| River Camac | |
|---|---|
 Camac River looking south atInchicore by "The Tramyard" development | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Region | Eastern and Midland |
| County | South Dublin,Dublin |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Mount Seskin,Slade of Saggart |
| Mouth | |
• location | River Liffey atHeuston Station, ultimatelyDublin Bay |
| Basin features | |
| River system | River Liffey |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Ferny Glinn, the Two Slades, Gallblack Stream (in turn Gallanstown and Blackditch Streams) |
| • right | Boherboy Stream (Corbally Slade River), Brownsbarn Stream, Fettercairn Stream, Robinhood Stream (Coolfan River), Drimnagh Castle (or Bluebell) Stream, Walkinstown Stream |
TheRiver Camac (sometimes spelledCammock, or, historically,Cammoge orCammoke;Irish:An Chamóg orAbhainn na Camóige)[1] is one of the larger rivers inDublin and was one of four tributaries of theLiffey critical to the early development of the city.[2]
The Camac flows from a source on Mount Seskin/Knockannavea mountain north-east of the village ofBrittas (southwest of Dublin city), joining other mountain streams, before being diverted by an 18th-century diversion from the Brittas River tributary of theRiver Liffey.[1][3]
It flows through a mountain valley named the Slade of Saggart which lies just west of theN81 road (and below the site of the Crookslingtuberculosissanatorium) southwest of the broadTallaght plain and east ofNewcastle. The Slade of Saggart is a large rock-cut valley which was possibly created byfluvioglacial streams deriving from the wasting Slievethoul icecap, as noted by Hoare (1976).[4] The river then flows pastSaggart, through Kingswood and under theN7. The Camac proceeds through Kilmatead, where there is a small lake with islands, and from there flows intoCorkagh Park (formerly Corkagh demesne) where the river was diverted into numerous ponds over the centuries that provided water for localmills. There are two ponds at the back of Kilmateed, a new fishery pond in Corkagh Park, the dry bed of a pond at the back of the Fairview Oil Mill ruins (near Cherrywood), and further downstream next to Moyle Park College, where the water was used by Clondalkin Paper Mills in the past. Many of the concrete ponds are now in poor condition as water levels have dropped and the ponds have silted up. The mill pond serving Leinster Paper Mills was situated on the old Nangor Road,Clondalkin but was covered to make way for a car park and entrance for the Mill Shopping Centre from the Nangor Road side in the late 1980s.[1]
The Camac then flows through Clondalkin village opposite theGarda Station and down Watery Lane, flowing on towards Nangor Road, and meeting tributaries in the industrialBluebell and Robinhood Estate areas.[1] It then travels through theLansdowne Valley to residentialDrimnagh andCrumlin.[5]
The river goes on toInchicore, where it is tunnelled under theGrand Canal before a bridge crossing at Golden Bridge. It runs betweenGrattan Crescent Park and nearbyRichmond Park (home toSt Patrick's Athletic) where it gives its name to the ground's 'Camac Terrace', and arrives inKilmainham, where it runs behind thejail museum[5] and is crossed by Bow Bridge atBow Lane West.[6] It enters the Liffey alongsideHeuston Station, a little upstream ofSean Heuston Bridge.[5] The river wasculverted underneath the railway station when it was built in 1846.
The Camac receives tributaries in the Slade of Saggart, including the Ferny Glinn and the Two Slades, and later from around Newcastle, and near Clondalkin (including the Boherboy, Brownsbarn and Fettercairn Streams, the latter joining near the boundary of Corkagh Park, in which the Camac features). Lower tributaries include the Robinhood Stream (Coolfan River), Gallblack Stream (formed from the Blackditch and Gallanstown Streams), Drimnagh Castle (or Bluebell) Stream, and Walkinstown Stream.[7]
Crooked Friend onYouTube, song about the River Camac, by Catherine Ann Cullen
Media related toRiver Camac at Wikimedia Commons