harbour/dock/port

Canal harbour, built c.1806 on the Royal Canal, which is split into two separate sections by Scanlan's Bridge (15310151). Dressed limestone retaining walls. Remains of a three-bay single-storey canal store house (15310227), c.1870, and a restored canal dry dock (15310149) to the north side of east harbour. Modern concrete slipway to north side of west section.

A typically well constructed canal harbour. The quality of the limestone construction of the retaining walls is indicative of the grandiose ambitions of the Royal Canal Company during the early part of the nineteenth century. The harbour to the west was originally built to accommodate passenger traffic and the harbour to the east was built to deal with trade. The canal store (15310227) to the east is the only survivor of a number of similar canal store houses located adjacent to Scanlan's Bridge (15310151). These harbours, along with the surviving warehouse, have been designed and constructed with a high level of expertise indicating the importance of their role in the past and remains an important element of the architectural and industrial heritage of Westmeath.