Walk the streets of one of Ireland's earliest planned factory villages: laid out from 1774 by Edward Stratford, 2nd Earl of Aldborough, on a 'double crescent' plan modelled on Bath, to house a cotton and calico-printing works on the River Slaney. Little survives of the mill that once employed up to 1,000 people, but the crossroads, a pair of workers' houses on High Street, a townhouse on Dublin Street, the Church of Ireland church, the old national school and a granite bridge over the Slaney still trace the shape of the earl's 18th-century ambition. Looking for things to do in Stratford-on-Slaney? Start here — no car, no ticket, no booking.
Opens the free interactive app — point your phone at each stop and hear it speak, in 12 languages.
Stops on This Trail
The Crossroads (Octagon Corner), Stratford-on-Slaney
1 & 2 Imaal View, High Street
Ballynatone House, Dublin Street
Church of Saint John the Baptist
Stratford National School
Site of the Cotton & Calico Mill
Waterloo Bridge, River Slaney
For Schools
This trail is also available as a free printable classroom worksheet or full trail booklet — no site visit required. See how Classroom Prep Mode works →