2024:859 - Crowe Street, Gort, Galway

An 18th-century milestone at Crowe Street, in Gort, Co. Galway, forms part of a series of nine milestones on the public roads between the town of Gort and the village of Kilcolgan. Labane and Ardrahan Community Development Association (LACDA) organised the South Galway Milestones Project to record and conserve the milestones and raise public awareness of them.

The milestone at Crowe Street is a simple limestone pillar, trapezoidal in horizontal section and flat on top, with well-dressed faces. It was designed to stand 36 inches (c. 0.9m) above ground, with a rough, undressed root below  ground. The milestone is inscribed ‘17 From Galway’ (in old Irish miles) on its narrow, outer face. Part of the inscription was removed when a large spall was struck from the stone by the defence forces during World War II (local information).

The milestone as found had been moved from its original position, to a secondary position c. 50 m further south, probably during the construction of new businesses and residences on the same side of the road—i.e. the east side of Crowe Street. In its new location the stone suffered from a loss of visual amenity because: a) it was deeply buried (i.e. below its design height of 36 inches) and b) shared its new location with other roadside features including telecommunications poles and electrical station boxes.  The aim of excavating the milestone was to reinstate it in an uncluttered location in the grass verge, nearer to its original position, at its full design height, so that it might be viewed and enjoyed by passing motorists, walkers and cyclists. This was achieved by reinstating the stone on a footing of lean-mix concrete, with steel dowels inserted in the base of the stone to secure it to the concrete footing. This last intervention was necessary because, on excavating the stone, the lower or buried half was found to have been broken off, probably when the stone was last moved.

The work was supported by grants from Galway County Council and the Heritage Council and by practical support from the County Council’s Gort Area Office.