The Castletowndelvin Union Workhouse was built on a twelve-acre site just south-east of Delvin and opened its doors in 1853. It was the workhouse for the newly created Castletowndelvin Poor Law Union, which was formally established in August 1850 and was the last Poor Law Union to be created in Ireland.

The workhouse was designed by George Wilkinson, architect to the Poor Law Commissioners, and followed one of his standard workhouse designs. It was built to accommodate up to 400 inmates and included separate accommodation for men and women, a chapel, hospital facilities, workshops and other buildings associated with the running of the institution. The cost of construction was approximately £5,200, with a further £885 spent on fittings.

Life in the workhouse was deliberately basic and admission was intended as a last resort for people who were unable to support themselves. During the Great Famine and the years that followed, workhouses throughout Ireland became places of refuge for some of the poorest and most vulnerable members of society. The conditions were harsh, and disease and death were common.

The 1911 Census gives an interesting glimpse into the later years of the Delvin workhouse. There were 103 inmates living there, together with the master and ten members of staff. The records give an insight into the illnesses suffered by those who ended up in the workhouse, including asthma, ulcers and tuberculosis.

As outdoor relief became more widely available, the number of people living permanently in the workhouse declined. By the early twentieth century it was increasingly used for the sick, elderly and those with nowhere else to go.

The workhouse was damaged during the Civil War period when it was occupied by the Civic Guards. It was eventually closed and demolished around 1940, and the site was later developed for housing.

The only substantial reminder of the workhouse today is its graveyard at Clondone. The graveyard dates from around 1850 and is enclosed by a limestone wall, with an attractive wrought-iron entrance gate topped by a simple cross. There are no visible grave markers, although records and local research indicate that many people who died in the workhouse were buried here. The absence of headstones makes the graveyard a particularly poignant reminder of the thousands of people who experienced poverty and hardship in nineteenth-century Ireland.

The site is of considerable local and historical importance. The workhouse may have disappeared, but the graveyard remains as a quiet reminder of a difficult period in Delvin’s history.

Please note that the former workhouse site is not accessible to the public. The graveyard is also overgrown and access should be undertaken with care.