattice woodwork beginning the work in 1846.[8] It was two hundred feet long and seventy-eight feet above the River Nore. At twenty-five feet wide, it was designed for two lines, although only one was built. When done was the longest single span viaduct in either Ireland or Great Britain.
The new viaduct had Charles Richard Galwey (1840–94) as the engineer.[9] The iron structure was completed in 1877. It replaced an older wooden viaduct which was feared to be unstable and dangerous. Throughout the 1850s there were reports on the safety of the structure and while all agreed it was safe it was still recommended to replace it with an iron viaduct which would need less maintenance. The metal constraction was made by the Mallet foundry and the son of that family, Robert Mallet was one of the planner of the viaduct.[10]
^ abThe Railway Chronicle: Joint-stock Companies Journal. Register of Traffic, Shares, Engineering Improvements and All Matters Connected with Railways ..., Volume 1. J. Francis, 1845 - Railroads. 1845.
^"EARLY RAILWAYS". Irish Railway Record Society. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
^"Thomastown railway station". Retrieved 16 February 2016.
^"Waterford and Central Ireland Railway". Retrieved 16 February 2016.
^"Accounts and works of railways in Ireland: minutes of evidence". Retrieved 16 February 2016.
^"galway-kilkenny-railway-committee-1845". 12 September 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
^"Viaduct details". Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, 1851 - Railway architecture - 5 pages. 20 February 2014. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
^Moorsom (January 1852). "Description of the viaduct erected over the river Nore, near Thomastown". Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 11 (1852): 426–434. doi:10.1680/imotp.1852.24056. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
^"Thomastown viaduct". Retrieved 16 February 2016.
waterford, kilkenny, railway, incorporated, july, 1845, overviewowner, companylocaleirelandterminiwaterford, citymountmellick, county, laoishistoryopened12, 1848closed1900technicaltrack, gauge1, create, series, railways, which, would, connect, waterford, cork,. Waterford and Kilkenny Railway incorporated 21 July 1845 1 Waterford and Kilkenny RailwayOverviewOwnerWaterford and Kilkenny Railway CompanyLocaleIrelandTerminiWaterford cityMountmellick County LaoisHistoryOpened12 May 1848Closed1900TechnicalTrack gauge1 600 mm 5 ft 3 in The aim was to create a series of railways which would connect Waterford Cork Dublin and Galway The creation of such links was considered a good investment for the stock market but also intended to have a positive impact on businesses in Ireland and links to the rest of the UK 1 Contents 1 Kilkenny Waterford Line 2 Thomastown Viaduct 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksKilkenny Waterford Line editThe first part of the rail line to be completed was the Kilkenny to Thomastown section Work began in 1846 but the line didn t open until 12 May 1848 due to delays in waiting for other railway companies to finish connecting track Thomastown station was a Tudor Revival building which opened 1848 2 3 The line reached Seapoint Hill in 1850 and the rest of the track to Waterford was completed in 1853 with the opening of the station at Dunkitt 4 In 1850 the company applied for an Act to allow them to raise further funds The long term goal being the trunk line to the midlands 5 6 Another Act was put forward in 1866 to create a new company called the Central Ireland Railways In anticipation of the increased range of the Waterford and Kilkenny Railway company the name was changed to the Waterford amp Central Ireland Railway in 1868 The line from Kilkenny only reached Maryborough in 1867 The line to Mountmellick was opened in 1883 and that was as far as the Waterford amp Central Ireland Railway got In 1900 as a result of Acts of Parliament several important lines became part of the GS amp WR system including the Waterford and Central Ireland Railway and the Waterford Limerick and Western Railway 7 Thomastown Viaduct edit nbsp The Thomastown ViaductThe line from Thomastown to Jerpoint Hill completed in 1850 was the section which needed the viaduct across the river Nore Captain William Moorsom was the engineer who designed the structure of lattice woodwork beginning the work in 1846 8 It was two hundred feet long and seventy eight feet above the River Nore At twenty five feet wide it was designed for two lines although only one was built When done was the longest single span viaduct in either Ireland or Great Britain The new viaduct had Charles Richard Galwey 1840 94 as the engineer 9 The iron structure was completed in 1877 It replaced an older wooden viaduct which was feared to be unstable and dangerous Throughout the 1850s there were reports on the safety of the structure and while all agreed it was safe it was still recommended to replace it with an iron viaduct which would need less maintenance The metal constraction was made by the Mallet foundry and the son of that family Robert Mallet was one of the planner of the viaduct 10 See also editHistory of rail transport in IrelandReferences edit a b The Railway Chronicle Joint stock Companies Journal Register of Traffic Shares Engineering Improvements and All Matters Connected with Railways Volume 1 J Francis 1845 Railroads 1845 EARLY RAILWAYS Irish Railway Record Society Retrieved 16 February 2016 Thomastown railway station Retrieved 16 February 2016 Waterford and Central Ireland Railway Retrieved 16 February 2016 Accounts and works of railways in Ireland minutes of evidence Retrieved 16 February 2016 galway kilkenny railway committee 1845 12 September 2013 Retrieved 16 February 2016 Viaduct details Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers 1851 Railway architecture 5 pages 20 February 2014 Retrieved 16 February 2016 Moorsom January 1852 Description of the viaduct erected over the river Nore near Thomastown Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers 11 1852 426 434 doi 10 1680 imotp 1852 24056 Retrieved 18 February 2016 Thomastown viaduct Retrieved 16 February 2016 Petruzzello Melissa Robert Mallet Irish civil engineer Encyclopedia Britannica External links editThe men who cycled over the Thomastown viaduct Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Waterford and Kilkenny Railway amp oldid 1177501812, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
