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OS memoirs, 1830s

The Ordnance Survey Memoirs were written in the 1830s and 1840s to accompany the First Edition Ordnance Survey maps of Ireland. They are a fascinating descriptive record, and contain a wealth of information which could not be fitted onto a map, ranging from the customs of the local inhabitants to ancient monuments.

Ordnance Survey Memoirs covering the six counties of Northern Ireland were published by the Institute of Irish Studies, Queen’s University of Belfast and are available in the majority of libraries.

Much information on woodlands was also included, mainly details of planting, which was prevalent in this period on estates and around ‘gentlemen’s seats’. Use of terminology varies, and its interpretation is subjective, but the words “natural” or “ancient wood” are thought to be useful indicators of continuity.

OS Memoirs, Co Antrim.

"From the valley of Glenariff around all the coast of this parish, there are still to be found some scattered patches of the great natural woods which, at no very distant period, covered the sides and lower parts of this parish. In many places, particularly about Garron Point, the acclivity of the almost precipitous cliffs is densely covered from its summit to its base with natural hazel wood...."

OS Memoirs, Co Antrim, Volume 13, Parish of Ardclinis, 1835.