County: Louth Site name: DROGHEDA: 10 Palace Street/Francis Street
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 24:41 Licence number: 99E0637
Author: Ian Russell, Archaeological Consultancy Services Ltd.
Site type: Building
Period/Dating: Multi-period
ITM: E 709092m, N 775428m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.717113, -6.347207
An assessment was carried out to the rear of 10 Palace Street, Drogheda, on 10 November 1999 to fulfil a condition of the planning permission for the erection of a new townhouse on the site. The site is within the area of archaeological potential of Drogheda, c. 50m north of St Laurence's Gate, but outside the medieval walls of the town.
Two trenches were excavated by machine within the area of the proposed development. Trench 1 was excavated east-west, was 5.5m long and 1.4m wide and contained a number of post-medieval layers. A large, post-medieval wall, 0.95m thick, was uncovered below a variety of post-medieval garden soils. An internal cobbled surface was revealed at the east end of the trench, overlying a series of post-medieval hardcore deposits.
Trench 2 was excavated perpendicular to Trench 1, north-south, and was 3m long and 1.3m wide. A possible medieval wall and hard cobbled surface were exposed at a depth of 1.4m, below a number of later, 19th-century demolition material deposits.
A number of post-medieval finds, along with three sherds of medieval ware, were recovered from the base of Trench 2. No other significant archaeological features or deposits were found, and the development will not have any archaeological impact.
15 Trinity Street, Drogheda, Co. Louth
