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The Coalisland Canal is a canal located near Dungannon in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Constructed to facilitate the transport of coal from local mines to wider markets, the canal represents an important phase in the region's industrial development during the eighteenth century. The waterway was engineered to overcome the challenging terrain and transport infrastructure of the period, connecting the coalfield with navigable water routes that served the broader Ulster economy.
The canal is situated above bedrock of the Lough Neagh Clays Group, Oligocene deposits that include clay and lignite seams. These geological conditions determined both the location of coal extraction in the district and the engineering challenges faced in canal construction through unstable ground. The underlying geology, whilst rich in fuel resources, required careful management of water retention and stability in the canal structure itself.
The Coalisland Canal is protected as a scheduled monument under the Historic Environment Division, with reference number 16427. The surviving sections of the canal, together with associated features such as locks, towpaths and earthworks, preserve evidence of eighteenth-century industrial enterprise and water engineering in Ulster. The monument remains significant to understanding both the industrial archaeology of the Coalisland area and the broader history of Irish canal transport.
The coalisland canal. coalisland canal - ihr 05141 is a scheduled monument protected by Department for Communities NI under reference 16427. View the official record →
The Coalisland Canal is a canal located near Dungannon in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) under reference 16427.
The coalisland canal. coalisland canal - ihr 05141 is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by DfC Northern Ireland (NISMR) — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Ni. The official designation reference is 16427.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Rectangular enclosure - artillery fort (2.2 km), Fireclay works chimneys (4) - ihr 05122 (2.3 km), Colliery chimney - ihr 05128 (2.5 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of The coalisland canal. coalisland canal - ihr 05141's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
The coalisland canal. coalisland canal - ihr 05141 stands on Lough Neagh Clays Group, bedrock that formed in the Oligocene. The rock here is clay and lignite.