Victoria Lock, also known as Meelick Lock, is the first

lock Lock(s) or Locked may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainme ...

on the

River Shannon The River Shannon ( or archaic ') is the major river on the island of Ireland, and at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of I ...

upstream of Lough Derg, it is situated between Meelick, County Galway and Clonahenoge,

County Offaly County Offaly (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the Ancient Ireland, ancient Kingdom of Uí ...

where the

Little Brosna River The Little Brosna River () rises near Dunkerrin, County Offaly, Ireland. It flows for 36 miles before joining the River Shannon. Course The river rises near Dunkerrin, and flows near Birr; it forms part of the boundary between County Offaly ...

enters the Shannon. It is very near the

tripoint A triple border, tripoint, trijunction, triple point, or tri-border area is a geography, geographical point at which the boundaries of three countries or Administrative division, subnational entities meet. There are 175 international tripoints ...

where the provinces of

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

Leinster Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland. The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...

and

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

meet. The lock is of architectural and technical interest and is listed on the Nation Inventory of Architectural Heritage, the dimensions are 142 ft x 40 ft. Thomas Rhodes on the instructions of the Shannon Commissioners constructed the lock in the 1840s as part of a widescale upgrade of the Shannon Navigation. The lock is still in use today by

pleasure craft Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, suc ...

, both private and fleets of rental cruisers who use the River Shannon and the connecting canals. A second lock, Hamilton Lock is also located nearby but is now disused.

Protected status

Offaly County Council Offaly County Council () is the local authority of County Offaly, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and community, roads and transportation, urban planning and ...

lists both the lock and the lock keepers cottage on its Record of Protected Structures (ref 38-05 & 38-04). The lock is recorded by the

National Inventory of Architectural Heritage The National Inventory of Architectural Heritage (NIAH) maintains a central database of the architectural heritage of the Republic of Ireland covering the period since 1700 in complement to the Archaeological Survey of Ireland, which focuses on arc ...

as being of special interest in the architectural and technical interest categories in addition to being significant for its size. The lock leepers house is similarly described as being of special interest in the architectural and technical interest categories.

References

River Shannon Locks of Ireland {{Ireland-struct-stub