Droichead Nua or Newbridge
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A Brief Town History
The original settlement was located approximately a half mile up river at Connell Abbey which was built circa 1202, only scattered ruins of the original priory remain at present. One of the earliest known references to Newbridge is contained in a letter written in 1698, where a gentleman traveller named John Dunton referred to a “new bridge standing on the Liffey” however the town really commenced to develop in 1813 with building of a cavalry barracks on the southern side of what is now Main Street. The population in 1837 was around “577 persons”; the present population is in the region of 20,000.

The first bridge was constructed some time between 1656 & 1686, built in the area adjacent to the “Watering Gates”; a major flood in 1789 washed away the then bridge, which was subsequently replaced by a “handsome five arched bridge” adjacent the site of the present bridge “Droichead Conlaoch” which was built in 1936.

The importance of the crossing point is reflected in the name of the town Droichead Nua or Newbridge.

The town is naturally bordered by the Curragh Plains, Pollardstown Fen, the Bog of Allen, and lies on the bank of the River Liffey – without doubt the greatest natural amenity available to a growing population.