County: Kildare Site name: CARTON HOUSE, Maynooth
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 6:9 Licence number: 00E0777
Author: Franc Myles and Peter Kerins, Margaret Gowen & Co. Ltd.
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 695330m, N 738825m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.390974, -6.566788
Carton Demesne was part of the extensive lands in north Kildare that were granted to Maurice Fitzgerald after the Anglo-Norman invasion. Throughout the medieval period, the Fitzgeralds’ centre of power was the castle at Maynooth, and Carton was of little importance by comparison. References to the townland relate to the mid-14th century or later and suggest that a castle or fortified dwelling of the tower-house type probably existed near the churchyard in what is now the townland of Old Carton. Such a location places the castle about 1km north of the present house and outside the existing demesne wall.
Carton House is a protected structure and has an SMR designation. While a geotechnical survey was undertaken for non-archaeological reasons (i.e. to establish the ground conditions under that area of Carton proposed for development), it was felt that the opportunity could be taken to examine archaeologically areas where ground disturbance was due to take place. There will be a specific need in the future to test the kitchen yard and dairy yard areas to the north of the main house, where it is proposed to excavate a services tunnel connecting the house with a new bedroom block.
Fourteen test-pits were mechanically excavated during the initial testing, and all were located on greenfield sites away from the area of the main building and outhouses. One of the pits of the survey, TP11, was inaccessible to the machine and remains unexcavated. The pits were generally 1m wide, 2.5m long and cut to a maximum depth of 3.2m where possible. They were located either in open fields (TP 4–8; TP 14–17) or in wooded areas (TP 1–3; TP 9; TP 10). During the follow-up testing, four test-pits were excavated in areas close to standing structures (TP 101; TP 102; TP 105; TP 106) and two in the area inaccessible to a JCB (TP 12; TP13).
There was no clear evidence of archaeological potential from the testing, except possibly drystone footings in TP 101 and TP 102. As the standing walls over these footings are to remain in place in the new development, it is unlikely than an opportunity will arise to investigate these features further.
2 Killiney View, Albert Road Lower, Glenageary, Co. Dublin
