Early inhabitants led rural lives, living off the land, firstly as hunter gatherers, then
farmers. Castlebridge’s location, with access to Wexford Harbour, the sea and the River Slaney, made it strategically ripe for development.
The monastery founded by St Ibar in the early fifth century on Beg Erin Island was the beginnings of commercial development and the churches that followed created employment, through construction, stone masonry, and the trades of weaving and candlestick making. Churches attracted students and scholars, who in turn created books and works of art. As the population increased, so too did the need to feed, clothe and house them.
In 1742, Nicholas Dixon arrived, building a malt house, dock, canal and bridges, he was responsible for Castlebridge’s further development. The building of a toll bridge by Lemuel Cox to Wexford in 1795 brought invaluable revenue to the town. In 1810, Dixon cut a canal from the village to the Slaney to avoid toll costs. The canal was used up until 1944.
The bankruptcy of Dixon’s son, John, led to the business being passed to Patrick Breen in 1826. William Bolton Nunn married Breen’s granddaughter, Barbara Mary Breen, in 1870 and took over the business in 1875, changing the name to W. B. Nunn & Co.
The Breen’s, then Nunn’s were major suppliers of barley malt to the Guinness Brewery in Dublin for almost 150 years, providing a valuable source of employment and a market for farmers to sell their produce. Joshua Nunn took over the business in 1910 until 1973 when Arthur Guinness & Co. purchased the business.
Early inhabitants led rural lives, living off the land, firstly as hunter gatherers, then
farmers. Castlebridge’s location, with access to Wexford Harbour, the sea and the River Slaney, made it strategically ripe for development.
The monastery founded by St Ibar in the early fifth century on Beg Erin Island was the beginnings of commercial development and the churches that followed created employment, through construction, stone masonry, and the trades of weaving and candlestick making. Churches attracted students and scholars, who in turn created books and works of art. As the population increased, so too did the need to feed, clothe and house them.
In 1742, Nicholas Dixon arrived, building a malt house, dock, canal and bridges, he was responsible for Castlebridge’s further development. The building of a toll bridge by Lemuel Cox to Wexford in 1795 brought invaluable revenue to the town. In 1810, Dixon cut a canal from the village to the Slaney to avoid toll costs. The canal was used up until 1944.
The bankruptcy of Dixon’s son, John, led to the business being passed to Patrick Breen in 1826. William Bolton Nunn married Breen’s granddaughter, Barbara Mary Breen, in 1870 and took over the business in 1875, changing the name to W. B. Nunn & Co.
The Breen’s, then Nunn’s were major suppliers of barley malt to the Guinness Brewery in Dublin for almost 150 years, providing a valuable source of employment and a market for farmers to sell their produce. Joshua Nunn took over the business in 1910 until 1973 when Arthur Guinness & Co. purchased the business.
