placenamesKnockrath
Cnoc Rátha
Knockrath's history in the Vale of Clara includes an older administrative district and a distinctive group of Victorian estate buildings.
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
- Cnoc Rátha · Irish · main form · validated name
- Knockrath · English · main form
Place & story
An older district within Rathdrum
Samuel Lewis described Knockrath in 1837 as a constablewick, a subdivision within Rathdrum parish, on the road towards Glendalough. His entry refers to a district in the Vale of Clara, with its Catholic chapel and public school located at Clara village. He also noted the remains of a castle and a rath. The 2,081 inhabitants he recorded belonged to this wider subdivision, rather than to a village of that size. [2]
Knockrath House
Knockrath House in Knockrath Little dates approximately to 1865. The architectural inventory identifies it as an estate-built worker's house, though its stonework and ornament are elaborate: granite surrounds frame the windows, a crest marks the projecting gable, and decorative bargeboards follow the overhanging roof. Tall brick chimneys and a timber entrance hood complete the composition. The survey records it as a well-preserved example of picturesque Victorian estate architecture. [3]
A cottage beside the forge
Another worker's house in Knockrath Little, dated approximately to 1875, forms a group with the adjacent blacksmith's forge. Its slate roof includes bands of rounded slates, crested ridge tiles and decorative bargeboards. Granite mullions divide the lower front windows, while a small crest appears high on the front. The inventory distinguishes these surviving features from later replacement doors and windows, showing how an altered building can retain much of its architectural character. [4]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Wicklow
- Barony
- Ballinacor South
- Civil parish
- Knockrath
- Coordinates
- 52.96604, -6.25842 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 1414196 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Knockrath. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Knockrath, Ballinacor, Wicklow · Samuel Lewis, A Topographical Dictionary of Ireland, 1837
- Knockrath House, Knockrath Little, 16402415 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
- Worker’s house, Knockrath Little, 16402416 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.