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Townland

Abbeyside

Dún na Mainistreach

Devonshire Bridge and the adjoining causeway changed the way Abbeyside and Dungarvan met across the estuary.

Watercolour and fine ink illustration of The Colligan estuary and Abbeyside waterfront, County Waterford, as photographed in July 2017.
Illustration, The Colligan estuary and Abbeyside waterfront, County Waterford, as photographed in July 2017
Recorded locationAbbeyside52.09513° N · 7.61450° WInteractive map supplied by OpenStreetMap.
Recorded place location · Logainm.ie

The name

dúnfortmainistirmonastery

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

  • Dún na Mainistreach · Irish · main form · validated name
  • Abbeyside · English · main form

Place & story

Replacing the ferry crossing

The causeway at Abbeyside opened in 1816. The architectural inventory explains that earlier crossings depended on a ford at Ballyneety to the north or a ferry between Roderick’s Quay and Abbeyside. The Duke of Devonshire supported a permanent crossing, but an ambitious proposal for a multi-arched bridge gave way to a more functional causeway. [2]

Sandstone over the river

Devonshire Bridge, built in 1813–1816, carries a single arch over the Colligan. Its stone came from Runcorn in England. The inventory attributes the finished bridge to Jesse Hartley, following the failure of William Atkinson’s earlier attempt. Rusticated masonry and carved keystones distinguish the bridge from the simpler causeway beside it. [3]

A working waterfront

The quay wall on Strandside South is another trace of Abbeyside’s maritime economy. The inventory dates its earlier limestone section to about 1820 and records a southward extension after 1940. Its sloping base and stone-capped parapet enclosed the strand on the eastern side of the bay. [4]

Geographic information

Place type
Townland
County
Waterford
Civil parish
Dungarvan
Coordinates
52.09513, -7.61450
Mapped area
0.78 km²
Logainm ID
49657 ↗

People & family history

Census figures refer to the matched historical census area for each year. Boundaries and spellings can change over time.

1901 census

No verified place match is available for this year. This does not indicate a population of zero.

1926 census

No verified place match is available for this year. This does not indicate a population of zero.

Sources & further reading

  1. Logainm.ie — Abbeyside. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
  2. Abbeyside causeway, NIAH22821159 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
  3. Devonshire Bridge, NIAH22821014 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
  4. Strand Side South quay, NIAH22821007 · National Inventory of Architectural Heritage
  5. Boundary geometry retains its source attribution and licence in the downloadable geographic record. Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors.
  6. The Colligan estuary and Abbeyside waterfront, County Waterford, as photographed in July 2017 illustration: based on a Dungarvan, Co Waterford - Colligan River below Devonshire Bridge by Colin Park. AI-assisted watercolour and ink adaptation; cream paper margins added, incidental clutter omitted and fine details simplified. Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0.

Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2025-01-10. How this page was prepared.