County: Kilkenny Site name: SUPERINTENDENT’S HOUSE, Ormonde Mills, Dukesmeadows, Kilkenny
Sites and Monuments Record No.: SMR 19:27 Licence number: 00E0615
Author: Paul Stevens, Margaret Gowen & Co. Ltd.
Site type: No archaeology found
Period/Dating: N/A
ITM: E 651012m, N 655559m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 52.648834, -7.246135
Test-trenching was carried out in September 2000 for a proposed development at the Superintendent’s House, situated within the Ormonde Mill complex, Dukesmeadows townland, east of John’s Bridge and Kilkenny Castle. The proposed development is for the renovation of a large three-storey building as a private dwelling and largely involved ground raising or renovation of existing buildings. Testing was therefore undertaken for the siting of the septic tank and percolation area.
Ormonde Mills is marked on the Archaeological Urban Survey of Kilkenny as post-medieval watermills; however, the Mills may have been in existence since the 12th or early 13th century. The Mills are recorded as the duke of Ormonde’s cornmills in 1654–5 and depicted on Rocque’s map of 1758 as the ‘Castle Mills’. In 1850 they were converted to woollen mills and continued in use until fire destroyed the complex in 1969.
Two test-trenches were excavated: Trench 1 was 1m west of Trench 2 in the proposed location of the water-pump pit; it was 1m square and 2.4m deep. Trench 2 was opened in the location of the proposed septic tank, located 10m east of the Superintendent’s House; it was 3.5m long, 2m wide and 2.4m deep. Natural riverine gravels were sealed by brown, sandy clay with early modern brick and a sooty rubble layer under peaty topsoil. No archaeological soils or features were revealed in either trench, and no further archaeological work was recommended to Dúchas.
2 Killiney View, Albert Road Lower, Glenageary, Co. Dublin
