The River Vartry (; ) is a river in County Wicklow,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, and an important water source for the city of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

.Dublin on a knife-edge when it comes to water supply
''Irish Times'' March 10, 2018

Name

The river first appears in 12th-century records with the name ''Fertir'' or ''Fortir''. This is believed to derive from an

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writt ...

term meaning "fortress", perhaps referring to a ringfort at Glasnamullen. Similar placenames are found at Forther, Forthar,

Fortriu Fortriu ( la, Verturiones; sga, *Foirtrinn; ang, Wærteras; xpi, *Uerteru) was a Pictish kingdom that existed between the 4th and 10th centuries. It was traditionally believed to be located in and around Strathearn in central Scotland, but is ...

and Ferter in Scotland.

Course

The Vartry rises in ''Calary Bog'' under the Great Sugar Loaf mountain in northern County Wicklow. Passing through a Dublin municipal reservoir complex, it flows east towards Ashford under Annagolan Bridge, and down through Devil's Glen. From there it passes the Nun's Cross Bridge (dating from the 18th century) on through Ashford, under the N11 road and continues eastwards into Broad Lough, which flows towards Wicklow town. Broad Lough is a narrow lake which lies approximately 1 km north of Parnell Bridge in

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; ga, Cill Mhantáin , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; non, Víkingaló) is the county town of County Wicklow in Ireland. It is located south of Dublin on the east coast of the island. According to the 2016 census, it has a ...

town (at its closest point) and approximately 4 km north of Parnell Bridge (at its furthest point). This lake and surrounding wetlands evolved when a

sand spit A spit or sandspit is a deposition bar or beach landform off coasts or lake shores. It develops in places where re-entrance occurs, such as at a cove's headlands, by the process of longshore drift by longshore currents. The drift occurs due to ...

formed along the coastline cutting off the Vartry from its original egress. This sand spit is called The Murrough/Murragh and it carries the Dublin to Wicklow coastal railway line built in the 1860s. Broad Lough drains southwards into the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

through Wicklow town centre and harbour. The name of this stretch of water (approximately 1.5 km in length) is disputed. It is variously called the River Leitrim, the Broad Lough Estuary and the River Vartry.

Historical references

According to ''The Life of St. Patrick and His Place in History'' the place where St. Patrick landed was at Inverdea, the mouth of the river Vartry in County Wicklow.

City water supply

In 1861 Parliament passed the Dublin Waterworks Act creating a project to dam the River Vartry in

Roundwood Roundwood, historically known as Tóchar ( ga, an Tóchar , meaning 'the causeway'), is a village in County Wicklow, Ireland. It was listed as having a population of 948 in the 2016 census. Geography Roundwood is located where the R755 roa ...

to form the Vartry Reservoir. The dam, accompanying waterworks, and a pipe tunnel through a part of the Wicklow Mountains, were completed in 1865, providing the first clean mass source of water for

, replacing water obtained from the canals. The Vartry Reservoir and Waterworks still supply some 200,000 homes, providing 40% of all of Dublin's water needs.

Popular culture

There are several references to the Vartry in

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

's '' Ulysses'', "… and on his expressed desire for some beverage to drink Mr Bloom in view of the hour it was and there being no pump of Vartry water available for their ablutions let alone drinking purposes...” or “Power. Particular about his drink. Flaw in the glass, fresh Vartry water.” Likewise, in ''

Finnegans Wake ''Finnegans Wake'' is a novel by Irish writer James Joyce. It is well known for its experimental style and reputation as one of the most difficult works of fiction in the Western canon. It has been called "a work of fiction which combines a bod ...

'', Joyce refers to the reservoir, writing “Water, water, darty water!”McHugh, Ronald. Annotations to Finnegans Wake. Pg. 521

Name

Course

Historical references

City water supply

Popular culture

References

See also