Craigmore Viaduct, Bessbrook, Newry, Co Armagh, BT35

Craigmore Viaduct is a significant railway viaduct built between 1851 and 1852 by the Belfast & District Railway Company to designs by Sir John Macneill, with construction carried out by William Dargan. It carries the main Belfast–Dublin double-track railway over the Camlough River valley and represents the final major construction on the Belfast-Dublin line, enabling through train services. Costing approximately £50,000, the viaduct is considered one of the most impressive in Ireland, second only to the Boyne Viaduct, and is noted for its scale, elegant design, subtle detailing, and high standard of construction.

The viaduct consists of 18 semicircular arches arranged in a gentle curve across the valley. The arches span 18.3 metres (60 feet) and range in height from 21.3 to 42.7 metres (70 to 140 feet) above the ground, maintaining a consistent crown height. The structure is built from rock-faced granodiorite ashlar, with random laying of blocks on the wing walls. The slender piers have a slight two-way batter and tooled arrises, topped by finely-dressed granite imposts. The arch voussoirs are rusticated with vee-jointed blocks. Two projecting courses of finely dressed stone run across the viaduct above crown level, topped with a shallow blocking course. The lower string course continues as coping on the wing abutments, curving down to capped square piers. A shallow projecting pier is situated between the wing and first arch at each end. The Camlough River runs through the sixth arch from the south end. Retaining elements from the original construction are projecting stones just below spring level on the fourth, fifth, and sixth arches from the same end, where arch falsework was positioned. The viaduct also crosses the route of a former millrace to Millvale cornmill and the Bessbrook–Newry Tramway, which operated between 1885 and 1948. The viaduct is of industrial archaeological interest and possesses architectural, proportional, ornamental, structural, and setting interest, with notable historical associations relating to authorship and a rarity within Northern Ireland and internationally.