Weir - fish

The National Monuments Service's description

The 'Lax Weir' annotated 'Salmon Weir' on the 1840 OS 6-inch map is shown spanning the River Shannon from the townland of Corbally, Co. Limerick to the townland of Parteen, Co. Clare. The 1654-56 Civil Survey of Limerick recorded that Limerick Corporation were the owners of 'The greate Salmon weare called Laxweare in the River of Shannon meareing on the North with the lands of the Banke on the east with St Thomas his Iland on the South wth the L[an]ds of Corballie' (Simington 1938, 482). This survey recorded that the salmon weir had an annual value of £200 (ibid.). According to Place (1905-8, 26) the word Lax is a Danish word for salmon. On this map a castle called Caslaunnacorran (CL063-008----) is shown standing on the line of the weir on the Clare side of the River Shannon. Westropp (1906-7, 82) recorded the following details about this castle and the salmon weir also known as the 'Lax Weir'; 'The Castle on the Laxweir, though assigned to County Clare, is in the middle of the Shannon, and historically belongs to Limerick. It is the lower part of an old building, retaining a sort of corbelled bartizan and some of the original window-slits, but evidently defaced and modernised. The Laxweir fisheries evidently date from Norse times. They were granted to W. de Braosa in 1215'. According to O'Flaherty (2010, 2) 'The Lax Weir at Parteen is of Viking origin'; it was the property of the Bishop of Limerick in the 13th century (ibid., 29). The line of the Lax Weir (approx. L 300m) can still be seen today on Digital Globe orthoimages taken between 2011-13. The 'greate Salmon weyre' is depicted on the 17th century Down Survey map of St Patrick's Parish (NLI, MS 718).

See attached Down Survey map of the parish of St. Patrick's which shows the salmon weir.

Cross-referenced with CL063-008001-.

Compiled by: Caimin O'Brien

Date of upload: 8 June 2020

References

Place, A.J. 1905-8 History of the Lax Weir, Limerick. Journal of the Limerick Field Club VIII, No. 9, pp. 25-31.

O'Flaherty, E. 2010 Irish Historic Towns Atlas, no. 21, Limerick. Dublin. Royal Irish Academy.

NLI, MS 718 - National Library of Ireland, Parish maps with terriers, showing forfeited lands in County Limerick, commonly known as the "Down Survey", executed under the direction of Sir William Petty, 1657, and copied by Daniel O'Brien, 1786.

Westropp, T.J. 1906-7 The ancient castles of the county of Limerick. Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 26, 54-264.

Simington, R.C. (ed.) 1938 The civil survey, AD 1654-1656. Vol. IV: county of Limerick, with a section of Clanmaurice barony Co. Kerry. Dublin. Irish Manuscripts Commission.