History of Wicklow Mountains

span class="apple-converted-space"> Glencree, the Sally Gap and Laragh. A series of army barracks and police stations were built along the route, although they were little used and soon fell into disrepair as the Wicklow Mountains soon ceased to be a centre of rebel activity after the road was completed.

The census of 1841 recorded a population of 13,000 in the Wicklow uplands out of 126,143 persons in the county as a whole. Following the Great Famine, the census of 1891 showed the population of County Wicklow had declined to 62,136 with the proportionate fall in the uplands regions even greater as the populace deserted the marginal lands.

The construction of the railways in the 19th century led to the development of tourism in the Wicklow Mountains. Visitors were taken by horse-drawn transport into the mountains from the railway station at Rathdrum.Glendalough quickly established itself as the most popular tourist