placenamesYellow Walls
Na Ballaí Buí
Yellow Walls grew around a late eighteenth-century cotton enterprise, whose ambitions depended on a modest stream.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Na Ballaí Buí · Irish · main form · validated name
- Yellow Walls · English · main form
Place & story
Talbot’s cotton enterprise
Richard Talbot developed a cotton manufactory at Yellow Walls in the early 1780s. A report to the Linen Board in 1783 described water-powered machinery already working, with further spinning frames being prepared. Houses were built around the mill for people involved in the business. The venture brought factory production to a community beside Malahide, though it did not achieve lasting success. [2]
The problem of water
The mill relied on water reaching the Gaybrook Stream from the Feltrim and Drynam area. A millpond stored the supply, but drought could leave the machinery short of power. Later agreements and surviving map evidence record attempts to improve the water supply. Roger Greene’s local history identifies this uncertainty, alongside management difficulties and trade restrictions, among the problems facing the enterprise. [2]
Geographic information
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Yellow Walls. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Cotton Mill, researched 2008 · Roger Greene, Malahide Historical Society
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2021-02-17. How this page was prepared.