There is a fabulous range of buildings in Offaly from thatch cottages to castles, follies and mills. For information about architecture in County Offaly the best place to start is www.buildingsofireland.ie which is the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht website which profiles hundreds of buildings and you can search by area or building type or period. Another very good site is the Dept CHG archaeological site, which gives a lot of historical information and some of the protected structures are also on the Record of Monuments and Places. www.archaeology.ie click on Archaeological Survey database tab on the home page.
Useful publications include
- An Introduction to the Architectural Heritage of County Offaly – Government of Ireland, 2006.
- Living Under Thatch, Vernacular Architecture in County Offaly – Barry O’Reilly, Mercier Press, 2004.
- Geashill, The Evolution of its Architecture – Rachel McKenna, Offaly County Council, 2012.
- Flights of Fancy, Follies, Families and Demesnes in Offaly – Rachel McKenna, Offaly County Council, 2017.
- Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly – Andrew Tierney, Yale, 2019.
- Public Engagement during Works to Traditional Buildings – Heritage Council, 2021.
The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage have published a series of advice booklets on thatch, roofs, ruins, windows, maintenance, bricks, places of worship, iron and energy efficiency.
In 2020 the RIAI and the Department developed a new guide regarding living and adapting older buildings. See Old House, New Home.