County: Galway Site name: KILCLOONY
Sites and Monuments Record No.: N/A Licence number: 97E0123
Author: Richard Crumlish, Archaeological Services Unit Ltd.
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 580870m, N 732551m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.342847, -8.287271
Monitoring of the removal of topsoil along a section of the Milltown Road Improvement Scheme on the N17 was carried out on 2 and 3 April 1997. It was deemed necessary by the National Monuments Service after an earlier site inspection and report by the writer revealed that the south-west limit of the proposed road improvement passed within 1.8m of the north-east corner of the remains of Kilcloony church (SMR 16:61) and adjacent to a gatelodge (SMR 16:65).
The section of the road monitored ran in a north-west/south-east direction, parallel to the existing Milltown-Tuam Road, part of the N17. It was situated in rolling grassland, c. 2 miles south-east of the village of Milltown. It measured 128m in length and 4–13m in width. The topsoil was stripped using a mechanical digger. The stratigraphy encountered consisted of topsoil, below which was natural subsoil. Adjacent to the gatelodge at the north-west end of the section a thin layer of pebbles was visible in the topsoil, probably the remains of the forecourt of the gatelodge. Below the topsoil lay natural subsoil.
The only artefacts recovered during monitoring were five sherds of modern pottery.
Purcell House, Oranmore, Co. Galway
