1783 Taylor & Skinner Ballymena, Portglenone, Kilrea, Cullybackey and Rasharkin, Ireland Road Map
This hand-coloured antique Irish road map, published in 1783, is Map 18 from the second revised edition of Taylor & Skinner’s Maps of the Roads of Ireland. Surveyed in 1777 and corrected down to 1783, it records the historic road network around Ballymena, Portglenone, Ahoghill, Gracehill, Galgorm, Cullybackey, Rasharkin and Kilrea, across parts of County Antrim and County Londonderry.
The original heading “From Dublin” identifies this sheet as part of the continuing road survey from the capital. The engraving shows an extensive network of roads, mile markers, rivers, churches, estates and country houses connecting the principal settlements across this part of northern Ireland.
Ballymena is prominently engraved with several roads converging around the town, including routes towards Ballymoney, Cullybackey and Ahoghill. The surrounding area includes numerous properties and churches, while nearby Gracehill and Galgorm add considerable local detail to the road network.
Cullybackey is shown beside the river with surrounding estates and properties, while Ahoghill forms another important junction on the route. The engraving also records country houses and contemporary landowners throughout the surrounding countryside.
Portglenone is prominently shown beside the River Bann, with roads leading into the surrounding countryside and towards neighbouring settlements. Extensive wooded estates and individual properties are marked nearby, while the river forms one of the most distinctive geographical features on the sheet.
Further north, the map records Rasharkin, engraved using the historical form “Ratharkan.” The modern spelling Rasharkin is used throughout this product description to make the location easier to identify, while the original 18th-century name remains clearly visible on the antique map.
Kilrea is shown beside the River Bann with roads extending towards neighbouring settlements and estates. The engraved inscription “Enter L. Derry Co.” marks the county boundary into County Londonderry, providing a particularly useful historical reference for the road network shown.
The combination of Ballymena, Portglenone, Kilrea, Cullybackey, Rasharkin and the River Bann makes this sheet an especially detailed record of settlement and travel across this part of late-18th-century Ireland.
Although this map comes from the 1783 revised second edition, the engraved plate retains its original publication inscription at the lower edge, dated 29 July 1778, reflecting the original issue of the plate before its inclusion in the corrected edition.
As throughout Taylor & Skinner’s survey, numerous named estates, country houses and contemporary landowners appear beside the roads, giving the engraving additional interest for Irish local history, genealogy and family-history research.
Identified as Map 18 in Taylor & Skinner’s Maps of the Roads of Ireland, it forms part of their extensive late-18th-century survey of Ireland’s principal roads.