Waterford County was one of the earliest counties established by the writ of John, King of England and Wales and Lord of Ireland. In the medieval period a County Sheriff appointed by royal authority administered the County. The County Sheriff was assisted in the administration of the County by the Grand Jury, the members of whom he chose, although later in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries there was a limited franchise. Local Government in Ireland was reorganised under the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1898. Under the Local Government (Ireland) Act, 1898 the Grand Juries ceased to exist and the functions of the Grand Jury were taken over by Waterford County Council. The local electorate elected the members of Waterford County Council to the Council. In 1898 the local electorate consisted of the parliamentary electorate and also women and peers. The parliamentary electorate were property owners, occupiers of property who paid rates direct or through the landowner as an addition to rent and any lodger paying more than £10 rent per annum. The records provide details of the move from the Grand Jury system of local government and trace the early developments of Waterford County Council and its services. The files and volumes of accounts, registers and other records in this collection reflect the broad range of functions carried out by Waterford County Council’s elected representatives and staff.
Archival History ↴
The records for this Descriptive List came from the County Secretary’s Office in Arus Brugha, Dungarvan and detail the early years of Waterford County Council. It should be noted, however, that this collection is not a complete collection of the early records of Waterford County Council and early records relating to specific sections will be listed with the records from that section in further Descriptive Lists. These records were sent to storage at Lismore Library Headquarters in 1996 and were moved to Dungarvan to the newly built Archive Store in 1999.
Immediate Source Acquisition ↴
Official Transfer
Content & Structure
Scope & Content: Waterford County Council ↴
Papers relating to the early years of the Council where all functions were controlled from the County Secretary’s Office. The collection contains official correspondence, files, account books, notices and registers from Waterford County Council. The collection contains records of local elections from 1900-1960 including registers of electors and nomination papers (WCC/GNA/20-30). Correspondence in the collection relates to the operation of local government under Dáil Éireann (WCC/GNA/131). The collection includes records of attempts to introduce the 1934 Town and Regional Planning Act and on the introduction of the Planning Act, 1963 and the first Development Plans for towns in County Waterford (WCC/GNA/168-174). The collection includes detailed information on early bridge and road building in County Waterford and the provision of water supplies to Waterford County. The records of the County Waterford War Pensions Committee (WCC/GNA/331) and records of damage to roads and bridges and the costs of repairs during the War of Independence (WCC/GNA/332) provide information on the activities of the IRA brigades during the War of Independence. Contains also the records for the establishment of the County Fire Service in 1940 during the Second World War (WCC/GNA/380-382) documenting the difficulty in supplying the firefighters during the Second World War. Includes also records of the building of Ardkeen Sanitorium as a tuberculosis hospital (WCC/GNA/266) and records of the proceedings of the County Waterford Tuberculosis Committee (WCC/GNA/267).
Appraisal Destruction ↴
Permanent Retention
Accruals ↴
Further additions anticipated
Arrangement ↴
The arrangement of the collection has been carried out with due consideration to the guidance in Guidelines for the Development of Local Authority Archives Services. The collection has been divided into two sections:
A: The Workings of Waterford County Council – this section details the administration of Waterford County Council and how the Council staff and elected members functioned.
B: Services Provided by Waterford County Council – this section provides information on the many and varied services provided by Waterford County Council.
Within these sections the collection is broken down according to the function of the records. The files have not been altered and reflect the manner in which the files were first set up. As a result, the files, in some cases, contain records from the Grand Jury administration, which were used by Waterford County Council in the continuation of functions such as bridge building and maintenance. Within each section the files are in date order.
Conditions of Access & Use
Access Conditions
Access restricted for records containing personal information.
Conditions Governing Reproduction
Permission from archivist required.
Creation Dates
1812-1979
Extent Medium
402 items
Material Language Script
English and Irish
Characteristics Tech Req
Damp press letter books only available on microfilm
Damp Press Letter Books only available on microfilm.
Copies Information
Some letters have been digitised on www.learnaboutarchives.ie
Related Material
IE/WCA/WCC/GNA/1 Waterford County Council Minute Books
IE/WCA/GJ/1 Waterford Grand Jury
Descriptive Control Area
Archivist Note
Joanne Rothwell
Rules/Conventions
IGAD: Irish Guidelines for Archival Description. Dublin: Society of Archivists, Ireland, 2009.
ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description. 2nd ed. Ottowa: International Council on Archives, 2000.
