A SPECIAL talk will take place next week on the life and achievements of William Doherty who built O’Connell Bridge in 1880.

William J Doherty was born in Donegal in 1834 and lived in Castletown, Fahan, at different times.

The present owners of the property, the Lamberton family, have spent some time in renovating a barn on the premises with the help of a grant from the Heritage Council.

The design and quality of the building was such that it is believed it was built by William Doherty.

William began his career as an assistant engineer during the construction of the Lough Swilly Railway which ran from Derry to Buncrana.

This involved extensive land reclamation in the vicinity of Inch Island. He moved to Liverpool and Birkenhead to continue his work.

Eventually he returned to Ireland and set up his own construction firm, first in Belfast and then Dublin.

There followed a very productive period in his career in which his firm carried many major civil engineering projects.

The most famous of these was the construction of O’Connell Bridge in Dublin in 1880. He was elected High Sheriff of Dublin and was regarded as one of the most talented engineers in the British Isles.

He was also a noted antiquarian and produced a number of books and pamphlets on the history of Inishowen and Donegal, the most famous of these being Inis-Owen and Tirconnell.

On Saturday, August 16 you are invited you to a talk in the renovated barn, given by well-known artist, John McCarron on the life and achievements of William Doherty.

The talk is from 7.30pm lasting around an hour.

The Eircode for Lamberton’s Farm is F93 CF77.