cooffaly

A local photographer who documented Birr at the turn of the 19th/20th centuries was George Morrison of Cumberland Square, Birr. 21 photos of his are held at the UK National Archives in Kew, including ones with such intriguing and tantalising descriptions as "Photograph of John's Place, Birr. Bread cart opposite Mrs Boner's", "Photograph of John's Place, Birr. Two boys on roadway near Dr Stoneys, No 7 Johns Place, Birr", "Photograph of the coffee bar Leinster depot, Birr barracks" (although the copyright for this one belongs to Edward Morrison). I haven't got a visit to Kew planned, but I'll put them on the list of things to see next time I'm there.

Is this photo scanned backwards? The original handwriting on the glass plate image is reversed, -or so it seems.

CASSIDY PHOTOGRAPHY It looks the right way round judging from the buttons on the tunic of the soldier scratching his chin near the sentry box.

Which was first? catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000317389 - this one, or catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000330910 - another one.

Is it possible the tents were temporary until barracks and administration building were constructed?

There's that condensed script titling again ... Previously (10 years ago!) -

"... Although the 4th Earl built a smaller 3 ft equatorial in 1876, the six-foot telescope remained in use until about 1890. After his death in 1908, the telescope was partly dismantled, and in 1914, one of the mirrors with its mirror box was transferred to the Science Museum in London. The walls remained. The tube, second mirror box, and universal joint survived. ... From - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leviathan_of_Parsonstown Also - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equatorial_mount

There is another haystack to the left (like aliens!) seen in the wider angle Cabinet photo - catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000338518 Edit - and there are a couple of neighbouring Cabinet plates of the Leviathan, all likely to be the same day as today's photo, and noticeably without Lawrence Parsons, 4th Earl of Rosse - catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000338516 catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000338517

“Lord Rosse's 3-foot telescope, at Birr Castle, Parsonstown, Ireland. This telescope was constructed in 1839 by the Irish astronomer William Parsons (1800-1867), later the 3rd Earl of Rosse. Pioneering research carried out with this telescope includes the 4th Earl's measurements of the temperature of the Moon in 1868. The more famous telescope is the 6-foot Leviathan of Birr, used to observe nebulae (later called galaxies). The 3-foot telescope was originally operated using an altazimuth mount. In the 1870s it was mounted equatorially. The basket at left was used to raise the observer to the top of the telescope and make observations by looking down the telescope's framework barrel at the mirror.” The Science Photo Library www.sciencephoto.com/media/321431/view/lord-rosse-s-3-foo... So if anybody knows which type of mount it was in the photo would date it pre or post 1870

Flickr is sometimes amazing! Via John C McConnell "A early photo of the "first" 3-foot telescope at Birr Castle. Notice the Herschel type mounting on a turntable. ..." -

Flickr is sometimes amazing... Shay Connolly has this photo from 2013

The battlements seem to have been replaced by an extra floor level

I think today's photo is a fair while before this Keogh Bros one from 1911 (with a motor car). Particularly the creeper on the right -

From - www.historicalpicturearchive.com/shop/pictures/tp-00047/

The railings and lamps (and presumably stairs) are there in the 1911 photo, but not there on the 25" map. Forgotten how to find the map date, but someone will know ...

Aha! Mr French / Lawrence revisited the Guest House later, when the railings and creeper on the right were there - catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000042469