1783 Newry, Rathfriland & Narrow Water Ireland Road Map | Taylor & Skinner

1783 Taylor & Skinner Newry, Rathfriland, Narrow Water and Jonesborough Ireland Road Map This hand-coloured antique Irish road map, published in 1783, is Map 7 from the second revised edition of Taylor & Skinner’s Maps of the Roads of Ireland. Surveyed in 1777 and corrected down to 1783, it shows the historic road network around Newry, Rathfriland, Narrow Water and Jonesborough, together with routes connecting Castlewellan, Downpatrick, Strangford and surrounding areas. The engraving combines detailed roads, mileage information, waterways, estates and local landmarks, providing a fascinating record of travel and settlement in late-18th-century Ireland. Its original heading, “From Dublin to Strangford by Narrow Water & by Newry,” records the alternative routes available through this part of the country. Detailed mileage tables compare the stages travelled by way of Narrow Water and Newry, adding valuable historical context to the road network shown on the map. Newry is prominently shown as an important junction, with roads towards Armagh, Castleblayney and Belfast, together with the canal and surrounding waterways. The route also connects with Jonesborough, which appears near the edge of the engraved sheet. Around Narrow Water, the engraving shows the road beside the waterway, together with Narrow Water Hall, nearby estates and the connecting road towards Rostrevor. The inscription “Enter Down Co.” marks the entry into County Down and provides a useful historical county reference. Another section of the route passes Eight Mile Bridge and continues towards Rathfriland, where several roads meet, including the road towards Dromore. Nearby estates, churches, rivers, hills and individual properties are carefully recorded throughout the surrounding countryside. The mileage tables also identify onward routes towards Castlewellan, Clough, Downpatrick and Strangford, with additional branches towards Dundrum and Killough, illustrating the wider network connected with the roads shown on Map 7. As throughout Taylor & Skinner’s survey, numerous named estates, country houses and contemporary landowners appear beside the routes, giving the engraving additional interest for Irish local history, genealogy and family-history research. The combination of Newry, Rathfriland, Narrow Water and the clearly marked County Down entry point makes this sheet an especially interesting record of the historic road network in this part of Ireland during the late 18th century. Identified as Map 7 in Taylor & Skinner’s Maps of the Roads of Ireland, it forms part of their extensive late-18th-century survey of Ireland’s principal roads.