The purpose of the Archive is to house and maintain a collection of books, periodicals and archival material relating to civil engineering and related subjects of interest to the departmental staff and students in support of teaching and project work and generally to aid research into the historical background of civil engineering subjects.
The Archive consists of a collection of over 1,400 books relating to the history of civil engineering and biography (catalogued); a collection of periodicals, notably the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Transactions of the Institution of Civil Engineers of Ireland, the Transactions of the Institution of Engineers of Ireland, and the Engineers Journal; a historical collection of Surveying and Drafting instruments (approximately 100 items dating from 1720 to 1990); miscellaneous historical material in the form of papers, pamphlets, reports, etc.
The Archive is located off the Drawing Office in the Department of Civil, Structural & Environmental Engineering in the Museum Building and is administered by Dr. Ron Cox.
The Archive also houses the National Civil Engineering Heritage Database which includes records of all major civil engineering structures in the Republic of Ireland, such as bridges and viaducts, canals and aqueducts, railway infrastructure, docks, harbours and lighthouses, and water supplies.
