County: Wexford Site name: WEXFORD MAIN DRAINAGE
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 93E0190
Author: Joanna Wren
Site type: Historic town
Period/Dating: Multi-period
ITM: E 704718m, N 621701m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.336916, -6.463338
During the year the drainage work was monitored within the medieval town at Patrick Sq., High St., Mary St., Keysers Lane, Cinema Lane, Oyster Lane, Malt House Lane, North and South Main St., Upper Bride St. and Clifford St. Work on Mary St. uncovered the remains of a ditch, 7m wide, running north-south. This was c. 20m inside the line of the town wall. It probably formed part of an earlier defence, perhaps that mentioned by Giraldus Cambrensis in his account of the taking of Wexford by the Anglo-Normans.
Organic dump material was recorded in the streets leading from Main St. to the modern quay, Keysers Lane, Cinema Lane, Malt House Lane and Oyster Lane. It was recorded to a depth of 2m below the modern ground level inside a line c. 20m east of Main St. All the layers rise sharply to Main St. and it is likely that the original medieval coastline would be uncovered at a lower level slightly further east.
Layers of gravel and silt amongst the dumps suggest that flooding was a constant problem in this area. Rows of posts recorded at Oyster Lane and Keysers Lane may have formed part of an attempt to deal with this. Further east, large dumps of uncut stone in a post-medieval organic matrix suggest major land reclamation at this time.
Post-and-wattle walls were recorded in conjunction with the remains of clay and gravel layers on the east side of the South Main St. These may have been the continuation of the type of revetments suggested in the lanes or they could have formed part of buildings fronting onto Main St. In North Main St. Ms Orla Scully recorded the remains of a stone setting bonded with clay on the site of an intramural gate south of St Iberius's Church, recorded in the Urban Survey for Wexford.
The Mile Post, Waterford
